Be honest: How many times have you looked up from your desk and realized you've barely moved in hours?
If your answer is "too many", you're not alone —it's incredibly easy to get swept up in the tasks of the day, especially when working from home.
If you spend your workday sitting at a desk, chances are you've also experienced tightness and even pain in your shoulders, neck, and back. Experts now say sitting is the new smoking in terms of it's negative effects on our health!
Take a break & reset with these 3 quick & easy stretches:
See our top 3 stretches detailed below.
You can see exactly what we mean by checking out these 3 short clips from our new FREE resource on our website, a "Fit in 15" Desk Stretch mini session.
Open the video link from our website and click ahead to the indicated time on the specific stretch below to follow along.
1. Posture Relief - Chest Opener (Video starting at 1:15)
Benefit? To reset your posture & energize your body with deeper breathing.
How to: Stand tall and take a big breathe in as you reach your arms up and overhead. If you'd like, you can push your hips forward to stretch up and open into a slight backbend. Feel free to bring your hands to your lower back here for support. Hold for a few breathes then inhale to slowly bring yourself back to standing.
2. Buttocks & Hip Relief - Figure 4 Stretch
(Video starting at 6:20)
Benefit: Release tights hips and buttocks
How to: Sitting tall, take your leg foot forward away from the chair. Bring your right leg up and cross your ankle over your knee. Try to relax your shoulders and hips. If this is enough of a release, stay as you are. If your breathe is calm and your body isn't resisting, bring your bottom left leg in so it's directly underneath your knee at 90-degrees. Keeping your hips level and back flat, you can release into this deeper by gently hinging from your hips to press your chest forward and bend over your legs.
3. Back Relief - Modified Forward Fold
(Video starting at 10:13)
Benefit? Relax the low back, bring space to the back of the body and chest.
How to: Facing the back of the chair, reach out to hold the chair back with your arms open shoulder distance apart. Walk back and lower yourself forward until you feel a gentle release in your lower back and back of the legs.
Allow your head to lower between your arms to open and release your neck, chest and shoulders. Hold for 3-8 long breathes. Gently walk your feet in a few steps and slowly roll yourself up to standing.
Why not try out the whole Fit in 15 Desk Stretch session? Your body will thank you and your productivity with increase with your mind and body re-engerized.
This "Fit in 15" Desk Stretch session is a gentle movement break to help you release your tight neck, shoulders, back, legs and hips - all the muscles that get sore from sitting too long!
It's a great quick session to reset on your lunch break or during that 3pm slump to reenergize your afternoon.
Bookmark it now to follow along next time to catch yourself sitting too long!
BONUS TIP: Set a reminder on your phone for every hour that you will be at your desk. If you find your phone distracting, consider using a wearable activity tracker such as FitBit or Apple Watch!
Use the hourly reminder to get up from your chair at least once. Ideally, walk around for 3-5 minutes.
If walking is not possible, at a minimum, do the following:
1. Stand up from your chair
2, Standing, reach up and do a "full-body yawn"
3. Standing, lift your knees high to march on the spot a few times.
And if you're looking for more, why not try one of our live online yoga sessions? Sundays at 9am EST.
Make sure to opt in for our newsletter on the homepage to receive your code for a free live class.
Class passes are also available.