Denise Mackinnon, RMT
Registered Massage Therapist
Registered Massage Therapist
Helping you achieve health and wellness through massage therapy, self help and other good for you tips and ideas.
Office Overload
Here is the scenario: you wake up at 6:30, stumble out of bed, feeling stiff and achy in your low back and neck. You get ready for work, make some coffee and toast, and sit on the couch eating while catching the morning news. Then it's out to the car for the 10 minute drive. You park as close to the office as possible, as it is raining, and sit down at your station to start your long day of desk work.
After two hours of computer work, you get up for a coffee break. Off you go into the lunch room, grab a cuppa joe, and sit down to chat with a coworker. Then it's back to the desk, where you remain until lunch. You go for sushi at the restaurant across the street for lunch, and then walk back across the street and get back to work for two more solid hours of typing, mousing, and answering phone calls.
You brace the phone between your ear and shoulder while pulling a file and taking some notes, and bend over and reach for the binder you store under your desk. Another coffee break finally arrives, but you are a little behind, so chose to stay at your desk and catch up.
5:00 finally arrives, and you rise from your chair, low back aching and tight, walk to the car and drive home. Tired after a long days work, you feel like you owe it to yourself to relax on the couch and watch a bit of TV, or surf the web on your laptop.
This is an average day for many many people, but do you see anything wrong with this scenario? Where do we start!
NO EXERCISE is the first thing that jumps to my mind! This person probably took about 500 steps in their entire day (you are supposed to get a minimum of 10,000). We need movement and exercise to nourish and build our muscles, joints, heart, lungs, ligaments, and every other tissue in the body. Lack of exercise is a huge contributor to ischemic tissue, which is oxygen deprived, full of toxins, weak, and therefore PAINFUL!
So often I hear people say they can't exercise because it hurts. The reason they hurt is because they don't exercise! Please, find something that is right for you, and do it. If you are overweight, running might not be the best exercise to start with, and it will be too hard on your joints. Instead try swimming or water aerobics. If you work with a mouse all day, tennis might not be the best choice for you, try hiking or something that isn't going to strain your already tired wrists. A simple walk at lunch with your coworker, rather than sitting at a restaurant will not only help you function better the rest of the afternoon, but will also help you sleep better, so you feel your best the next day too!
Some simple things you can do at work to get more exercise are to park farther away, or bike to work. Take stairs if you can, and take frequent mini breaks to do a bit of mobilizing: roll your shoulders, move your head and neck side to side and front to back, and stretch out your hands and forearms. Even a tiny break can make a big difference! It is best if you can take a quick break every 45 minutes. Set a timer if you like, or else 3 hours will fly by and your body will be "stuck"!
Mini breaks are important not only to get some blood flowing to your muscles, but also to get blood flowing to your brain, as well as giving your overworked eyes a rest. Giving yourself a quick reprieve from your focused concentration will make you more productive once you get back to work. You will end up accomplishing more with your day then if you had never taken any breaks at all!
Correct work station set up will save you many aches and pains. Your hips and elbows should be at 90º angles when working on the computer (for keyboard and mouse). Your monitor should be at eye level and directly in front of you. A good, adjustable chair is paramount. You should be able to sit with your back supported, and have a 2 inch gap between the front of the seat and the back of your knees. If, in order to have proper positioning at the keyboard, your chair is too high for feet to be flat on the floor, place a wedge or even a big book on the floor to support your feet on.
Nutrition is also a major key to surviving hectic times, both at work and in the rest of your life! If you eat a diet low in fat and protein, and fill up on fruit and vegetables, your body won't have to work so hard to digest everything, and you will have more energy to fulfill other daily tasks! You might even have enough energy to go for a walk after work!
Over eating is also a big energy drainer, so eat slowly and stop when you are getting full. You can always wrap up that half sandwich and eat it later!
Preventative Maintenance is also important if you are in a job which required you to do repetitive movements day in and day out. No matter how good you are at taking mini breaks, the accumulative effect can catch up with you. If you find you are getting sore earlier in the day, or your weekend just isn't long enough to ease your aches and pains, then it is time to get some work done! Massage therapy is a great preventative tool (as well as being effective to rehabilitate already injured areas). Your massage therapist can often catch tight spots before they become painful problems.
Try these ideas, and feel the difference! They should make your day much less painful, more energized, and more productive!
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