Do you feel stiff and sore from sitting at work all day?
The best thing to add to your day is movement. Our spine and joints LOVE movement. Unfortunately for a lot of us, working at a desk means that typing at a keyboard and clicking a mouse will be the most amount of movement we will get in our day. Sustained sitting and sedentary postures for long periods of time put excess strain on our necks and backs, often causing tightness, tension and pain.
Try this:
Bend your finger backwards – doesn’t hurt much right? Bend your finger backwards and hold it there for 10 minutes. HURTS RIGHT!? The same thing is happening to the joints of your spine when you sit or stand in a position it doesn’t like for a long period of time.
How can Pilates help with desk work?
Pilates is another great form of exercise to get you moving throughout your day. There are two ways in which Pilates can help with those of you stuck at a desk.
1. Pilates Gets Your Joints Moving
Pilates is great at introducing whole body movement but also targeting specific joints, particularly the spine. It helps the spine move through segmentation. Segmentation is trying to get each and every vertebra moving independently.
2. Pilates Gets You Stronger
Pilates is great at building muscular endurance and strength. This will not only help you prevent you getting into those positions that your back doesn’t like, it will also help build your resilience to load. It will help you lift, carry and move throughout your day without putting as much stress through your neck or back. It builds your spinal resilience and develops the musculature around your spine to better carry yourself throughout your day.
Remember: Your best posture is your next posture!
So get moving people! Even really short breaks of just a minute or two spaced regularly throughout your day have been proven to have many benefits – not only for your joints and muscles but also for your concentration, productivity, decision-making ability, stress relief and even some metabolic and hormonal factors. Change your posture and move throughout your day, plus add some regular exercise like Pilates in to your week to feel looser, less stressed, more relaxed and stronger.
