7 Exercises You Need to Do If You Sit All Day


You spend all day in front of your computer and all evening suffering from stiff muscles, numbness, and tingling sensations. Thankfully, there are a couple of easy exercises that can make you feel a lot better! Neck and shoulders After a long day of working on a computer or even driving long distances, the tension in your muscles grows, causing pain in the tendons and bones. To get rid of it, you need to take 2 steps: Stretch your muscles, and relieve pain and tension. To give your muscles a good stretch, lean against a doorway with one hand, and lower your head. Simple-Health-Exercises Best Exercise Well-Being Programs.

Try to reach your other shoulder with your chin, and only then return to the initial position. Don’t go too fast! Pleasant warmth in the muscles is a sign that you’re doing everything right. Repeat the exercise 10 times for each arm. After that, it’s time to relieve the pain and tension. Simple-Health-Exercises Best Exercise Well-Being Programs.

For this exercise, stand up against a wall so that the back of your neck touches it and your heels are about 3” away from it. Lower your shoulders, stretch your arms to the sides, and do 10 lifts. Make sure your arms touch the wall during the exercise. Whether you constantly feel the tension in your neck or not, don’t dismiss these exercises! Last year in Great Britain alone, 30 million people called in sick because of neck pain. Simple-Health-Exercises Best Exercise Well-Being Programs.

Pinched nerves and blood vessels in the neck can lead to numerous problems, including impaired eyesight and headaches, so take care of it now before it’s too late. Wrists The next part of your body that deserves your attention is your wrists.

Improper positioning of a keyboard and mouse, as well as the innocent habit of holding your smartphone all the time, can easily lead to tingling and pain. To avoid that, remember 3 simple exercises that you can do in 5 minutes right in your office! First, you have to warm up your wrist.

Do about 10 round motions with it, drawing circles with your hand while keeping your arms stable. Don’t forget to repeat the same thing on the other hand. Next up is finger stretching. Link the index finger on your right hand with the index finger on your left hand, and start to pull. Continue to do so for every finger on both hands.

Finally, make it a habit to use 2 small balls or an expander during your work breaks to strengthen your joints. Just like with neck and shoulder pain, ignoring wrist sensations is a bad idea. It can easily end with carpal tunnel syndrome, which causes slower nerve impulses and loss of feeling in the fingers.

Lower back and buttocks Lower back pain and heaviness in the legs don’t mean you’re getting old — it’s just a consequence of a sedentary lifestyle! Sitting for several hours straight can easily lead to sciatica, a condition in which your sciatic nerve becomes irritated.

Moreover, the absence of physical activity often provokes the development of cellulite. But don’t worry! Just a couple of stretching exercises can minimize all the damage and improve your blood circulation. If you’re in the office, sit on the edge of your chair, and stretch one leg forward.

Now slowly bend your body toward your leg.

Don’t overdo it! You shouldn’t feel any pain or tension. Repeat this exercise 5–10 times for each leg to work your lower back and buttocks and relax your hamstring. By the way, there’s also a home exercise for back pain. Lie on your back, and put a pillow or blanket under your neck.

Then bend your right knee, and put your left ankle on top of it so that your left foot is above your right knee. After that, clasp your hands around the back of your right thigh, and start to pull. If you can’t put your hands around your thigh, you can always use a towel. Your task is to try not to lift your buttock while staying in this position for about 30 seconds. Do 2 reps for one leg, and then switch to the other one.

And there you go! Those are all the exercises you have to do regularly to clear up your lymph congestion. Still, a sedentary lifestyle is not good for your body in the long run, so it’s essential to follow a couple of other tips to protect your health…

Get an adjustable seat. If you have to sit all day long, at least do it in comfort! Something as simple as an adjustable seat can easily minimize tons of the health risks of a sedentary lifestyle. They correct your posture and body mechanics, decreasing your chances of developing lower back pain and unpleasant neck sensations. Moreover, specialists often suggest using adjustable desks and changing them to standing height a few times a day to activate your muscles after prolonged sitting.

7 Exercises You Need to Do If You Sit All Day

Goodbye, lymph congestion! Take walks. Not that long ago, American specialists found that taking 5-minute walks during your workday can reverse all the harm your peripheral arteries get from prolonged sitting.

Whenever you get a minute or 2, get up to get a cup of coffee, or just walk through the office. Taking the stairs is also a great idea!

It “shakes up” your legs and makes your muscles work. If you can’t take small walks at work, try to go home on foot or at least take a little stroll in the neighborhood before you go to bed. After all, moving is living, right? Measure your steps. Whenever you take a walk for lunch or during your break, don’t forget to measure your steps.

These days you can find tons of useful apps to track your movements and compare them to a daily norm. At the end of the day, you can look through your daily activity, discover your weak spots, and work on them. Catrine Tudor-Locke, a walking behavior researcher, recognizes 5 main types of activity. If you take only 5,000 steps a day, you probably lead a sedentary lifestyle and aren’t too active. The low activity starts with 5,000 and ends with 7,500 steps per day.

Taking up to 9,000 steps every day is the golden mean; 10,000 steps puts you into the active category. And finally, if you walk about 15,000 steps a day, you must be a superhero! This doesn’t mean that you have to do that many, though. 10,000 steps a day is more than enough to keep your body healthy. Stick to the 50:10 rule.

To keep your work and physical activity balanced, remember one simple rule: For every 50 minutes of work, you should take a 10-minute break.

It can be anything you want, as long as it includes movement. Put together an exercise routine to get your muscles well stretched, do a couple of push-ups, or take a walk in the park to enjoy nature. 10 minutes later, you’ll get back to work feeling motivated and energized! Run!

Running every single day for at least 5–10 minutes is known to improve the functioning of your whole body. And you don’t have to be Usain Bolt to get all these benefits! Even the slowest running possible can make your organs stronger. If you’re not a big fan of running, try riding your bike. It prevents obesity and works out your legs, buttocks, and lower back.

Plus, cycling releases an impressive amount of endorphins, reducing pain and making you way happier. So grab your helmet, and take a ride! Tidy up. If you work from home, try to get up at least 2–3 times a day to wash the dishes, sweep the floor, or tidy your shelves. It may not seem too exciting, but your muscles will definitely enjoy it since any physical activity, even a monotonous one, gives them a good stretch after a whole day of sitting down.

The best time to do it is right after you have breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Physical activity after eating lowers your blood sugar levels, decreases the risk of insulin resistance, and allows your body to get its dose of movement before you get back to work. Be active on the weekends. I get it! On the weekend, all you wanna do is lie in bed in your PJs, eat, and watch some comedy on Netflix.

But this doesn’t help fight your sedentary lifestyle at all! Start to go hiking, visit new places in your city with friends, or go to an exciting concert. Simple-Health-Exercises Best Exercise Well-Being Programs. These types of activities always leave you with cool memories and stories, and they get your body going after 5 days of sitting down like a zombie in front of your laptop. It’s a win-win either way! What do you do after a long workday to let your body relax?

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Read More: Curing Lower Neck And Back Pain

Read More: HEALTHY AT WORK (Keeping fit at a desk job)

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