Office Fitness and the Mighty Micro-Pause

The mighty micro-pause is a simple way to improve office fitness. Maybe you have heard of the term "micro-pause", maybe you haven't, either way it doesn't matter. What does matter is taking them.

What it means is taking a short break while you are doing work. Sitting at a computer for more than two hours without getting up and moving will make you feel tight, grumpy, and you're also likely to reduce productivity. Human bodies are constantly adapting, and if you sit in one position for a long time, muscles, joints, and nerves adapt to this position, creating imbalances in the body and can lead to short term and long term problems. Think of a 80-year-old you see getting up from a park bench. They may look like they are still hunched over. This is happening to all of us who sit a lot. The good news is these unwanted adaptations can be reversed by a few simple office-based exercises.

If working at a computer for more than two hours I strongly recommend you take one of these short breaks. These simple tips will help to maintain office fitness. It might be just five minutes, at least every two hours, where I advise you:

get up out of the chair and move

This will help to improve circulation, joint mobility and lubrication, assist with lossening tight muscles, and help to give your brain a rest from concentrating on the computer screen for hours.

walk for at least a minuteroll your shoulders back x 5

This reverses the common rounded stiff shoulders associated with sitting at a computer all day.

This will help to stretch the muscles around your chest, back and arms.

turn your neck slowly left and right x5

This can help keep your neck mobile to prevent office-related headaches

stretch your arms backwards, while squeezing your shoulder blades back, hold for 20 secondshave a seat, and gently rotate your trunk left and right x5

This will help to ease the stiffness in the middle of your shoulder blades

With any exercise program start gently and build up. Gently stretch, and avoid pushing in to pain. Your body will adapt as it gets used to these corrective exercises.

Maintaining office fitness with micro-pauses can help you to reduce excessive muscle tension, stretch out tight muscles, improve circulation, and make you feel human again! Maintaining office fitness is simple, free, it feels good and is good for you!

If you have any significant stiffness with these movements, or experience discomfort consult your physiotherapist.

For advice and recommendations to keep you fit and healthy in the office see http://www.fit2sit.wordpress.com/

Jaydn Nixon (BHSc, CSP, HPC)

Physiotherapist, Health Educator

Original article