How to Improve Your Desk Set Up
Have you ever experienced stiffness, aches, or pain when you are working in front of your desk? And do they keep coming back? There are different potential reasons, and they could be due to poor posture, spinal misalignment or simply a poor desk set up.
People often seek help from chiropractors because of discomfort and pain. Very often, when we assess their posture, there are areas that could be improved. The majority of people have their head position forward which adds considerable amount of pressure onto the spine. Our body is very intelligent, when there is extra pressure on the spine, often our lower back and hips will compensate and end up tilting forward. When you have poor posture for a long time, you will likely experience stiffness, aches or pain within your body.
At Epoch, we often see people with poor posture. To get results faster, maintaining a good posture is also very important. To help you to achieve better results, here are 3 tips on how to improve your desk set up so you can improve your posture at home!
1. Computer Screen
The top of your computer screen should be above your eye level. People often have the top of their computer screen on eye level, that can cause us to constantly look downwards and potentially lead to a stiff, achy neck or shoulders. When you set the top of your screen above eye level, that helps to keep your head looking straight forward and promotes a natural lordotic curve of your neck. On top of that, the screen should be one arm length away from you. If your computer screen is not adjustable, you can use a couple of book to get the screen higher. If your screen is higher, but you struggle to type (e.g. using a laptop), you can get a separate Bluetooth keyboard so it will be more flexible and you can type as far as you want from the screen.
2. Sitting Position
When you are working long hours in front of a desk, you might slump forward to feel comfortable. However, doing this long term can contribute to a hunched back and even rounded shoulders. My best advice to that is always get an office chair with a secure back with adjustable head piece and arm handles. When you sit, shuffle your bottom to the back of the chair and simply rest your back to the back of the chair. While sitting, your feet should touch the ground and your arms should be in line with the height of the table.
3. Moving
Have you heard of the ‘20-8-2 rule’? This rule guides us how often we should move while sitting. For every 30 minutes, you can sit 20 minutes, stand 8 minutes and move around for 2 minutes. Sometimes moving around can be difficult due to work environment and a busy schedule. If you struggle to move every 30 minutes, please move as much as your work schedule allows you to.
If you have not checked your desk set-up lately, have a check in and see what you could potentially improve on. I would love to know how you are getting on with these tips!
With love,
Joyce