"Combat the Consequences of Prolonged Sitting: Tips and Exercises for a Healthier and More Productive Workday"

Hey again ??

It’s time for the latest edition of our newsletter. As January draws towards the last part, I've been busy with work and hardly have time to catch my breath from Monday to Friday. But I must say, I genuinely enjoy what I do. I hope you are all off to a great start in achieving your health and fitness goals for the year.

As we discussed on our LinkedIn live show, setting resolutions can be less effective than working on building new habits. This approach leads to better results in the long run.

For myself, I decided to continue with what I had been doing last year. Consistency is key to achieving results. I fine-tune my approach when necessary, but I always strive to maintain a consistent routine.

My personal sessions incorporate strength work, mobility, flexibility, and aerobic capacity training. Sometimes my plans don't go as expected due to time constraints, diary changes, and family commitments. But I don't let it get me down. There's always another day to pick up where I left off.

I often see clients getting discouraged after missing a session or two. But it's important to remember that it takes about two weeks for the body to enter its reversibility process. So, don't let missed sessions pile up and discourage you from achieving your goals.

So this newsletter I wanted to give some further tips about working behind the dreaded desk for long hours. We all know that feeling physical pain in the body can lead to a loss of productivity during the workday. And it can even spill over into our personal lives outside of work.

We start with a conversation about the problem.

As we all know, the human body is not designed for prolonged sitting. Our ancestors didn't have chairs, and even today, children naturally assume a squatting position when playing. However, as adults, we are forced to spend hours upon hours sitting in front of a computer, causing our bodies to adapt and change their muscular structure to find the easiest way to operate.

This adaptation can lead to imbalances in the pelvis and shoulder girdles, known as a lower or upper cross syndrome. These imbalances can cause a host of problems, including back pain, poor posture, and reduced mobility. But don't worry, there are steps you can take to combat the effects of prolonged sitting and keep your body healthy and strong.

Some activity involving the glutes is always a must for anyone. As I always say, no one is worse off by having stronger or bigger glutes. And in case you aren't sure what the Glutes are, they are your bum cheeks.

Long periods of sitting on your bum can in fact lead them to switch off. If that happens then guess which muscle group will take over the job?

The lower back muscles! And these muscles are much smaller and less powerful than the glutes. Simple exercises such as Glute Bridges or banded glute bridges can certainly help to keep them active and awake.

With upper body issues as we sit for long periods the front of our bodies becomes shortened. So, exercises such as a doorway stretch will certainly help to restore the length in the front of the shoulders and chest muscles.

With any pain, you may experience it is always a good idea to get it looked at. I like to use the car analogy. You wouldn't leave your engine management light on right? It's the same with the body and pain. It's simply a warning sign that something isn't firing right in the body.

And with pain, there are four possible categories it can be placed in. Which are, muscular, skeletal, neurological and fascia.

I hope those stretches help you in some way if you are working from behind your desk or even driving for long hours.

I was asked to give some extra tips also for those who have to make long journeys in their vehicles for work. It's going to be the same stretches as above but in addition, I would think about stretching the hip flexors and calf muscles.

With any stretching, if a muscle has become short, we want to be holding these stretches for at least 60 seconds with good breathing techniques to help them to start to relax and lengthen out. Doing this regularly throughout the working week will help towards getting the body back to its best movement.

And that's where we end today's newsletter. I thank everyone who has subscribed over the past 5 weeks. It helps me to get some quality information and help you. If you would like me to cover anything else, please just leave a comment or even share with someone in your network who is maybe experiencing pain in their body through long periods of sitting.

Remember, movement is medicine! We were given a body and that is our vehicle through life so, look after it as best as you can and you will see the benefits as you age.

Best regards

James

#businessowner #posture #ergonomics