Something that personal injury firms like Sinnamon Lawyers notice a lot, is that many aspects of workplace health and safety plans are written into the policy but not actively policed or monitored. Things like stretching, taking regular breaks from your usual work station, posture and varying your activities through the day are all extremely important to preventing short or long term injury and need to be a priority.

If you find yourself finishing the day with pain or tension in your back or shoulders, you may need to proactively start taking steps to look after your body throughout the day. Read on to find out some simple small space friendly exercises that can help keep your back and neck healthy.

Make Exercise Part of Your Daily Routine

It’s recommended that adults do at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day. Keeping active isn’t just about fitness and weight control – it’s also about ensuring your body stays strong and healthy. You don’t necessarily have to hit the weights room at the gym, but incorporating some core strengthening exercises into your weekly routine will ensure you have the strength to support your back and neck adequately, keeping your posture in check.

Walk It Out

Can you physically walk over to talk to a colleague instead of emailing them? Or can a meeting be taken outside so you can discuss topics over a stroll around the block or a nearby park? Rather than moving from sitting at your desk to sitting at a table in the lunch room, can you hit the pavement after you finish eating? Anything that you can do to increase your physical activity through the day will help you to release tension and prevent pain from occurring or getting worse.

Stretch Often

There are a number of online resources that have simple, easy to follow exercises that can be done at your desk. Commit to doing them often – you could even ask your cubicle buddy to be your support throughout the day, with the goal of completing an exercise every hour. You don’t need to take an extended amount of time away from your desk; the exercises you do could include a torso twist, stretching your arms above your head, or rolling your head in circles to relieve tension. The problem is that often as you get engrossed in your work, you don’t actually do the exercises until you can already feel pain or tightness in your back, neck or shoulders. By focussing on doing them regularly and purposefully, you will be able to stop that pain from setting in at all.

Often there is limited choice in the work we do, but that doesn’t mean that you need to suffer while you do it. Modifying the way you sit, being as active as you can through the workday, and ensuring your workstation has been set up ergonomically will all go a long way towards ensuring that your back stays strong and healthy.

How do you prevent back and neck pain while you’re at work?