Neck And Back Pain: How To Stay Active And Avoid Pain During A Lockdown

Neck And Back Pain: How To Stay Active And Avoid Pain During A Lockdown Indians are currently asked to stay indoor to mitigate the threat of COVID 19. Gyms, parks, public places, and transport is shut down. Most companies have asked their employees to work from home. Since working from home for an extended period is quite uncommon in India, they do not have the necessary infrastructure like ergonomic desks and chairs. That means aches and pains due to sitting for long hours in the wrong body posture. If this continues it can lead to chronic issues like arthritis, cervical pain, etc. To prevent this from happening and to stay active follow the below tips:

Keep Moving throughout the Day Do you know even if you spend some time every day exercising you can still be considered a couch potato if you are sitting in one place all day? That is because it is too many hours of inactivity at a stretch. Even if you have exercised about 45 minutes a day and the rest of the time you spend sitting on a sofa or a couch you are easily spending about 80% of your being inactive. That can cause issues like: Increases the risk of heart diseases and other such chronic illnesses.

It reduces the blood circulation to the brain, feet, and other parts of the body.

It increases the production of an enzyme that drops energy levels.

Increases the risk of developing back and neck pain for sitting too long and in one position  Tighten the muscles and weakens the neck, shoulder, and back muscles.

To prevent all these from happening, it is best to keep moving around throughout the day.

Take short breaks of say, 5 or 10 minutes every hour and flex your muscles or walk around to have a sip of water.    

Set Right the Ergonomics

When you are working from home, it is essential to implement ergonomics so that the body is not stressed out sitting in uncomfortable positions for a long time. Experts from Wakefit opine that, the wrong posture can affect the musculoskeletal system and lead to MSD. That impacts productivity at work and hence setting up your desk in an ergonomic way is essential.  Arrange your desk and workstation so that it suits your body  Use a back support pillow to get ample back support  Change positions frequently. If you are always seated; stand up; if standing up, walk around.  Place a footstool so that your feet are raised and there is ample blood circulation  Do some stretches which reduce the tension in the back and neck muscles.  Not just while working, maintain proper posture while sleeping too as that reduces the chances of waking with pains and aches. Use a comfortable and supportive mattress to maintain proper spinal alignment.  If you are suffering from back and neck pain use an orthopaedic mattress. Even experts recommend it for chronic back pain patients.

Exercise to Remain Active

Exercising for 30 minutes, three times a week can give you great results. It helps to improve mood, boosts energy levels, reduces stress and anxiety, and also alleviates back pain and other aches. But with the gyms closed, due to lockdown, you may be unable to go

to a park and jog or visit your gym for a workout. However, there are many ways you can remain active despite the lockdown:  If you have back problems simple stretches and walks can help. You can walk in your home for say 30 minutes.  Start with a slow walk and slowly buildup pace and walk briskly swinging your arms. That can become a high-intensity workout and helps to burn calories.  If there is not much space for a walk, yoga and meditation can be done.  Look online for pilates exercises or yoga poses to boost your core.  Leg raise, heel raise, front plank, chair stand, pigeon pose, sit and stand exercise, spot jogs, seated twists are some of the exercises you can do by taking short breaks from work.

Household Chores Due to the lockdown and restriction in movement, most of the household chores have to be done without domestic help. Though it is boring and monotonous work, it is a great way to remain active. However, when you are doing them, ensure that you follow the right posture, without which you will be prone to back and neck injuries.    

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Vacuuming: Do not bend too much, use the extensions so that you can stand upright. Also do not move against the vacuum Mopping or sweeping: Keep your elbows close to the body so that it does not get injured, do not twist the body too much and as much as possible stand upright.

Cleaning bathroom: Be careful when it is soapy and wet as you can slip and fall. If you are washing low fixtures use a small stool to sit and do it in comfort.

Dishwashing: Do not lean too forward and keep your head up as that can lead to back and neck pain. Keep your legs apart and use the counter edge to rest your stomach so that your body does not lean forward.

Cooking and general work: In general if you are doing a task, frequently change positions and postures.

Just because you are forced to stay at home and work from home, it does not mean you should become a couch potato. Follow the above-mentioned tips and stay active throughout the day as that aids in getting quality sleep. Perform yoga and meditation so that it calms the body and mind and relieves from the stressful things happening around you.