Combat tech neck & improve posture with 9 office-friendly stretches to ease tension, boost focus & keep your spine healthy at work.
If you’re spending long hours at a desk, whether at an office or home, maintaining a healthy spine can be a challenge. Despite our dedication to fitness or yoga, if we aren’t mindful, our posture can suffer as we sit in a chair all day or curve the body to hold a phone. It’s a common situation: sitting for eight or more hours a day and staring at a screen is not how our bodies were meant to function. These prolonged, static positions can take a toll on our overall health.
Taking a proactive approach to your body is essential, especially if you’ve noticed tension in your neck, shoulders or back while working. Perhaps you’ve observed similar issues in others, with their heads jutting forward, shoulders rounded and a general slouch as they focus on their screens. This common issue, known as “tech neck”, arises when the head leans forward, the neck curves downward and the shoulders round due to prolonged device use. With people spending around five hours a day on technology, this poor alignment often leads to neck pain and discomfort.
Research suggests that at least 70 per cent of people will experience tech neck or shoulder pain at some point. This condition compresses and tightens the muscles, tendons and ligaments in the front of the neck, while stretching the trapezius and splenius capitis muscles, along with their tendons and ligaments, at the back. Considering the average human head weighs about 5kg — more than a newborn baby — this extra strain on the seven neck vertebrae and 20 supporting muscles can result in significant muscle imbalances and discomfort over time.
While giving up our devices isn’t a viable option, we can actively counteract these effects by adopting proper alignment and posture practices. Using office chair openers and incorporating targeted exercises into your daily routine can significantly improve your mood, enhance movement, and boost overall focus.
Moving the body can improve overall wellness but by doing this quick set of simple stretches at your desk daily, taking the stairs and walking during lunch as opposed to again scrolling through social media — can help offset the ill effects of tech neck and our stagnated body habits and stimulate midday blood flow, help you push through the afternoon slump and alleviate nightly headaches.
Aim to hold each stretch for 15 to 30 seconds, as this is the amount of time proven to be the most effective. No matter your time constraint, any effort is worth the effort. This 10-minute office chair opener will keep the muscles active, flexible, less prone to injury and improve your mood.
9 office-friendly chair opener exercises
Try these work-friendly, equipment-free exercises that will improve body mobility, focus and mood when in your work zone.
1. The exaggerated nod
The exaggerated nod counterbalances the downward/forward head position by pulling shoulders down and back and increasing neck mobility.
2. Padahastasana or (standing up straight onto tip toes and then touching toes)
Padahastasana stretches the neck and hamstrings. It allows the neck and shoulders to hang and your spine to lengthen. The hips are tight from sitting with legs in a 90-degree angle therefore straightening up and focusing on lengthening will improve blood flow and stretch the spine.
3. Seated spinal rotation
Move toward the front of your chair and lean forward. Place palms together between legs with arms fully extended. Reach one hand up and rotate to the side. Work with your breath and exhale while rotating, then inhale on the way back to centre. Switch sides.
4. Chest opener with upper-back extension
Place arms behind the head with fingers interlocked. Extend back over chair while engaging your core and abdominals. Be sure not to allow the lower back to extend. Optional: Use a ball or pillow and place it midway down the back prior to extending backwards.
5. Neck stretch
Sit tall and upright. Grasp the bottom of the chair with your hand to keep the shoulder depressed. Bring your opposite hand overhead and gently provide pressure on your head as you bring your ear toward your opposite shoulder. Hold, then repeat on the other side.
6. Overhead triceps stretch
Lift one arm overhead. Bend the elbow fully, letting the hand drop toward the mid-back with your palm facing your back. Place your opposite hand on your elbow and apply pressure to increase the stretch. Hold, then repeat on the other side.
7. Seated hamstring stretch
Rest your heel on the floor, keeping your leg straight. Gently lean forward until a stretch is felt behind your knee/thigh. Hold, then repeat on the other leg. You can intensify the stretch by pointing your ankle and toes upwards towards your body.
8. Oblique twists
Sit in a swivelling chair with your hands holding the edge of your desk. Spin yourself as far you can to one side using your hands, then switch to the other side. Repeat for at least 10 reps on each side. Note: If you do not have a swivel chair, you can bend your arms up in front of you and turn your body to the right and left. Just make sure to move from your core.
9. Seated knee-to-chest; leg lift and leg extension combination
Sit tall in a chair and have legs straight out in front of the body. Hold the bottom of chair for support and pull knees in toward the chest. Return to the starting position and repeat at least 10 times. Then lift one leg straight until your hamstring comes off the seat. Hold for at least 20 seconds and repeat on the other side. Then sit tall, with feet flat on the floor — lift one leg until it’s parallel with the floor and straight out in front of you by contracting (squeezing) the muscle on the front of your upper thigh. Hold for a second, then lower back to the starting position. Repeat combination 10 times on each side.
Other ways to fit in important incidental movement at work:
- Go for a short walk on your breaks
- Replace the office chair with an exercise ball
- Use the stairs regularly
- Consider a standing desk
- Consider walking or biking to work if practical
- Keep some exercise equipment at work so you can exercise during your lunch break, especially a foam roller
- Walk while on the phone and use headphones as opposed to holding the device