Guest post: Two tips for your back health

When I received this email from my friend, massage therapist Catherine Larouche, I asked her permission to share it with you.

If you’re lucky enough to be located in the Laurentians (Qc), I strongly encourage you to book a massage with Catherine or her colleague, Caroline. Both are excellent! Otherwise, you can at least benefit from Catherine’s tips to promote your back health.

Visit Catherine’s website/book an appointement here: https://www.gorendezvous.com/en/catherinelarouchemasso

These tips were written for those of us who have been working remotely, but they obviously apply to anything we do sitting down… like crochet!

Two tips for your back health

Working remotely has its inconveniences, including back pain. This summer, thanks to vacation, kids and good weather, we were more active… to the benefit of our back health. But the return to reality brings with it some bad habits related to remote work. If you’re working from home, I want to tell you about two essential habits to avoid back pain :

Create an appropriate work space.

If you haven’t already done so, you really should get to it. Working from your couch is a BIG NOPE! Your screen should be at eye level. Your head is heavy, even when leaning forward only a few degrees.

From left to right: 10-12 pounds / 50 pounds / 60 pounds

You should also sit properly. Bad posture when sitting will not only overwork your neck and shoulders, but will also irritate your nervous system, leading to your brain’s diminished capacity to properly communicate with your body.

Image below: Sitting is just as bad as smoking!

Woman sits on chair demonstrating how not to sit. — Did you know? In 2010, the American Cancer Society proved that women who sit more than six hours a day are 37% more likely to die prematurely than those who sit three hours or less. For men, the risk is 18% greater.

Move.

Get up and move regularly. At least once per hour. Invent colleagues to go gossip with near the coffee maker. Go in search of your cat. Spy on your neighbour from the window, while chatting on the phone. Stretch. Open up your chest. Roll your shoulders. When you move your body, you also “stretch” your brain and your longevity improves. That’s not nothing.