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How to Tell if You Have Bad Posture

Bad posture has caused some of the most stubborn injuries I’ve ever had. Especially because I used to sit at a computer for long periods of time. Fixing repetitive strain and overuse injuries will not be easy, but good posture is attainable with consistency, focus, and hard work.

Bad posture often develops gradually, making it difficult to notice (until discomfort or visible changes appear).

Spending hours sitting, looking at screens, or repeating movements slowly affect alignment. Then we hold those vulnerable positions for long periods, which makes things even worse.

Learning how to recognize the early signs of bad posture can help prevent long-term strain, pain, and mobility issues.

In this post, I’m sharing a round up of bad posture signs to watch out for.

What are Ergonomics?

The definition on ergonomics is “the study of people’s efficiency in their working environment” (definition credit: Google/Oxford Languages).

Ergonomics are much more than just posture. Posture is the position of a person’s body. In our case, the position we are in while sitting or standing at a computer workstation.

Posture is an important variable. But when we add the variable of working for an extended period of time, it’s important that our ergonomics aims at a well-rounded practice of multiple variables.

What are Ergonomics?

Sitting and standing at a computer for long periods of time delivers a high risk of injury. It’s up to us to ensure we are working in a safe working environment. I understand that sometimes we are at the mercy of external factors. A lot of work just has to be done on a computer. Often, there is a lot of that work. This requires us to work in the same vulnerable position for long periods of time, which brings an increased risk of injury. However, there are plenty of human factors we can practice in order to maintain safe work at a computer. Today, I’ll talk about 4 subtopics of computer ergonomics that are very important for safety and health. They are sleep, breathing, hydration, and posture.

What Causes Bad Posture

I got my first office job back in 2002. I’d been carrying heavy weights in the gym throughout college. But I had no idea that sitting in front of a computer would cause the most stubborn injuries I’ve ever had.

I sat with poor posture for 9 years. I didn’t even know what posture or ergonomics meant.

I’d quickly learn how excessive muscle tension would pull my musculoskeletal system out of alignment. This would cause back, shoulder, and neck pain (just to name a few).

Learning what causes bad posture was the first step I took to correcting my computer-related pain.

Bad posture is something most people notice only when it starts causing discomfort, stiffness, or pain. And in 2011, I noticed. I was broke down, both physically and mentally.

While it may seem like a simple habit, poor posture is usually the result of multiple underlying factors. Learning what actually causes bad posture is the first step toward correcting it and preventing long-term strain.

In this post, I’m sharing a round up of habits that contributed to my bad posture. As well as practical ways I improved my posture in daily life.

What is a repetitive strain injury?

re·pet·i·tive strain in·ju·ry – a condition in which the prolonged performance of repetitive actions, causes pain or impairment of function in the tendons and muscles involved (definition credit: Google)

Repetitive strain injuries are very common among full-time office workers.

Many people talk about how sitting for long periods of time causes many different injuries (heart problems, joint pain, weight gain, skeletal alignment issues, headaches, etc etc). However, notice how the above definition for repetitive strain injury only contains 2 body parts: tendons and muscles. When it comes down to it, the health of our muscles and tendons is where we need to put our ergonomic focus.

When I say improve the “health” of our muscles and tendons, this doesn’t mean go and overtrain in the gym.

Why is My Posture So Bad?

Bad posture used to demoralize me. Not only physically, but also mentally. I sat with poor posture at a computer for 9 years. Not just a few hours a week. It was a full-time job in a toxic, high-stress office environment.

Why my computer posture was so bad? It was tight muscles, that caused pain and inflammation in my tendons.

Poor posture is something many people deal with daily. Whether it is slouching at a desk, looking down at a phone, or feeling constant tension in the neck and shoulders.

These habits caused my lower back and neck pain. For more on those specific areas, check out the article I wrote about how to prevent back and neck pain.

Posture problems like these often develop gradually, which makes it difficult to recognize what is actually causing it.

Because most of my computer-related pain was never caused in the same muscle that was hurting. Muscles get tight, which pulls on the tendon(s) that connect that muscle to bone. Which is where I usually felt the pain first (in the tendon). My tight muscles were the cause. And the painful, inflamed tendon was the effect.

Identifying the root causes were key to making lasting improvements (instead of temporary fixes).

And so today, I’m sharing a round up of reasons that caused my bad posture and how I fixed them effectively.

Health Benefits of Proper Hydration

The human body is usually between 60-75% water. Achieving proper hydration, then staying hydrated, is directly related to how good our computer posture is. It’s very important to keep our bodies hydrated. One of the biggest motivations for me to maintain proper hydration is simply preventing headaches.

Staying hydrated also prevents many other issues, such as causing organs to function poorly, as well as tissues surrounding the spine. If the spine isn’t well supported by muscles, tendons, and ligaments, our computer posture suffers quickly. Drinking plenty of water also prevents the formation of kidney stones. These are just a few of the benefits to staying hydrated.

woman drinking water Health Benefits of Proper Hydration

Drinking the correct amount of water per day can keep the body healthy and well hydrated. The amount of water I drink (or don’t drink) is directly connected to the extent of my repetitive strain injuries caused by sitting at a desk.

When I’m dehydrated, my muscles tense up and tighten much quicker, causing my posture to suffer. When I stay hydrated throughout the day, my posture is always easier to maintain. Improved posture is just one of the benefits of drinking water for me.

How Long Does it Take to Fix Bad Posture?

Bad posture takes work to fix. It also takes awareness, time, and patience.

Many people struggle with bad posture. It’s not an easy thing to figure out. Especially with long hours spent sitting, working on screens, or using mobile devices.

This article details my personal experience of how long it took to fix my bad computer posture.

The effects of bad posture often become noticeable through back pain, tight muscles, and reduced mobility.

Fixing my posture took a lot of time. So, I’m going to talk about how long it took for my correction timeline (and how I got there).

Tools to Reduce Wrist Pain from Computer Use

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a painful condition where a nerve in the wrist gets compressed. I suffered through this wrist pain for years. I thought it was just a part of my life going forward. If I wanted to have an office-based career where I worked on a computer, I’d have carpal tunnel syndrome from typing, indefinitely.

But in my experience, the theory that wrist pain comes from the act of typing is a misconception. I had carpal tunnel syndrome from using an old-school, tall, bulky keyboard and mouse. I had to extend my wrists to lift my hands onto my tall keyboard and mouse. Holding this vulnerable wrist position for 8 hours a day is why the nerve in my wrist was compressed. It actually didn’t have anything to do with how much I was typing. Instead, it was the repetitive strain and overuse of constantly extending my wrists.

This style of keyboard and mouse are not good tools to reduce wrist pain from computer use. This tall, bulky style of keyboard and mouse is actually what caused my wrist pain.

This article will explain how I prevent wrist pain by typing correctly. It will also talk about ergonomic tools to reduce wrist pain. Finally, it will talk about how I strengthen my wrists away from my desk, which is also a method of wrist pain relief for computer users.

Is Sitting on Your Knees Bad?

I’m not of fan of sitting on my knees. I just don’t see how it can be good for me.

Especially considering I played catcher in baseball during my teenage years. Which required me to spend A LOT of time in the squatted position. Even back then when I was in the game, I never rested on my knees. It just didn’t feel good to me.

The risk vs reward of sitting on my knees just isn’t worth it for me.

I know it’s pretty common for some people to sit on their knees. Especially while working on something that requires them to be low to the ground. Or playing with the kids on the floor.

I’m not speaking for them in this article. I’m just speaking for myself, through my experience of being an athlete who has a full-time job working on a computer.

Most people don’t think about knee pain after sitting. Or, its long-term impact on joint health, circulation, and posture.

So today, I’m dedicating this post to talk about whether or not sitting on your knees is bad.

Proper Computer Ergonomics

I want my computer workstation to be an asset that promotes good posture as soon as I sit (or stand).

Not a liability that creates posture mistakes immediately.

Most of my computer-related pain decreased when I started using proper computer ergonomics.

The key to preventing most of my computer posture problems lies in 3 simple ergonomic adjustments. They apply regardless if I’m working at a sitting or standing workstation.

This article will talk about those proper computer ergonomics.

Can Bad Posture Cause Headaches?

Headaches are the worst. I used to get them weekly. I thought they were migraine attacks. But it turns out, they were really bad tension headaches. And they were awful.

This was before I learned how to improve posture while sitting at computer.

Can Bad Posture Cause Headaches? — I used to get multiple headaches a week due to my poor computer posture.

I blamed my headaches on dehydration mainly. Then stress and lack of sleep. And they were all variables. But I had no idea that holding my poor posture (for long periods) was contributing heavily to my head pain.

Bad posture doesn’t just affect how you look. It can put continuous strain on your neck, shoulder, and upper back. This triggered my posture-related headaches.

I’m dedicating this post to talk about how bad posture used to cause my headaches.

Back Exercises to Avoid with Lower Back Pain

Exercise has provided me with incredible benefits. It improves my strength, my breathing, and my computer posture. All of these are great for keeping me in shape.

My goals during exercise are pretty simple. Do body weight exercises and/or lift weights. For the last 15 minutes of my workout, I make it higher intensity. I don’t take any breaks in between sets. This helps to increase my breathing rate. This portion of the workout may not seem like a long one. But when you are constantly moving the whole time, it gets difficult and challenging quickly.

There are back exercises that can help relieve back pain, strengthen the back muscles, alleviate stiffness, and improve mobility.

There are also certain exercises that are not good for people with lower back pain. Triggering the wrong muscles, as well as straining the joints and ligaments, can worsen the lower back pain. Since we sit at a computer for long periods of time, we are already very likely to suffer from back pain.

So today, I’m sharing a roundup of back exercises that people with lower back pain should avoid. My articles are not medical advice. They are based on my personal experience and my opinions. Do your research. Make good decisions. And be the best advocate possible for your own healthcare.

10 Neck Posture Exercises

Most people don’t realize how much time they spend looking down at a phone, or at their computer monitor, when in a seated position. I used to be one of these people.

These habits put extra strain on my neck and shoulders which led to poor posture, discomfort, headaches, and long-term alignment issues. It also lead to excessive muscle tension, chronic pain, and joint dysfunction.

Doing targeted neck posture exercises (both stretching and strengthening) helped me correct these issues and regain good posture.

In this article, I’m sharing a round up of neck posture exercises that helped me, which you can add to your routines.

How Much Water Do I Need To Drink Per Day

The amount of water I drink (or don’t drink) is directly connected to the extent of my repetitive strain injuries caused by sitting at a desk.

When I’m dehydrated, my muscles tense up and tighten much quicker, causing my posture to suffer.

When I stay hydrated throughout the day, my posture is always easier to maintain. Improved posture is just one of the benefits of drinking water for me.

“90% of people are actually chronically dehydrated.” -Chris Powell, ABC’s Extreme Weight Loss

Disclaimer: The info in this article is not medical advice. I talk about my experience of what worked best for me. Be the best advocate possible for your own health. Do research, make decisions that are best for you, and consult a doctor when necessary, especially if pregnant or breastfeeding.

Stooped Posture

Stooped posture caused me excessive muscle tension. This tension led to chronic pain and joint dysfunction.

It didn’t matter if I would sit or stand, stooped posture stuck with me for years. It’s not necessarily the position my torso was in, it was the act of placing my hands on something in front of me (keyboard and mouse), then leaving them there for long periods of time.

Stooped posture is very common among office workers who sit at a computer for long periods of time.

It often develops gradually, due to long hours of sitting, poor ergonomics, back muscle weakness, or aging.

Many people do not realize they have developed a stooped posture until they begin experiencing neck pain, back discomfort, or limited mobility.

I’m dedicating this post to talk about what stooped posture is, and what someone can do to fix it, or even avoid it altogether.

How to Improve Sitting Posture

I want my ergonomic workstation to be an asset that promotes good sitting posture the second I sit in my office chair. I need monitor height, elbow height, knee angle, and foot position to be correct immediately.

So, I shouldn’t have to move my body into a good computer posture position after I sit. This kind of workstation would be a liability that causes computer-related injuries. Good sitting posture should happen more naturally, as soon as I sit down. This requires a computer desk setup that’s custom fit for each office worker.

How to Improve Sitting Posture — How to improve sitting posture. Image by Ocusfocus via Megapixl.

Correct sitting posture for office workers can vary for different people. There’s no single, correct way for everyone to sit at a computer. Desk workers are different heights, arm lengths, leg lengths, torso lengths, etc.

I write about my experience with making poor computer posture mistakes in the past. I also write about how I fixed those mistakes, in an effort to heal my computer-related pain, and prevent future computer injuries.

3 Years Alcohol-Free: The Power of Peer Pressure

Peer pressure had a negative effect on me many times.

It only had a positive, powerful effect on me once. But once is all it took.

At the end of March 2026, I’ll be 3 years alcohol-free.

It was never an addiction problem for me. It was more of an alignment thing. Or mis-alignment, I should say.

3 Years Alcohol-Free: The Power of Peer Pressure

In 30 years of drinking, I never took a sip of alcohol that tasted good.

Alcohol was always a means to get a result:

To meet someone.
To fit in.
To make someone else happy.
Or just to avoid the awkward question, “Why aren’t you having fun?”

How to Fix Forward Head Posture

Having posture problems used to be complex for me. But I was surprised at how simple it was to make healthy changes to my ergonomic habits. Finding corrective exercises was easy, but practicing them consistently was the hard part for me.

Forward head posture is one of the most common poor posture problems today. Especially for those of us who work on a computer 8 hours a day.

Forward head posture fhp places extra strain on the neck and upper spine, which causes a number of uncomfortable and painful symptoms.

In this post, I’m sharing a guide on how to effectively and safely fix forward head posture that you can follow (and learn from my personal experience).

Benefits of Standing Desk

Standing workstations allow office workers to use a computer comfortably, while in a physically active position.

Commonly referred to as standing desks, or sit stand desks, they allow us to use repetitive strain to our advantage, correcting bad habits that sitting has caused.

Benefits of Standing Desk — This article will talk about what a standing desk is, the benefits of a standing desk, and proper standing desk posture.

Sitting in an office chair for long periods of time makes us dominant on the posterior (back) side of our lower body.

Our hamstrings and gluteus muscles are overused and they shorten over time. Conversely, this causes the anterior (front) side of our lower body to become overextended.

Our quadriceps lengthen and get weaker from sitting for extended periods of time.

Sitting causes both posterior and anterior leg muscles to get weaker and more deactivated. Posterior tissues shorten, while anterior tissues lengthen. This causes a lot of muscle imbalance and confusion in the legs, as well as increased risk of injury during sports and exercise.

Do Posture Correctors Work?

Computer posture problems are prevalent nowadays. Especially with the excessive amount of external factors working against us. In my case, these factors included high-stress jobs, working under fake lights, eating ultra processed foods, and drinking water loaded with chemicals (just to name a few). All these affected my posture in a negative way.

More people are working at their desks with their hands constantly on a keyboard and mouse. On top of that, add looking down at a phone for hours a day (for more info, check out the article I wrote on tech neck prevention).

All of the above variables lead to rounded shoulders, forward head posture, and upper back pain. These types of posture mistakes are very common among computer users.

In this post, I’m going to talk about whether or not posture correctors really work.