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A full-time office worker hits a button on the keyboard thousands of times per day.  With every keystroke we make, the muscles in our hands, and tendons in our fingers, are doing the exact opposite of what builds a strong grip. 

But why does this happen? 

You would think using our hands and fingers to type all day would make our grip stronger. 

But these are the reasons why typing weakened my grip strength…

Continue reading Why does typing weaken grip strength?

The most common work-related disability is back pain caused by sitting at a computer with poor posture. There are many reasons how this happens. However, all of them can be described under one term: repetitive strain injuries. To understand how to improve your poor posture and decrease your pain, it’s very important to understand what a repetitive strain injury is first.

Also known as RSI, repetitive strain injuries cause pain or impairment of muscles or tendons when they have been used over and over for long periods of time. Sitting at a computer with poor posture puts a huge amount of stress on a body. When in that poor posture for extended periods of time every day, repetitive strain injuries become a painful, chronic work-related disability.

Continue reading Can Sitting at a Computer Cause Back Pain?

Lower back pain can be a mysterious, nagging issue for those of us who sit at a computer for long periods of time. I’ve dealt with it a lot over the years. Most of the time, it was caused by repetitive strain of my lower back muscles that were overextended. The question isn’t necessarily, “What’s wrong with my lower back?” But more accurately, “How is my poor computer posture causing this lower back pain?” There is a cause and effect for everything. In this case, lower back pain is the effect, not the cause.

Common causes of lower back pain often don’t originate in the lower back. Improper sitting posture can affect or trigger lower back pain. Maintaining a neutral spine is very important. When we lose the lumbar curve, it overextends the muscles, also putting a lot of pressure on the spinal cord. Having our monitor too low can also cause lower back pain. Holding internal shoulder rotation for long periods of time can also cause us to slouch forward, setting off a chain reaction of bad habits down to the lower back. Other common posture mistakes are incorrect desk height, chair height, and foot position.

Nothing on my website is medical advice. It’s for informational purposes only. It’s not my intention to replace the need for physical therapy. I simply share my experience, what has worked for me, and what hasn’t. I talk about the poor posture mistakes I’ve fixed and the good postural habits I’ve learned. Also, I talk about things I’ve learned in pain relief and pain management. It’s important to consult a professional healthcare provider if the pain persists or when it happens suddenly. Also, consult them for medical advice before performing any of the methods in this article.

Continue reading 5 Ways to Relieve Lower Back Pain

The majority of Americans are required to sit for 40 hours or more every week. Prolonged sitting in a static position, with incorrect posture, can cause long term and short term effects. Not everyone has the luxury of having an ergonomic office chair. But there are ways to sit comfortably and properly. These good sitting posture habits can help prevent some of the negative effects of a prolonged sitting position.

How To Sit Comfortably In An Office Chair

How to adjust an office chair

Everyone has different variables when it comes to ergonomic sitting posture. Some of them include arm’s length, torso height, leg length, height of desk, height of your chair, etc. There’s no one way to describe how to sit properly in an office chair. It’s up to each of us to take our own variables into consideration when finding a comfortable sitting position. But with that said, here are 3 main rules I follow to adjust an office chair. These can apply to anyone.

My feet are flat on the floor

I never want an office chair too high so that you can’t rest your feet flat on the floor. You may have to sit at a very high desk, which causes you to raise your chair so much that your feet don’t touch the floor. In this case, a footrest would work just as well. Just make sure your feet are flat on the footrest.

Continue reading How to Sit Comfortably in an Office Chair

Ergonomics means the “the study of people’s efficiency in their working environment” (definition credit Google/Oxford Languages). When it comes to working on a laptop, ergonomics means posture. It also means requiring good habits from multiple indirect variables. These variables can mean sleep quality, breathing, and hydration. Click on any of those if you’d like to take learn ergonomic tips about each subtopic. All of them are related to how good (or bad) our computer posture is.

Using a laptop is very different from using a desktop. Laptops have a very compact design. My laptop screen, laptop keyboard and mouse are all within 13 inches of each other. Having to focus my eye level on my laptop screen, plus my hands on the keyboard and mouse, creates awkward postures. Factor in that we are in this vulnerable position for a long period of time, it exponentially increases the risk of injury. Laptops are not designed for all-day use.

Proper laptop ergonomics can help decrease the strain and pressure on your neck and back. Any time I feel physical pain, my work productivity and mental clarity suffer. Following a few ergonomic tips can help improve your productivity and clarity.

Continue reading Ergonomic Tips For Laptop Users

My definition of posture is the position someone holds their body in. Posture is a constant variable in our lives. The importance of good posture becomes much greater when we are working in a position for an extended period of time. Repetitive strain and overuse injuries are the enemy. Not necessarily the position we are sitting or standing in. A key variable in how to maintain good posture is to change the position we are working in multiple times throughout the day.

Having a neutral spine is another key variable to improve your posture. The old advice of “stand tall”, or “sit up straight”, is actually more complex than that. Sitting or standing “too tall” can possibly lead to poor posture. The spine isn’t straight. It has natural curves. When we properly sit and stand up straight, the spine is curved, which is often referred to as a neutral spine. Sometimes I refer to it as a balanced spine, that isn’t compressed or overextended.

Bad posture affects my confidence, pain levels, and overall health.

Proper posture looks like the combination of balance and stability. When working on a computer for long periods of time, I like to compare myself to a tree. Strong, but also able to move slightly, like a tree blowing in the wind. Not strong and stiff all day long, like a brick building. This would lead to poor posture from repetitive strain and overuse injuries.

Continue reading How Can Posture Affect Your Health

Having good posture is very important to me. Repetitive strain injuries are still possible while we hold this position of good posture. Working in any one position for extended periods of time can lead to painful overuse injuries.

But, as soon as we have poor posture, our risk of injury exponentially increases. These common postural problems include pain, tension, lack of energy, lack of focus, and lack of productivity. Poor posture can shift our center of gravity forward and overload our muscles and connective tissues. Reaching forward to use a keyboard and mouse makes us completely forget we have a back rest on our chair. We slouch forward, causing us to lose the natural curves in our spine. When we hold this position for 8 hours a day, it can cause chronic back, neck and shoulder pain.

Continue reading How to Improve Neck and Back Posture

Standing desks have become very popular in recent years. When sitting all day, I would naturally slouch forward. This caused some spinal disc degeneration in my back. I’ve since changed my desk setup. It’s adjustable and can go between sitting and standing throughout the day. Working at a standing desk has decreased my back pain significantly. I don’t slouch forward anymore, which has put a pause on my spinal disc degeneration.

I also feel generally better while using a standing desk. I’m at much less risk of weight gain, compared to when I was sitting all day. It has also helped improve my mood, energy levels, work productivity, and mental clarity.

When I shifted from a regular desk to a standing desk, it took some getting used to. Today, I am dedicating this article to show how I got used to working at a standing desk and how to get the most out of its benefits.

Continue reading How To Get Used To A Standing Desk

Correct posture is incredibly important when it comes to sitting and standing at a computer desk. Poor posture doesn’t only affect our physical health. It also affects our confidence, mental health, blood flow, nerve health, and more. The first step toward injury prevention is to improve your posture.

Many people don’t think twice about their bad posture. They have no idea they may be contributing to future back pain, postural stress, muscle fatigue, rounded shoulders and more.

So, today I’m sharing my ultimate guide to good posture. By trying these tips, you could noticeably improve your posture and feel the difference too. I sat at a computer desk with poor posture for many years. One day, I took accountability for my bad posture and started implementing as many small, correct posture habits as I could.

Continue reading Guide To Good Posture

Posture is “the position in which someone holds their body when standing or sitting” (definition credit: Google and Oxford Languages). Having good posture includes many different variables and steps in the process. I’ve learned the most important variable to having good posture means having a balanced, neutral spine. When sitting for long periods of time, 2 of the most common posture mistakes I suffered from affected me the most. These 2 posture mistakes are sitting with a compressed spine and sitting with an overextended spine.

Bad posture used to affect my physical appearance and my self-confidence. The posture mistakes I made while sitting at a computer were also having long term effects on me 24 hours a day. Sitting at a computer for long periods of time can take a heavy toll on us physically and mentally. Improving your posture can help improve overall health and well-being. Starting my good posture journey has prevented muscle tension, joint strains, back pain, and many other physical injuries. The 2 most common posture mistakes can easily be corrected by quick posture fixes.

Continue reading Computer Posture Mistakes and Fixes

Sitting for prolonged hours used to put a lot of pressure on my back muscles and spinal discs. This pressure resulted in stubborn lower back pain. This pain was often debilitating. It was painful both when I was in a sitting position and when I was away from my desk. My improper sitting posture was the main variable worsening the pain.

When in a sitting position for prolonged periods, the first instinct people tend to have is slouching forward. We reach for that keyboard and mouse. Everything goes downhill from there. Slouching can strain the spinal discs and overstretch the ligaments.

Years ago, my physical therapist was hitting me in the head for a $50 copay thrice a week. It wasn’t helping. I had to figure out ways to improve my sitting position during the time I was outside of the physical therapist’s office.

Simply “sitting up straight” wasn’t enough to relieve this pain. I had to take an intentional, yet simplified approach. There are many ways to avoid lower back pain and other back related injuries. This article talks about the 4 most helpful habits I implemented on how to sit properly to avoid lower back pain.

Continue reading How to Sit Properly to Avoid Lower Back Pain

When working at a computer, prolonged periods of sitting time resulted in an increased risk of backaches and body pains for me. A sedentary lifestyle of 40 hours per week added up quickly to be a tremendous health risk. I’ve had many health conditions caused by the negative effects of sitting for long periods of time. Luckily, I was able to avoid serious negative effects like diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. But many people aren’t so lucky. Many have experienced these issues due to an increased risk caused by a sedentary lifestyle. Sedentary time can add up over the years and cause these conditions.

Fortunately, I’ve been able to change my lifestyle away from the typical 40 hour week grind. I’m not chained to the desk anymore. I no longer sit at a computer for long periods of time. I can pretty much make my own schedule. However, for those of us who don’t have that luxury, there are still plenty of ways to improve a sedentary lifestyle, even while working a demanding schedule that requires sitting for prolonged periods of time. *Disclosure: From time to time, I use photos from royalty free photo websites that feature products. I’m not affiliated with, or compensated by any product sellers or manufacturers.*

Continue reading How Often Should You Stand Up From Your Desk

Standing desks are beneficial to me for many reasons. My blood circulation is improved throughout my workday. It improves my mental clarity, which makes me more productive and creative. The option to stand up straight at work allows me to activate muscles that would otherwise be neglected if I were sitting all day. Standing also allows me to keep a balanced activation between my anterior (front) muscles and my posterior (back) muscles.

If we were sitting instead, the anterior muscles are typically compressed and shortened all day. The posterior muscles are also compressed all day, but they are lengthened instead of shortened. This caused a major imbalance of functionality for me during exercise, sports, running, walking, sleeping, and even waking up in the morning. Using an adjustable standing desk has reduced the probability of straining my back either while working or exercise. Plus, my back just feels healthier and stronger.

Continue reading How High Should a Standing Desk Be

One of my favorite massaging tools I use to improve my posture is the Hypervolt massage gun. It is made by a company called Hyperice. I’m not compensated by Hyperice in any way. I’m simply a customer who loves their products, which I paid for with my own money. All the info in this article comes from my personal experience of using the product.

There are three different versions of the Hypervolt massage gun. They all provide rapid bursts of pressure by giving a percussion massage, also known as a vibration massage. The version with the lowest intensity of pressure is the Hypervolt GO. The version with the highest intensity is the Hypervolt Plus. I own the version that has the output intensity in the middle of these two models. My version is simply called the Hypervolt. The Hypervolt is the model I will talk about here in this article, not the Hypervolt GO or the Hypervolt Plus.

Continue reading Hypervolt Massage Gun Benefits

The average American office worker sits at a computer desk 40 hours per week. That’s over 2,000 hours per year. Multiply those 2,000 hours by how many years you’ve had a job working in a sitting position. That’s a lot of repetitive strain to undo before we can sit with correct sitting posture. Learning to sit properly in an office chair is going to take patience. The good news is that I’ve been obsessively learning and testing different good habits for years. My story is based on my own experience. The different ways I corrected my poor posture aren’t medical advice. Choose which info could be helpful for you and your situation. Talk with your doctor and be the strongest advocate possible for your own health.

It’s super easy to hunch over a keyboard when you’re working for prolonged periods of time. It’s the most common poor posture habit when sitting in a desk chair. Reading a monitor from arm’s length, as well as using a keyboard and mouse, are all actions that occur in front of our bodies. These actions naturally force a large amount of muscles and tendons to constantly pull us out of sitting up straight.

Not sitting properly at a computer desk causes many negative effects. The short-term effects that bothered me the most were being tired constantly and having a cloudy mental clarity. The long-term effects I suffered from were pain in the neck and back, poor blood circulation, weak legs, stiff neck, tight hips, and weight gain.

Continue reading How to Properly Sit at a Computer Desk