Can Desk Yoga help a sore back?
Having a sore back is an uncomfortable part of life and often we don’t know what caused it, but we take a small movement and boom, back pain. Ouch!
So, why do we suffer from back pain? Because we move and the top half of our bodies hold an awful lot of weight, think big brains! But also, too much repetitive movement can cause your back to weaken over time, until one day you move and are frozen with sudden pain in your back.
Healing back pain can take time and while we’re lucky there is plenty of medicinal help available, like creams and tablets, prevention is always better than cure. If you suffer from back pain at one time in your life, the bad news is you’re likely to suffer again. However, the good news is you can prepare for this by practising a few daily yoga stretches at your desk.
Weakened muscles cause back pain
Back pain is usually a sign of weakening in the muscles that support your upper body, this can be triggered by bad posture, sitting at a desk or constantly leaning forward for work, or to pick up your children, or carrying out repeated tasks. We are simply not made for this!
Our spine is supposed to be lengthened and our natural standing state is to stand tall, shoulders back, relaxed, gazing ahead. However, modern life isn’t lived this way, as busy people we lean towards the tasks we are doing. And the longer we spend doing these tasks, like typing at a keyboard, cooking, etc, our back muscles become longer and weakened, and our stomach muscles become shorter. We’re then stuck in a vicious circle of our stomach muscles pulling us forward, as that’s become their natural state, and our back muscles lengthening to allow for that. It becomes more comfortable to sit hunched forward, and we learn to ENJOY sitting like that!
But a few simple exercises can improve our posture.
Desk Yoga can help improve your posture!
Taking time in your day to consider your posture, and realign your spine so it’s straight, can do wonders for your spine health. Imagine a thread sticking out from the top of your head, and imagine a pull on this thread to pull you up straighter. You’ll sit taller, and feel a lot better.
The benefits of a lengthened spine
It can feel grotty to hunch forward, and often we relate that feeling to our jobs, our relationship, our life, but the reality is we are squishing a whole lot of lymph nodes into no space.
Think of your body like an aquarium, it’s full of water and needs space for the water to flow. If you turn the pump off in an aquarium, you soon see the water turn cloudy.
Your breathing apparatus, your breath and your diaphragm work as a pump to flush your lymph nodes constantly throughout the day. If you sit squished forward, you limit the ability to flow. If you sit up straight, you enable this system to work effectively. Lovely!
The power of a few deep breaths
Think of your breath as a super charged pump to clear the aquarium. Take deep belly breaths, even ten at a time, throughout your day can help to not only improve your mental health but your posture too. There’s a a reason people rave about meditation and the Wim Hoff method - it works. Stimulating your body in this way can improve your mind by improving the quality of your body!
Are you ready to supercharge your system? Book a desk yoga class today!
