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How's your posture right now?

Probably not that good.

I had a discussion with a physical therapist friend of mine about this. As an active person for several years, I've always been conscious of having a correct posture.

Improper posture means you're in a position where your muscles and ligaments are unable to work as they're intended; there's an abnormal amount of stress placed on particular muscles leading to the "forward head" syndrome.

Technology has exacerbated this bad habit. The impact of poor posture in our health is going as far as remolding our skeletons (https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/06/20/horns-are-growing-young-peoples-skulls-phone-use-is-blame-research-suggests/).

I’m interested in hearing your thoughts on this.

Tell me, are you actively tackling this issue? If so, how?

#ask-ih

  1. 4

    I saw the title of this post and immediately adjusted my bad posture. Not sure why, but I've started slanting over to the left and leaning on my left arm in my chair.

    1. 2

      Hah, same! Thanks @fernandezdavid7 for starting this thread ;)

    2. 1

      Hey @lwdthe1 ! Do you think the problem is in your setup
      ? How are you planning to proceed?

      1. 1

        I think the problem is that i'm sitting all day. I bought a fancy standing desk and barely use it. Right now, when I'm getting tired, I just lean to the left and keep going, so that's the problem. I need to take more breaks, walk outside and get some fresh air. Working on it.

  2. 2

    Mine was terrible and I was starting to feel neck pain.

    I bought The Roost and I have to say it helped a lot. I also plan to start going back to the gym to reinforce upper muscles.

  3. 2

    I used to do the Ground Force Exploration (here’s a video of it: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LPOaWhj_0c8) once a day in the afternoon. It only takes five minutes and it goes through your whole body. But now I mostly do quick strength and flexibility exercises every now and then throughout the day.

    If you do any of this in an open-plan office, a few heads will probably turn your way, though.

  4. 1

    Unfortunately, I have poor posture and therefore my back constantly hurts. I found a remedy cbd cream that helps me get rid of pain, as well as fatigue and stress. I really like this drug because it has no side effects, it also has a super natural composition that is very useful not only for certain parts of the body, but also for the whole body. If you want to learn more about it, follow the link.

  5. 1

    Hey guys! I've created a Postural Survey here: https://forms.gle/TEadyJC96me7haN37

    I'd love to have your input!

    Please, share it as you like.

  6. 1

    I had to get glasses after few years of computer usage. No one else in my family wears glasses.

    I started getting pain in my fingers after a decade of typing. I got the weird looking Kinesis keyboard, and I have been using that for almost ten years. I don’t have the pain anymore.

    I started getting severe back pain several years back. I got a standing desk and work half the day standing. I also started to walk everyday and do some body weight exercises. All of this helped - I am now back pain free.

  7. 1

    Tech-neck is something I have been suffering from for years, but I never gave it too much attention. I simply "normalized" the pain and got used to living with it.
    Until one day I felt my arm is a bit numb and there was also this feeling of paresthesia ("pins and needles"). I thought maybe I over stretched a muscle, but went to see a doctor to make sure it's not severe. The MRI test showed I had a neck injury, but fortunately not a bad one. The orthopedist advised me to strengthen the back and neck muscles.
    I started physiotherapy and also Tui na treatment, which was very helpful. I also started practicing yoga on a daily basis, which I still do today. After a few months of practicing, my muscles grew stronger and I no longer suffered from neck pain. In addition, I started to feel emotional and mental changes that I was not expecting - I began feeling more calm, focused and energized. I am positive the yoga practice also contributed to de-stress, which in turn also helped to solve the neck issues.
    Another great thing that happened as a result was that I created my startup - FitMyTime.com - a platform that connects yoga and fitness instructors with trainees for live online personal workouts :) I wanted to enable people to receive personally tailored workouts from real trainers, in real time, and to be able to do that from the comfort and privacy of their home - just like I needed when I suffered from my neck injury.

    1. 2

      That's a great story Yael, congrats! I will check it out!

  8. 1

    Have thought about the toll on my health by working from the office and looking at the screen every day. Fortunately, my eyesight is still good, checked it recently.I try to lift up my table and work standing as much as I can, usually its only about 2-3 hours per day, but it definitely helps.

  9. 1

    Can one even have correct posture while on the laptop? Shouldn't a computer screen be higher than it currently is compared to the keyboard, in order for the user to achieve proper posture?

      1. 1

        Thanks, I'll try following the advice from the photo.

  10. 1

    The Roost stand made a big difference for me as well. As I move around a lot it's difficult to find the right seat/desk height combination, but when possible I shove a couple of cushions on my seat to make sure my arms are flat at the desk/table with my elbows in a 90° angle.

  11. 1

    I’ve never had great posture, still don’t, but I’ve seen immense improvement with some weight lifting and bjj.

    Also try to get up and move around every 1 - 2 hours at work or when I’m home hacking.

  12. 1

    Mine's pretty good, but always could be better.

    I've been putting in the work for a while though, combination of a few things, most of which revolves around being mindful and aware of my posture and bad habits.

    As I type this, I'm at a standing desk. I'm not one of those "buy a sit stand desk only to sit at it". I start every morning standing, until lunch. Sit part of the afternoon, then back to standing before "couch time" (which is when my posture goes to shit).

    Should back that up a bit... before I get to my office (home office, helluva commute). I /try/ to do a posture exercise I learned from a buddy of mine. My buddy has crazy great posture so I asked him his secret.

    The exercise is pretty simple, you clasp your hands behind your back, stretching your shoulders back and you look down your nose [at all the peasants that refuse to hustle like you do] and hold it for a bit. The last part I added, but there's a ton of truth in posture and confidence levels being connected.

    The other thing I do (outside of being somewhat active with small daily workouts) is being super mindful while driving. I slap my hands at 10 and 2 and make sure to push my shoulders back. Since I'm placed at a comfortable distance from the wheel, it makes it pretty easy and basically forces me to work on my posture every time I get behind the wheel.

  13. 1

    Has been a worry for me lately, I've started feel muscle pain, stiffness and cramps, like many others spending several hours seated in front of computers.
    I tried some mobility exercises, not sure if they are the right ones for my situation but I can feel muscle relief.

  14. 1

    Well, interesting topic. Personally, I'm aware of it, tried several times to add the habit of stretching during the office hours but, hard to keep in the time.
    Anyone in the same situation found a solution?

  15. 1

    This comment was deleted 5 years ago.

  16. 1

    This comment was deleted 5 years ago.

    1. 1

      hey! Will do. I agree about "Upright", it can't be the best option. The next generation of fitness gadgets will enable better solutions.

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