Whilst an ergonomic workstation is a fantastic investment in your daily health and wellbeing, a workstation alone is not the be-all and end-all in the quest for great posture. This week Posture People have been speaking to Mark Claireaux from Alexander Technique Central Brighton. Here are his excellent top tips to avoid bad office habits and help with ongoing aches and pains.
TIP 1 : Texting? Bring your phone to your face, rather than your face down to your phone! Avoid Text Neck
TIP 2 : Think how much your head weighs. (5Kg/ 10 lbs ish) If you are poking it forwards towards the screen it’ll drag you down. I sometimes imagine I am wearing a head torch and use that to look at the screen rather than poking my chin towards it. To some extent, it helps my neck to be a little freer. Try this when looking at any screen or iGadget.
TIP 3: Never fix your position – allow for the possibility of movement even in sitting.
TIP 4 : Do you work at a “Standing Desk”? Have an even distribution of contact on the bottoms of your feet when standing (awareness of the earth pushing up underneath you supporting you). You could think of yourself being “plugged in” to the planet.
TIP 5: Probably most important of all. Get the lying down bug. It’s all the rage these days! Great if you suffer back pain. Just have a few books under your head and your knees pointing gently to the ceiling. We call it “Refreshing the Spine”, it will help to relieve any unwanted and unnecessary tension.
