Straighten Up
photo by JD’na
Aw, you guys were too cute yesterday with all your sisterly and brotherly love. I think yesterday was Official Mushy-Gushy day on here. (Not to be confused with the day I got all mushy-gushy about you.) And now the phrase mushy-gushy has lost all meaning. Darn, I hate when words do that.
So I’m not sure how many of you work in an office—and by that I mean spend eight to 11 hours with butt firmly planted in seat, face planted in front of the computer—but I was thinking today about my posture. Here’s how it went down:
I click my neck to the side, which cracks and stiffens. Then I massage my shoulders. I’m pretty sure there are marbles underneath my skin, woven into my muscle fibers. I work my way to my upper back where the marbles turned into golf balls. I stand up. Feel my lower back pinch. Crack it. And decide one day when I’m 90 and warped like the Hunchback of Notre Dame I’m going to say, “See, I told you office work would screw up your body.”
What I’m saying is sitting for that long can put a major kink in your back. And neck. And shoulders. When I’m a mega zillionaire I’m going to get a deep-tissue massage every day. Hey, if I’m that rich, I’ll buy each of you one every day.
For now, though, I’m going to do the best I can by trying to improve my posture. I have a friend whose perfect posture inspires me to sit up straight like a real lady (you know, the British kind that wears gloves and drinks high tea every day at noon and is, sigh, so on top of everything) but since she can’t be at my side all day long I’ll need to remind myself.
Step one (which I took a year ago): Buying a lumbar support cushion
Step two (let’s call this “in progress”): Stop slouching at home. Just because they say curl up with a good book does not mean I must actually swirl into a catlike ball. Shoulders back. Chin up. Back straight.
That’s better.
Do you have good posture? How do you deal with long hours in front of a computer—and the havoc it wreaks on your body? (And if you don’t have a desk job … well, lucky you.)
And PS: Mosey on over here to enter my beauty product contest. The fun lasts till Friday. And when I say fun I mean you can win a package of 12 never-been-used beauty products.
20 comments
I have golf balls on my shoulders too. A couple of weeks ago I went to get a massage…Chinese-style..which means they were digging into my lumps with their elbows the whole time. OUCH! But felt sooooo good afterwards!
I don’t think I can read a book and call it “relaxing” without curling up like a cat. I’ll work on the straight back thing though…
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Oh my gosh we are so much alike…I am quite the neck cracker!
My posture is horrible. I work from home from the comfort of my own red chair (which is an over-sized chaise and a half). Chiropractors all over the world are cringing at the very thought!
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Someone told me once that I had great posture. But now that I work at a computer all day, all I want to do is slump down like a bum.
And I know what you mean- my shoulders are so tense it’s out of this world. I’ve been considering just sucking it up, pulling out the wallet (*tear), and going for a massage at some chain to work some of it out… enough’s enough!
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Ugh I have HORRIBLE posture. It’s so bad that it actually hurts to pull my shoulders back to make them straight. I know it’s from sitting and hunching over a desk all day, but I constantly forget to straighten up.
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Yoga has helped my posture and back problems enormously. I also make a conscious effort to get up and stretch regularly.
I wish I had a job where I could move around!
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I have the worst posture ever. Any other tips to share??
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Tracey Reply:
August 19th, 2010 at 9:50 pm
Aside from being mindful of it, look for my post on Friday. There’s another tool I use to help me straighten out and learn what’s straight for me.
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I actually have really good posture until I realize that I’ve been at my desk all day and my shoulders are touching my ears and I’ve lost all feeling in my pinky finger. Not cool..work is killing me..haha!
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As I am reading this, I adjust my posture, lol.
I have gotten better since practicing yoga/pilates.
I have always wanted to sit on a balance ball, That’d straighten me out.
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Eh – my posture isn’t good (yet) but it is getting better! For me, I always feel like I’m sticking my boobs out when I sit up straight and that makes me feel self conscious. I just need to get over that I think:)
PS> I love that research on siblings. When my daughter was born, I told my boys they should thank me (and her) now for making them more civilized, better adjusted, longer lived human beings:)
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OMG, just reading your blog has made me sit up and straighten my posture. I am terrible at sitting properly at the computer all day at work that is why go to the chiropractor every week.
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I have always had horrible posture! Since I injured my back last year, I am working on undoing years of slumping and am straightening up. It helps that sitting slumped makes my back hurt so I now sit ramrod straight.
Until that mega zillionaire thing pans out, you should invest in a foam roller (you may already own one for the knees). If you lay on it and roll your upper back, from your shoulders to the bottom of your ribcage, it is almost as good as a deep tissue massage and feels so good.
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Tracey Reply:
August 18th, 2010 at 4:13 pm
I do have a foam roller and I do use it for my legs, but I never thought of rolling out my back. I’m so doing this tonight. Great idea!
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I swear the computer seriously reverses all that yoga I do….When I’m relaxing on the computer, I often fail to check my posture. The support cushion seems like a good idea.
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I have pretty good posture in my back, but my shoulders are all over the place. I constantly got huge knots in my shoulders/upper back from typing at my desk. I was also pretty lucky to get up and move around frequently. Have you ever thought about taking in a firm exercise ball to sub in for your chair?
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I won’t lie – I have absolutely HORRIBLE posture! I have a feeling it’s mostly from lying in bed while on the computer :/ I notice my posture straighten immediately after I run, though, because I have to focus more on keeping my neck straight to keep it from nodding back and forth and also on keeping my chest in and up for my breathing.
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Tracey Reply:
August 19th, 2010 at 9:49 pm
Oh yeah, lying in bed or on the couch with the computer makes me slouch really bad!
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My new years resolution for 2009 was to drink more water, stand up straight, and wear sunscreen. Sunscreen and water I did. Stand up straight I failed again. It was a 2010 resolution. something tells me it will be 2011s, too. but i am working on it!!!
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I have horrible posture. I really need to work on that. I’ve been told by a chiropractor that I have a slight case of scoliosis, so that probably makes it worse.
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Tracey Reply:
August 19th, 2010 at 9:44 pm
I have slight scoliosis, too, which I think makes mine worse.
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