You may think of sitting as a resting position. Actually, sitting is hard work for your back. It exerts much more strain on your spine than standing, and stresses your lower back muscles as they work to hold you upright.
Slouching increases the pressure, and hunching over tenses the neck and upper back muscles. After an hour of sitting, spinal pressure increases significantly. Backache, headache, muscle stiffness and fatigue are common symptoms of prolonged sitting.
If you're one of many millions of office workers, sitting is exactly how you spend most of your life — commuting, and working at a desk; then it's home where you sit some more — talking on the phone, or parked in front of a computer or TV screen for a few more hours.
Over time, the prolonged pressure and muscle strain can cause disk problems and chronic backache.
What to do?
Get off your duff. It really is that simple. Each day try to sit a little less and stand a little more. At work, take mini breaks: Stand up when you take a phone call or when you need to talk to a coworker. You can help break the static posture by standing for 1-2 minutes, 2-3 times an hour — anything to get the blood flowing to your overworked back.
Stretch. Take a few seconds while standing to gently and slowly stretch out the kinks: Roll your shoulders forward and backward … Curl your back forward and hold for a few seconds … Grasp your arms over your head and stretch up and from one side to the other … Take several slow, deep breaths.
Build back muscle strength. The best prescription for a healthy back is a routine program of aerobic swimming and/or walking. This increases muscle strength and oxygen supply — just what your back needs to carry out its daily mission.