ADVICE FOR OFFICE WORKERS

If you’re an office worker then chances are you spend a lot of time sitting! If you spend most of your day parked up in the chair then here’s two things you need to know:

How to build regular breaks and movement into your day (as too much sitting is bad for your health).
How to set up your workstation to prevent posture and back problems.
Here’s my advice…

Taking regular breaks
Did you already know that sitting isn’t great for your health? Recent studies have shown that sitting can shorten our life and others have compared it to the effects of smoking!

If you spend the majority of your day sitting then ensure your breaks are active. Go for a walk at lunchtime or try and stand for some of your break rather than sit. You can also look at where your printers or other information is situated. Where possible create a routine task that makes you get up out of chair. This builds natural breaks into your day.

A few other office related tips:

Walk over to a colleague rather than sending an email.
Set a reminder on your calendar to get up and stretch every hour or so.
If you are making a call on your mobile you can walk around while you talk.
Active meetings - take your discussions outside for a few minutes’ walk. You could stop for a cup of coffee on the way.
Setting up your workstation
Since most of us spend a lot of time at work it’s important that our area is set up correctly. Here are a few things to check:

1.Learn how to adjust the seat back of your office chair. The rounded part (lumbar support) should fit comfortably into the small of your back. This can be lowered or raised. Chairs have varying mechanisms with which to do this so have a look or ask. Change the height of your seat back before you change the back angle.

2.When you sit with your back supported you should not feel like you are being pushed forward. If that is the case your seat back is too upright; recline it slightly back. You may want to recline it slightly more if your lower back is sore to ‘unload it’. Not too far that your head and neck have to strain forward but a tiny degree of change can make a big difference to comfort.

3.Feet need to be fully supported either on the floor or by using a footrest.

4.When sitting up tall the top of your monitor should be at, or below, eye level with a slight angle so that bottom of screen is closer to you than the top. Use of glasses or lenses may impact on the height and angle with which you need to use your monitor. Be aware that a smaller screen rather than larger may be better for your viewing. Multiple screens can be challenging to good positioning – if one is used more frequently make this your main screen and position yourself in front of this as much as possible.

5.Using a sit-stand desk allows the freedom to change positions more easily. It also allows you to adjust the height by a millimetre of two which can also increase comfort.

6.Limit time on laptops; tablets; pads; mobile devices when you don’t have a docking station or some method to set them up as you would for a PC workstation. Use a separate keyboard and mouse for longer periods of use and either a separate monitor or a stand so that your screen is positioned in line with the guide above.

If you want more detailed advice on your workstation then talk to your local physiotherapist who will be able to provide advice and an exercise plan tailored just to you.
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