Tag Archives: staying healthy

A Physical Therapist’s Tips To Stay Healthy & Energetic At Work

A Physical Therapist’s Tips To Stay Healthy & Energetic At Work

In every industry, the work culture has changed a lot in the last few decades. Since the time we started using computers, prolonged sitting has become quite common. If you sit in one place continuously for more than a few hours, it leads to health problems.

Perhaps that’s the reason physical therapists always advise people to take short breaks. It not only helps in refreshing your mind but also has a lot of benefits for your physical health.

Whether you work in a high-end office or you spend your time working on manufacturing plants and construction sites, living a pain-free life is essential for one and all. If you are unwell, you can’t perform at your best; therefore, it’s vital to take care of your health. Those who have jobs that require intense physical activity remain at the high risk of workplace injuries.

However, those who have sitting jobs end facing a wide range of problems due to lack of physical movements. You feel pain in your neck, back, shoulders, and arms, etc., after sitting for long periods of time. Besides, some people also experience pain in the wrist, knees, hips, and lower back, etc.

The only way to enjoy a healthy while still performing your duties on time is to consult a physical therapist. Your therapist will not only treat your condition, but they will also educate you.

According to Priority Physical Therapy, We assess the worker’s current functional abilities and gather information regarding his/ her job requirements. Treatment is both evaluative and restorative. Therapy will utilize a combination of manual therapy techniques, therapeutic exercises, body mechanics training, modalities, and patient education/ home programming.

So, if you have a full time sitting job, here is how you can maintain your health.

Correct You Sitting Posture 

You can reduce the risk of a variety of health conditions that stem from prolonged sitting by correcting your posture. Always make sure that you sit up straight. If you slouch, then make sure you stop that in the first place. Slouching is a bad habit; therefore, you should always try to avoid it. Most people who slouch end up struggling with spinal problems. They struggle with conditions like neck pain and back pain frequently. Although you get tips to prevent back pain from your family and health professionals; however, sometimes it’s better to use your intelligence as well.

While sitting at your desk, make sure that you keep your back straight, feet flat on the floor, and knees at a 90-degree angle. Besides, you should keep your computer at an eye level, so that you do not have to stretch your neck.

Use An Ideal Chair 

Using the right chair is utterly crucial to keep your spine healthy. Maintaining the actual shape of your spine is highly vital to keep the musculoskeletal conditions at bay. If you are using an uncomfortable chair, ask your boss to replace it with a better one that can offer the right support to your back.

Also, if you are feeling uncomfortable, you can use a footrest. Nowadays, you will find a wide range of office chairs which offer the maximum comfort to employees. You can also use them!

Take Breaks Frequently 

Taking short breaks is an ideal way of keeping your body pain-free. When you get up from your seat frequently, it not only helps in improving your circulation but also makes it easier for you to concentrate on your task once you get back at your desk. Since it helps in refreshing your mind, you can focus on your work. Walking around your office is an excellent way of relieving the compression that results from long hours of sitting.

Stretch Your Body Regularly 

Stretching is very crucial for people with the sitting jobs. They should keep on performing basic stretches that do not take much time. Stretch your neck if you are feeling uncomfortable. Roll your neck in all the directions to relieve tightness. You can also roll your head to the right side and hold that position for at least 15 seconds. Do it again but this time around roll your head to the left side. Besides, you can also stretch your chin all the way to your chest and tuck it.

Similarly, you can carry out upper body stretch and hamstring stretch at work.

Drink Water Frequently

Keeping your body hydrated is utterly vital to stay healthy. Always keep a bottle of water at your desk, so that you can drink it frequently. If you are someone who does not like drinking plain water, you can mix lemon in it. Make sure that before taking the lunch you take enough of water.

It not only helps in reducing the amount of food you consume during the mealtime but also keeps you healthy. It helps in flushing out toxins from your body, strengthens the immune system, and promotes weight loss.

Drinking water frequently helps in preventing dry mouth and bad breath.

***Keeping Yourself Healthy In An Unhealthy Modern Environment***

 Unhealthy environments exist all around us, whether they are rooted by our inactivity in offices while sitting at desks all day, or if they stem from psychologically damaging exposure to unpleasant scenarios. Keeping yourself healthy in an unhealthy modern environment can make all of the difference in your appearance, health and wealth, and here is how.

Physical Health
Although it would be ideal to hit the gym every day, while consuming perfectly portioned and healthy meals at every turn, it certainly is not practical. So what do you do when you cannot break away for a workout, or consume meals on the fly with the maximum health benefits? You make it up as the day goes along.

Workout at the Office
If an afternoon at the gym is out of the question, evaluate the environment around you to develop alternate physical activity.
• Take the Stairs Instead of the Elevator
• Walk to Lunch Spots & To Complete Errands
• Park Farther Away from Your Office
• Exit Public Transportation a Stop or Two Earlier than Usual
• Walk or Run Around the Building During Your Lunch Hour
• Stand While You Work
Eating Habits
Just because you are working sixty hours a week does not mean you should depend on fast food to deliver your meals, or vending machines to satiate a 2pm snacking crave. Both alternatives can lead to the ingestion of excess fat, calories, sodium and preservatives which are just as terrible for the waistline as they are your skin, hair and overall health.
• Plan Ahead and Prepare Healthy Lunches to Keep at the Office
• Turn to Healthy Snacking Options by Keeping Them Readily Available
• Drink Lots of Water Throughout the Day
• Order Healthy Options at Restaurants: Salads, Fruits, Nuts & Yogurts
• Do Not Skip Meals

Mental Health
Stress and anxiety are not only harmful to your overall physical health, but they can compromise your mental health and ability to make sound decisions throughout the day. Stress can lead to hasty decisions, oversights and lack of logic in an effort to produce results. There are a number of ways to improve your mental health throughout the day, just by making time to do so.
• Pause & Take Deep Breaths When You Feel Overwhelmed
• Take a Walk When You Are Out of Sorts to Collect Yourself
• Exterminate Toxic Relationships with Negative Friends or Family Members
• Remove Yourself from Stressful Situations as Quickly as Possible
• Remember What Makes You Happy and Think of Those Things Often

Modern Interruptions & Solutions
If the world was not complicated enough, dealing with family, friends and coworkers on a daily basis, now you are consumed by social media outlets that can enlighten you to everything everyone else in the world is doing too. Constant exposure to other people’s stress, negative behavior and varying personalities can invite stress and anxiety into anyone’s life. There are a number of steps you can take to remove yourself from unhealthy environments, even when they are occurring online.
• Avoid Upsetting News Stories and Media Outlets
• Turn Your Phone Off at Night to Sleep More Soundly
• Allow a Specific Amount of Time to Be Spent on Social Media
• Enjoy Friends & Family in Person, Whenever Possible
• Leave Your Phone at Home or in the Car During Social Visits
• Do Not Get Involved with Conversations or Arguments that Do Not Concern You

Focus your physical and mental well-being around positive scenarios, eliminating negative people, practices and situations from your life as much as possible. This application is different for everyone, so it is important to evaluate all aspects of your life to recognize either the people or the events that are causing you to maintain an unhealthy lifestyle, physically or mentally. If you are unhappy or unwell there is certainly a root to its cause. Identify it and obliterate it.

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Thanks to Glen Greenbaum, for this good advice on how we can be healthier if we just listen to these suggestions! pb