Wondering if you need some good ergonomic office stretches?

If you spend your working day shifting your position and never getting it quite right, reaching to massage your sore neck as you stare at the monitor, ergonomic stretches are going to help you get your body the relief it needs to feel better and move better.

A proper ergonomic setup is an important factor.  

And this does NOT mean curvy keyboards and a gaming mouse.  It means equipment that provides your body with the positioning it needs to be productive and pain-free.  Ergonomics is individual to each person as the key is to allow the body to maintain its neutral positioning and limit stress and strain with repetitive and sustained poor postures.

But even before that, you want to know that your body can properly engage with ergonomic equipment.  That is, can your body move and adjust to the positions required of the equipment.  Because all the money in the world spent on ergonomic equipment will not fix your aches and pain OR improve your productivity if your body can’t adjust to the right positioning.

Body Alignment for Better Posture

What your body really wants is to be in neutral. It loves a neutral position because neutral puts the least amount of stress on the body, uses limited energy, and requires minimal muscles to support this posture.  The body is always trying to get back to neutral but it may not be possible because of tight overworked muscles and poor body alignment.

If your body has learned to compensate for illness, injury, or poor equipment choices, then your automated responses to work postures may not be neutral.  That’s where the aches, pain, and pulling are coming from.  

Good posture through proper body alignment is key to the best ergonomic strategies and feeling good at work (and after!).  That’s why office exercises and stretches to help the body develop alignment are an important factor for proper ergonomic strategies.

The Benefits of Office Stretches for Body Alignment

Ergonomics is about keeping your body safe as you work.  And poor posture not only effects the musculoskeletal system (joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments) but the lack of alignment also affects: 

• productivity 

• energy levels 

• cognitive skills 

• mood 

• mental health

…just to name a few.  

If you’re spending your day trying to get comfortable, you not only feel awful, but your productivity decreases as your focus repeatedly changes between work and your body pain.  

Taking the time to refresh your body with office stretches allows you to reset your alignment, integrate better movement patterns, and utilize ergonomic equipment that provides neural positioning for you.

Office Stretches for Breast Cancer Survivors

Because of treatment side effects, it’s important for breast cancer survivors to be aware of their posture, body positioning, muscular fatigue, and overall health.

This includes postures and alignment at work. Stress on the body and the mind are directly linked to your body’s immune response, so working to decrease physical and emotional stress is essential for overall well being.

These stretches are designed specifically for breast cancer survivors and incorporate the strategies based not only on ergonomics but on the side effects most relevant in survivors.