Feeling achy all the time? A few possibilities. And some stretches for neck pain at the desk.

In ongoing newsletters, I’m going to be covering a few different subjects I’ve had in conversations with people over the last week. Now, as a coach, I often get asked many different questions. And some feel silly asking them, but if you don’t know then it’s a good chance to become educated on the subject. ??

Education is one of my core values as a business. If I can give a person the education & knowledge for life then they are in a good position to help themselves and others around them. It’s a win-win.

The first question was from my business coach Peter Gregory. I’ve been helping Pete and more recently his wife. She had mentioned that she just feels achy all of the time, even after doing exercises. Whilst aching after exercise is perfectly normal unless it feels like bad pain, then there are a lot of different possibilities to the WHY.

Here’s my take on it. The first thing I always get my clients to do (especially those online) is to fill in a readiness survey. This consists of scoring yourself out of five points for each. This is 1 - awful, 2 - poor, 3 - ok , 4 - good, and 5 - excellent.

Sleep, Mood, Energy, Stress, and soreness. If we can keep a good track over a week or over their training schedule then we can look for opportunities to improve on the ones that are low or if the total score over time is poor.

Sleep is a big one. Lacking recovery time can lead to feeling achy for sure. The same applies to the other four too. If my sleep was poor then that’s certainly going to have an effect on the other measures.

Dehydration can also pay a part in feeling achy. Water is simply a must, even if no exercise is present. Upping water intake and seeing if it has any improvements on the achy body is a good start.

When we move each day our muscles are working hard to support that movement. So, this can lead to tight fascia tissue, which is what wraps around every muscle and or gain in the body. Tight fascia can lead to feeling achy in the body.

There is also vitamin deficiency, Vitamin D deficiency can cause muscle aches, weakness, and bone pain in people of all ages.?With the UK we tend to lack a lot of sunshine throughout the year. So, supplementing Vitamin D may be a good starting point to see if it helps.

Now, that question is answered in some detail. Let’s move on to some content that can help you through your working week behind the desk.

The neck is often an area where people feel pain. Working behind the desk for long hours can certainly bring this feeling on. We tend to look down at the screens often. So, the muscles on the front or lateral part of the neck can become short. The scalene stretch can help this…

Another hidden muscle is the Levator Scapulae. This muscles travels into the neck, at the back. And goes under the trapezius muscles. Often it can become tight. So, here is the stretch of release to combat that painful area.

Have a try of both of those throughout the day and see if they decrease neck pain. ??

That’s all for todays newsletter. Remember movement is medicine.

James Bacon ??

#ergonomicsolutions #neckpain #businessowner