Sitting too long at your desk?
Feeling stiff when you finally rise for a bathroom break?
Wearing the computer shoulders hunch?
Carpals aching with tunnel syndrome?
Feeling sleepy, groggy, depleted?
Take five minutes to breathe and stretch to greatly improve your comfort. Thought I’d say preformance and efficiency? I will let you all be the judge of whether or not it will improve performance. I do know that sitting in the same position for a long period of time causes the muscles to stick together and stick to the bone which can cause some unnecessary discomfort. Most joints are lubricated by synovial fluid and when we don’t move them often enough, that fluid settles into nooks and crannies in the joints until we start to move again. Sitting still doesn’t usually raise the heart rate so we tend to breathe in a slow and shallow rhythm. Oxygenating the bloodstream with a few minutes of deep breathing can make us feel more alert.
Here are two excellent resources for a quick Yoga break when you are at work. Try them, let me know what your experience is like. But if the boss wants to know whose crazy idea it was to assume pigeon pose on the conference table – you are on your own!
Short 9 minute videos of desk Yoga exercise from the Alberta, Canada Centre for Active living. Click here.
A photo walk through of simple stretches to do at your desk. Click here.
Enjoy! Let me know how it goes…
