70% of surveyed office workers complained of daily back pain. This can be a thing of the past if you follow some simple strategies.”Stand up” says Jo Keers, Physiotherapist and Clinical Pilates instructor. “Regularly, if possible”. Taking regular breaks from the office chair is one way of avoiding ‘office workers’ back’.

Office workers are vulnerable to back pain. A recent survey conducted by Spine_health.com of 1137 office workers found that 70% of participants had increased back pain by the end of a normal work day. This result is despite the growing awareness of ergonomic chairs. Unfortunately, the real problem is due to sitting for long periods. Sitting places increased stress on the back structures generally. When sitting is prolonged most workers will adopt one of 2 postures: (i) a slumped posture where the neutral low back arch has been lost or (2) an overly arched posture usually as a result of perching off the front of the chair.
Of course, crossing the legs or placing the feet up on a footstool also alters the back posture often for the worse.

Maintaining a neutral low back arch is probably the most important element of good sitting posture. In order for this to be possible, the work station set up needs to be corrected. The height of the desk or work station needs to suit the worker, allowing the worker to maintain approximately a 90 degree angle at the elbow when using a keyboard, while still having the feet placed comfortably on the floor. The chair needs to be fully adjustable to be truly ergonomic. That is, the chair height, back rest and arm rests need to be adjusted so that the worker can maintain a good sitting posture. Most important is to sit with the buttocks pushed right back into the back of the seat and to use the back support to hold the spine in a neutral position.

Popularity of Swiss Balls to sit on has also created problems with posture and over activity in certain muscles required to balance on a ball. “It is nearly impossible to maintain a good sitting posture for any length of time while perched on a Swiss Ball” says Jo. The belief that the core muscles would be retrained while sitting on a ball has been shown to be misleading.

Another risk factor for the office worker is lunchtime sport. Of course, keeping fit is vital however, an adequate warm-up is crucial after long periods of sitting and inactivity. Long periods of sitting will often result in tightening of leg muscles, particularly the hamstrings muscle group. Taking to the sports fields without adequate warm-up can result in injury.

Jo’s tips for preventing back pain in office workers:

• Take regular breaks. Every ½ hour stand up and move around or perform some ‘pause gymnastics’.
• Vary your activities at work. Performing the same activity for greater than ½ hour without a break is a recipe for disaster.
• Adopt a good sitting posture, with your buttocks right back into the back of the seat. Use the back rest to support your lower back. Adjust the back rest so that it sits right in the small of your back. If your chair isn’t adjustable, use a ‘lumbar roll’ or ‘back-eze’ support cushion to support your back when sitting. Ask you physiotherapist or email Back to Back Pilates for stockists.
• Stay fit and healthy.

Try these pause gymnastics:

Chair twists:
Sit side-on on your chair and grasp the back upright of your chair with both hands.
Sit up nice and tall.
Use your hands to gently rotate your body around towards the back of the chair.
Repeat on the other side.

Shoulder Rolls:
Sitting upright, hunch your shoulders up as high as possible. Slowly roll the shoulders forward, then down, then to the back and then back to the start.
Repeat in the opposite direction.