It’s no secret that back pain plagues a lot of adults today, and slouching at the computer (or especially at the laptop) may be a contributer according to reporter Jodi Mailander Farrell in Your mother was right. Slouching is bad for you. If you read the article, skim through the stuff on runway models (apparently slouching is trendy these days) and start in the middle. That’s where she starts with information on how to combat slouching and why it’s important.
“Everybody now has laptops and everybody has to look down to see them; nobody sits straight in chairs anymore,” says Nancy Gilman, a Delray Beach physical therapist and southeast region director for the Florida Physical Therapy Association. “I see patients in their 20s with back problems, even teenagers. It mainly has to do with poor posture, poor body mechanics, poor lifting. People are in a seated position for too long.”
The solution? The article recommends concentrating on good posture (sit up straight with your feet flat on the floor when you’re at the computer–eyes should be level with or looking slightly down at your computer monitor), both when sitting and standing. Also, do exercises that target the back, the upper back especially. If you go to the gym, don’t focus just on bench press and curls… do those rows and lat pull downs to build up the muscles in your back (otherwise your muscular development will be uneven, and that can lead to back problems rather than helping). And if you can’t get to the gym as much as you should…
“At the very least, Gilman, the physical therapist, urges patients to practice chin tucks and shoulder rolls at their desks. “When you take a break, do the opposite of what you do all day,” Gilman says. “If you sit hunched forward, stand and stretch back.” “