This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Hip Mobility

• When you think of your back, think of it as if you were building a house.
• Your hips and pelvis are the foundation, your spine is the frame, and your muscles and ligaments are the internal and external supports (drywall, plywood). Without all of these pieces, the house may not hold up under harsh conditions.
• Similarly, if your hips don’t move freely, your foundation (hips) will tilt or tip when working at low levels. With your foundation unstable, your back is likely to be in a bad position to weather the tasks and conditions that you place on it during your workday.
• Hip flexibility and core stability work together to keep your foundation and frame in stable and balanced. If your hips are mobile, it’s a lot easier to get lower (see the top row of pictures) with the back in good position. However, if either is missing, the other will compensate and can lead to poor back posture and eventually pain or strains (bottom left picture).
• If you want to have a healthy back, your number one aim should be to make sure that you can keep a neutral posture of the spine in everything that you do.
• Understanding what you can do today to keep your core stable and your hips mobile will help ensure you are living in a fortress rather than a shack.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Static Posture- Can Staying Still Hurt Me?

• If 100 or 1000 repetitions is too many, is one working posture too few? YES!
• Even standing for a long time in optimal posture like a ‘BeefEater’ can cause discomfort and pain.
• The muscles that help us with posture are the hardest workers in the body. They turn on and off as we move from position to position. But, if we stay in one position for too long, they can get tired and sore.
• Other parts of our back can also become weaker when we stay one position for long periods.
• If you find that yourself working in one posture for long periods of time, get creative to find ways to change your posture, even for a short period. Standing versus sitting, using something to sit on versus kneeling, widening your stance or finding something to lean on temporarily can give you a leg up on this ergonomic enemy.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Warm-Ups

Ergonomics is about fitting your job to you so that you don’t get injured. But some jobs require a lot of stress, strain or awkward postures. If you think of it, a lot of sports could be classified as ergonomic nightmares!

But in most organized sports, the first thing everyone does is warm-up, then a few drills and then they play the game. Have you ever asked yourself why you or your kids do these activities in this order?

Warm-ups are a great way to get the blood flowing and remind our body that it is time to get moving.

Doing exercises, drills or movement patterns specific to your sport or work (example squats) are a great way to remind your body how to move safely.

Is your body work ready or are you skating on thin ice?

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Microbreaks

Microbreaks? As in stop working? For even a few seconds? Don’t be a wimp! Back when I started on the job… .

Microbreaks are an interesting idea. The aim is to take short but frequent breaks before fatigue builds up to the point where you have to take a break due to fatigue or discomfort. Even breaks as short as 10 seconds can be beneficial and allow your muscles time to recover.

If you have ever worked out a gym, you understand the need to take short breaks in between your sets. Microbreaks are the ‘release valves’ that will protect your body.

One of the common things you see in workplaces is congratulations when someone pushes through a break, lunch, or extra hours to finish a difficult task.

If you truly value safety, respecting your own physical limits and allowing time for our body to recover while you are on the job is another one of the cornerstones of MSI prevention.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Ergonomic Basics: Microbreaks

Microbreaks are an important component of workplace health. Muscles become stressed if asked to perform repetitive tasks or hold static positions for too long during the work day. Microbreaks allow a change of position, different muscle use, stimulate blood flow and can help reduce the risk of injury or discomfort. Microbreaks can last a few minutes or just a few seconds, but your body will thank you for them!

Try some of the following microbreaks to reduce build up of stress to your joints and muscles during the work day.

At The Computer

• Regular ‘palms down’ typing and mousing posture is a non-neutral position. It requires wrist and forearm work to maintain, and can result in fatigue over long periods.
• Neutral posture for the wrist and forearm is ‘palms sideways’ resting on the 5th finger side of your hand as shown at right.
• Unwind into this low risk posture whenever you’re composing your thoughts, reading, or anytime you’re not mouse clicking or typing.

Back Basics

• Try the ‘why me’ stretch to counteract forward hunching over the computer.
• Stretching backwards for a few seconds every 10 or 15 mins will give your back a break.
• Close your eyes for an extra relaxation boost!

Alternating Tasks

• To further reduce repetitive muscle work during the day, alternate your work tasks so that you do at least 5 minutes of work using different muscles each hour.
• If you’re busy on the computer, stop every hour and do 5 minutes of filing or check voice mails so your ‘computer muscles’ get a break.
• If all your work is computer-based then alternate applications so you do an hour of spreadsheet work alternated with 5 minutes of replying to email, etc.

Natural Microbreaks

• Natural microbreaks happen in the day without you planning them, but you can encourage them as well…
• Try printing to a printer outside your office so you have to get up or take a short walk to get documents.
• Drink water during the day, it’s healthy and you’ll need to get up from your desk to refill and take bathroom breaks.
• Try walking to a co-worker’s desk to get information rather than calling or emailing.
• Leave your office and take a short walk at lunch time.

This article was
written by ErgoRisk

Office Posture Do's and Don'ts

Awkward posture slowly creeps up on us.

If you go on a mission searching for awkward postures like leaning on your elbows, you are probably going to be disappointed if you go first thing in the morning.

BUT, if you take a look around your workgroup around the mid-afternoon ‘crash’, you will probably find your co-workers melting into their desk.

Our bodies aren’t meant to stay in one position all day. So, once our stabilizing muscles get fatigued, we start to ‘melt’.

Call it what you want, but melting, slouching, head forward posture and leaning our elbow on the desk are all related to the fact that we are spending too much time in one place (our desks!).

Encourage your co-workers to take microbreaks and stretch breaks. Or at least, get away from the computer at lunch. (And if you don’t take lunch, you may want reconsider after you check your posture by mid-afternoon!)

Be on the look-out for these simple to solve habits and risk factors.

And remember the definition of insanity, “… doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” Ben Franklin’

When are you going to change your habits?