Is My Neck and Back Pain from Sitting at a Desk? [Video]

Is Neck and Back Pain from Sitting at a Desk? Video Summary

In this discussion, our Activ8 Posture therapists focused on the impact of desk jobs on back and neck health, emphasizing that while desk jobs can contribute to these issues, the real problem often lies in how people sit and move throughout the day. They described how remaining in one position for extended periods can cause tight hips, deviate the pelvis, and ultimately lead to neck and back pain from sitting at a desk. However, they emphasized that it’s not just about sitting; it’s about how you manage your body throughout the day.

You shouldn't have to live with neck and back pain from sitting at a desk. Several strategies were discussed to mitigate these issues:

The conversation concluded with a reminder that it’s not just the act of sitting that can cause problems, but also the condition of the body going into the sitting position. By regularly resetting the body’s alignment and staying mindful of posture, desk workers can significantly reduce the risk of developing neck and back pain from sitting at a desk.

Is Neck and Back Pain from Sitting at a Desk? Video Transcription:

Is your desk job ruining your back and neck?

It depends how you're sitting at your desk at your job.

Yeah, a lot of people are stuck behind, stuck at the desk or stuck on a computer, stuck on a mobile device even for their jobs. We're all locked into technology, which is what we discussed last week. And a lot of people have back and neck pain. So is there the immediate tie, the link between those things?

It's a big causation that we see for a lot of our clientele. You know, I think the common denominator for a lot of people that we see with chronic back and neck pain is that there is a tendency to have a long time in front of a computer or in a seated position.

Yeah. I think that just having a desk job doesn't mean you have to sit at a desk all day though. I personally like to work in three different positions throughout the day. I like to stand. I like to sit. And then I like to sit on something uneven, or in a different chair and I rotate throughout the day so that I am not stuck in one position. The other thing is having the right setup to begin with. I work on a laptop when I'm at home.

I'm going to kind of show how this is. So I have my laptop holder here, which normally my laptop is, but if I just typed all the way up here, I'd be putting my arms in a really bad position. So I have a keyboard down here where I type. So I'm, my laptop, I'm looking up, but I'm typing down here. And then this is kind of weird moving my camera, sorry, but I have a nice cushy mat to stand on for when I'm standing. And so that really allows me to keep sort of ears over shoulders, over hips, over ankles, while I'm working in a standing position.

Yeah, it brings up a good point. You know, we look at the whole body. So I would say I think like you hit on and we can all imagine how just being ergonomically inefficient and misaligned at the computer wrecks the back and neck and the sense of the position is put in. But then if you're sitting for long periods of time, it makes your hips incredibly tight, which then can start to deviate your pelvis and put tension or pressure on your lower back, which can then translate all the way up into the head and neck. So it's not just the position of the spine and the head. It's what your hips are doing as well. That plays a huge part.

Yeah, and overall we're designed to move. So we're not really our evolutionary process did not take us to this point where we're just looking straight ahead. You know, not surveying the environment, not moving our legs, moving our limbs, which also facilitates circulation and breathing and all the mechanisms and systems in our body, digestion, lymphatic flow, all those things. And so if we are sitting there, and I've been on these benders of computer time and working and just I'll get up and I'm just like almost like dizzy or like in a coma from just like staring at the computer for a long period of time. So I think that's a big thing.

So, you know, the rigidity, I think is the big thing, especially for spine, you know, the spine is supposed to be moving and dynamic and, you know, help things support us. So maybe, Carrie Ann, can you, can you elaborate a little bit on the like uneven surfaces? Are you talking like a physio ball or, you know, are you talking about like things like that?

Yeah, and my ball is actually out of here right now, but yeah, big Swiss ball, just a circle ball. And then this is not uneven, but I like to, when I'm sitting, I like to sit on a saddle chair. So even though the chair itself is stable, I can move my legs around. I can move my hips around. I can, you know, do some pelvic tilts. I can make sure my shoulders are rolled back and down. I actually used to use my bike sometimes too, but then you're in a meeting like this. So I tend to not do that unless it's just the listening.

We all know that guy or that girl, right?

Yeah, I mean, you guys have been in a meeting with me in the past and I'm going like that. So I have sort of fallen off of doing that one. The other thing that I'll do if it's a very long day is I'll kneel. I'll just move my laptop down and I'll do a nice tall kneel because that really gives your hip flexors a nice stretch. Like if it's a day where I find that I've been sitting more than standing. I will kneel and I'll even squeeze my glutes a few times just to kind of get something happening.

Yeah, it's a good point because like the standing desk, right, is often thought of, well, you know, that's a better way to work at the computer and it certainly can be, you know, from sitting. But even if you're standing, if your musculature isn't responding how it needs to, you know, from that positional change, your body's going to compensate, which could still lead to pain, you know, lower back, neck, you know, knees for that matter too. So like you said, stretching the hip flexors, getting your glutes squeezing.

That's the stuff that's really going to start to help. Even if you're standing, it'd be as effective as possible. And then resetting that stimulus that's sitting and hunched over at the computer gives your body that negative stimulus. 

Yeah. I'm going to say another factor that's in is kind of post-pandemic with a lot of people from work from home. They don't even have that in-office desk ergonomic or more ergonomic setup. So I know a lot of clients and friends that say they work from home and they work from their bed. They just do their sleep member. And yeah, they, they go in their bed and they have a, like those little bed desk trays and then they sit and they're just lying down the whole time. And then maybe they'll go to the coffee table and then sit there or go to the couch and sit there. So it, there isn't even a desk with. I know a lot of companies spend a lot of money on chairs that are more comfortable and ergonomic in office.

So when you're at home, you might not have that setup, which would then, you know, kind of lead you more into a poor posture.

Activate those muscles, right? And it's so, so I think that's, that's a good point also is like, there is no perfect chair, right? So there are chairs that will set you up to, you know, sort of dissipate some of the load and being stuck in one position, but really it's, you know, still being a static position. And even if you're a standing desk, you're still static. So, you know, the idea of riding the bike or being on an uneven surface or you know, taking motion breaks or moving around, like all that's really important.

So some of the chairs also give you like different adjustments so you can, you know, change how you're sitting, maybe roll your hips forward on the front edge of the chair. So you're sitting up, you know, lumbar extension, pelvis rolled forward to help with the stability. And then other times you can kind of sit back, let the chair do the work for you and rest in the back of the chair, even that you're still sitting. So, you know, still got to get up and move.

Yeah. No position is good for more than 90 minutes. And if you do just have one set up, I see a little trampoline behind Paul. Every hour and a half or so, get up and do some bounces or running or jacks on the trampoline. Anything to get your body moving is really helpful. And then Kim, I feel like we could do a whole nother topic on people working in their bed because that just creates a whole other problem because you're setting yourself up like mentally with poor cues because then you don't have any separation of space and like, you know, we are Pavlov's dog and we are trained to do certain things in certain spaces. So if you're working in bed, then that's not where you're resting and you're not getting a good restful sleep and then you're not having a good day of work. So like nothing is working. There has to be separation of all of those things.

Right. Recovery is compromised. Yeah. Which compounds the issue and makes it worse. Yeah. And to your point, do you carry a variety of movement I think is big. Cause a lot of people just stand up, walk around, you know, maybe stretch or do something a little bit, but like, to your point, just changing different directions of what you're moving and, you know, moving back and forth, side to side, jumping up and down, you know, just getting that motion fill up and those variety of planes of motion is, is really what you need to do.

Yeah. So what are, so what are tips that you give people? You know, when they are stuck at the desk, just in like more of a summary format.

The easiest thing I tell people is like, I'm a big like watch person or like, if you have a Fitbit or something, and turn on the notifications of, I've been stagnant for 60 minutes and it'll buzz you and go, hey, you haven't moved in 60 minutes, it's been an hour, get up and move. So I'll tell people, go do a water break because they probably also haven't drank enough water and might be slightly dehydrated. So I tell them, get up, walk to the kitchen, get a glass of water, and that way they are moving a little bit and it kind of breaks up that monotony of just being in one position for so long. That's my simplest basic thing to tell people.

Right.

Yeah. I'm a big time guy too, right? Watch your time, watch your sitting, and then once you're up, what do you need to do to reset it? Like you mentioned, a variety of movements. Do you activate posture sequence that I'm sure we all create for our clientele based on their own specific body mechanics? What do they need to do to reset any tensions? Or get muscles activating, you know, after they are up from moving. But yeah, yeah, just, just get out of that sitting position, you know, get a variety of movement, give your eyes a break, give your brain a break.

Yeah. Pretty similar to what Matt and Kim said I, I'll provide like sitting stretches, but really I try to advocate for movement because again, it's not. Going to help anything by sitting, even if you're sitting properly, sitting in the same position for like eight hours essentially. So trying to take those little breaks as much as you can get some movement throughout your body.

Same, and I do give the rule of three to my clients as well. Have a standing, have a sitting and have an alternate position and just cycle through those every day. Make sure you're hitting those all at least twice a day. You're never staying in one for too long.

Absolutely. So, and I would double down on, like Matt said make sure you're getting a routine from us at Activ8 to remind your body. Like, so you think about the body that you're taking into the sitting that you're doing. So, you know, have it optimal. So if you're already right-side loaded and that's causing you pain, going into a sitting position isn't gonna help that. So is it ruining your back? Maybe not, the sitting is ruining your back so much as the body that you're bringing into sitting that's already off is now just being reinforced in a compromised position. Or your neck, same thing. So we can help you with, in terms of like resetting your body, reminding it how it's supposed to align, and then you get into the chair. The chair should actually feel more comfortable because your body is actually using the muscles and doing the things that it should.

Are You Experiencing Neck and Back Pain from Sitting at a Desk?

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Neck and back pain from sitting at a desk does not need to be a normal occurrence. Transform your health and wellness by reducing the strain caused by poor posture. Start with our expert tips and, if you need personalized help, don’t hesitate to reach out for a consultation at Activ8 Posture!