With 49% of us suffering from back pain at some point in our lives, and a whopping 2.9 million days being lost due to work-related back disorders on 2014/15 (source), it’s time to take action against back pain at work and arm ourselves with the tools to prevent the onset of attacks.
With back pain related absences costing the UK economy £14bn a year (source) and a growing number of freelancers, self-employed people and other people not bring eligible for sick pay, the financial implications of back pain mean it’s not just our health which is suffering, our pockets are also feeling the pinch.
It’s not just manual workers feeling the strain either, with 50% of office workers experiencing some level of back pain. There are ways you can help prevent back pain in the office. Here are some tips on how to organise yourself, and your workstation to help prevent pain:
Finally, try to take breaks every 15-30 minutes. Standing up every 15 minutes and stretching your body forwards, backwards and side to side is proven to help reduce back pain. Even if you just get up to make a drink, or visit the loo, your body will thank you for a break from maintaining a static position and giving you a chance to loosen your muscles.
Our body is designed to move. Sitting down all day can have a detrimental effect on your back, neck and muscles. Unfortunately, though – as desk-workers will testify – sometimes circumstances dictate how much you sit during the day and it’s not always possible to spend the day on the move. There are some simple ...
Reading Time: 3 minutes >2 years ago, I did my back in. Ironic, right, given that I co-own a studio where we help people reduce back pain? It happened because my core weakened after having babies and I stopped doing enough strength work to protect myself over a very busy few months in my life. In my case, I ...
Reading Time: 2 minutes >Ok, we’ve all been there. You visit your back-pain professional, skip off with your list of exercises to do at home and what happens next is common of probably 90% of clients. Yep, that’s right, the list stays stuck to the fridge/pinned to the notice board/shoved at the bottom of a bag never to be ...
Reading Time: 2 minutes >