As we’ve transitioned into the summer of 2022, many of us continue to work remotely. With all the benefits of remote work come challenges related to your ergonomics when working from home – resulting in issues such as neck pain, back pain and headaches. Below we’ll discuss workplace sitting posture and how to optimize your work environment to alleviate the daily stressors placed on your body.
A common posture we see is the rounded shoulders, head forward posture. As you can see in the image above, this posture places unnecessary strain on your lower back, mid-upper back and neck. This is not optimal ergonomics when working from home. We often see this posture associated with low back pain, upper back strain and neck tightness.
Below are some simple modifications you can make to your sitting posture:
1) The 90-90-90 rule: It is important to have your chair at the proper height relative to your desk, to allow for an approximate 90 degree bend at your knees, hips and elbows. This reduces the amount of stress placed on your body in sitting.
2) Screen at Eye-Level: Adjusting your monitor so that your screen is at eye level can help alleviate the stress placed on your neck muscles.
3) Frequent Standing Breaks: Regardless of our workplace set up, sitting 8 hours per day and 5 days per week is not a natural position for our bodies. The human body is designed to constantly move, and that won’t change regardless of how much you spend on an ergonomic chair. Taking a 1 minute standing break every 30 minutes can help prevent posture-related pain.
4) Frequent Position Changes: Another way to alleviate posture-related pain is to alternate our work positions. That means a period of time sitting at your desk, followed by standing at your kitchen table with your laptop. You can use different time periods for each position. For example, 30 minutes of sitting followed by 15 minutes of standing may help. Frequent position changes are an important component of any ergonomic work set-up. If your body begins to feel stiff and achy, movement is the key.
The goal of any work-set up should be to optimize your work output while preventing any aches or pains. The tips above should give you an idea of the things you can do to prevent posture-related pain, and improve your work from home ergonomics. However, every person will respond to slightly different modifications depending on past injury history, current pain sites, and overall functional mobility/strength. Book an Online Physiotherapy session for a more detailed evaluation and modification of your work ergonomics.
Any questions or thoughts? Feel free to reach out at contact@theonlinephysio.ca or contact us using our contact form.
