Are you an athlete? No? How about a corporate athlete? Do you compete
in the corporate world while sitting at your desk? Still no? You are an
athlete! You have to understand, I see an athlete as someone that uses
their body to compete. An athlete’s body must be a highly tuned, well
functioning machine. Still, many corporate athletes have forgotten that
they need their bodies to work as well as possible in order for them to
perform at their highest level… even if they never leave their chair.
Many corporate athletes have bodies that are not working the way they
should, even beginning to break down and leave them dealing with
regular aches and pains as a part of their normal day. Why do our bodies
break down? Typically, you can trace most of your body’s
musculo-skeletal problems to imbalances, posture, and overuse.
Imbalances are easy to identify, if you know what you’re looking for.
Take a look at the movements and activities you do during an average
day you will see that you basically do the same things each day. Over
and over again. Day in and day out. Not much variety, and not much
balance. Balance would mean that you do many activities involving
muscles of your front as well as your back. Good balance would also
involve movements on the right and left sides of your body.
The computer user keeps their hands in front of them all day, head
pushed forward and eyes glued to the screen. They keep this nearly
identical posture as they drive into work, and when they drive home,
before resuming this posture again at the dinner table and the couch.
How many hours in a day are they imbalanced in a forward position?
Eight? Ten? Sixteen? Is it any wonder that their muscles, ligaments, and
tendons start to change shape?
Bad posture is also easily identified… usually on someone else. Have
someone take a look at you while you work at your desk. Is your monitor
up high enough or are you looking down at it by bending your neck? How’s
your chair? Does it allow you to sit up straight? Are your shoulders
hunched?
What about the position of your mouse, where you put the papers you
are reviewing, how you hold your phone, the angle of your wrists… it can
be a lot to look at! You want to make sure that your body can stay in
as much of a good, well-balanced posture for as much of the day as
possible. Having a friendly co-worker take a look at you and your body
position can allow you to address potential issues before it’s too late.
It only takes a minute, and you can return the favor by observing them
at their workstation.
Overuse injuries come from doing any movement over and over again
until the body part just plain wears out! These injuries can occur over a
shorter period of time when imbalances and poor posture are also a part
of that movement. Trauma is usually easy to identify when it involves
falling down or a car accident. What about repetitive trauma, also
called micro-trauma?
Micro-trauma is not so easily noticed until symptoms start to appear.
The same movement or action that caused the injury becomes painful to
do. That should be your red alert that you cannot keep doing that
movement in the same way. Even treatment will only temporarily relieve
the pain if you go back to doing the same thing the wrong way again
every day.
The symptoms of your body breaking down are not always pain. Other
warning signs can be there for years before pain shows up. Bad posture
is already a warning sign that trouble is ahead. The typical shoulder
slouching head forward posture is rampant in our society! You likely
don’t have to leave your house to find someone living with this posture.
Bad posture leads to further imbalances and a speeding up of the
overuse injuries. If you take a look at someone with this posture,
you’ll notice that muscles in the front (like the chest muscles) start
to become shorter, while the back muscles start to become longer. This
is not just a visual change, but a physical change. Your muscles are
actually becoming short in the front and long in the back, a serious
imbalance.
Another symptom is a loss of range of motion, or a loss of the normal
ability to move the spine or any other joint through all of their
normal movements. Does your head turn painlessly right and left to the
same degree? Can you move your head forward and back easily, or just
forward? What about your low back or other joints like your wrists,
elbows, and shoulders? Compare side to side and see if they are equal.
Of course they could both need help, but this is a good starting point.
The good news is that most of these problems can be helped without
surgery. Of course, every person is different and when they decide to do
something about their problem is also very important. Wait too long and
you may eliminate many conservative treatment options. Catch it early
and make some changes to your workstation and you can avoid many painful
lessons later.
For now, concentrate on your posture and evaluate your work station.
Seek out activities that will allow some balance back into your
movements, including weight workouts and stretching. If you are already
experiencing pain, now is the time to do something about it. These
problems rarely resolve themselves on their own. You must act by seeking
the assistance of a qualified health professional.
Dr. Natalie Cordova is a posture exercise expert, chiropractor, and health educator. More information can be found at his website at http://www.postureconfidence.com