Quick Workout To Correct The Posture

Ruta Gorhe-Ajnikar explains how our posture affects our well-being and offers a few solutions to correct the posture

- Ruta Gorhe-Ajnikar

Work from home has caused people excess weight gain and back pain. So, let's talk about a solution to avoid pain in your spine (neck or back). Back pain is one of the most common causes of disability among the working population. Slouched sitting, is the predominant cause as it is almost like you are standing in a bent position. The more bending of the spine forward (like rising from bed, slouched sitting and brushing teeth); the more is the intradiscal pressure. Also, these forward bending activities lead to poor posture over time. The more we bend behind, which we hardly do in our daily activities, the lesser is the pressure in the disc.

Everyone knows the term slipped disc, but that's not what happens with everyone who gets back pain. Yes, there is definite excess pressure in the disc which causes back pain but for very few people disc slips out of its place. Sometimes this disc even hits the nerve behind causing pins and needles sensation or numbness in the arms or legs. Back pain is usually the initial stage when only the disc has bulged. Tingling and numbness occur in the next stage where the disc bulges or slips to the level that the nerve behind the disc also gets compressed. So, how to avoid this excess pressure or reduce this pressure? The simplest way is to maintain a normal alignment of the spine whether you are sitting or standing.

The adult spine is divided into four curves: two posterior curves which help bend backwards and two anterior curves which help in bending forward. The anterior curves are in the neck and the lower back regions. The posterior curves are in the upper and mid-back and buttocks regions. So, when we sit for a long time, after some time we tend to sit in a slouched position which is like bending. Staying in this position for a long time causes excess pressure in the disc and leads to pain. Here are a few ways to fix this:

Good Posture (Ergonomics)