“Ouch, my neck hurts. I wonder why that is? I must have moved wrong. I guess I need an aspirin.”
How many times have you heard the above statement or something very similar?
In today’s society many of us are experiencing neck pain, shoulder pain, and even back pain and we’re not really sure why. Before we get too deep into this, it is always best to check with your doctor when you experience chronic pain to find out if there is something deeper going on. For the purpose of this article, we are going to be talking about structural pain caused by something we do every single day, so keep reading to find out what.
Think about a typical day in the life of yourself of people who know. What do many of us do day in and day out on a consistent basis? If you said sit, use a computer and/or watch TV, you are absolutely correct!
Think about when you sit and type. Unless you are fully focused on your posture and sitting up straight then most likely you are rounding your shoulders forward and letting your back hunch. This goes the same for sitting watching television. When was the last time you watched TV with a perfectly straight torso, legs at a 90 degree angle facing forward and feet flat on the floor?
My point is, we are becoming a posture forward society and we don’t stand up as tall as we used to. This can lead to neck, shoulder and back pain because the backs of our bodies are not as strong as they used to be.
A simple solution is to limit the amount of time you sit for any given period of time. Set a timer to remind yourself to stand up every hour and stretch and pull your shoulders back and turn your neck side to side. This will help relieve so of the tension that builds up from being in the same position for so long.
There are many specific exercises that can help to rebuild proper posture and relieve tension in the areas we discussed today.
I’m here to help: please reach out to me and I will be more than happy to touch base with you on an individualized basis to see what exercises would be best for you given your specific needs.
Here’s to living, and working, pain free!
Tracie Hammond has a B.S. degree from the University of Southern Maine. She is a certified nutritional consultant from the Global College of Natural Medicine, a certified personal trainer, and she holds many other fitness and nutrition certifications. Tracie uses the integrated approach to wellness, combining nutrition, exercise, and stress reduction techniques. Tracie empowers her clients by coaching them to set realistic goals, identifying their strengths and obstacles, and setting weekly strategies to overcome these obstacles.
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