Category Archives: active sitting program

Neck stretches – great exercises to do while sitting in work – active sitting program part II

The following set of neck stretches will help you relax you neck muscles. They will also mobilize your neck. Moving your back and neck reduces the adverse effects of inactivity through prolonged sitting. The neck stretches and the exercises in our active sitting program mobilize your joints, strengthen your musculature, stretch tight and tense muscles and increase your overall level of energy. The exercises are easily done and can be repeated frequently during the day. The more you engage in the simple routine the less likely you will suffer from the effects of continuous inactivity.

Spinal movements should be unilateral, the movement should only take place in one direction. We should for example avoid twisting and bending the spine at the same time. This applies to exercises as well as daily movements. Exercises or movements to ‘loosen up’ such as rolling the head can cause damage rather than being helpful and should be completely avoided. Be sure to review the general guidelines which apply to neck stretches as well as all the other exercises you will find on this site.

Spinal movements should also avoid hyper-extension of the back, you should not curve the back backwards. Again, some exercises such as dropping the head back should therefore be avoided.

When exercising on the ball, sit upright and allow the spine to be in its natural curve and in good alignment. Breath normally during all neck stretches. Tighten the muscles in your stomach (simply pull your stomach in) as the musculature supports the lower back, stabilizes the hip and makes the exercise more effective. Hold on to the edge of the table or rest your wrists on the edge of the table, unless instructed otherwise.

EXERCISES FOR THE NECK & SHOULDERS:

Pigeon

pigeon

1. Push the head forward, as far as possible, while keeping the shoulders back.

2. Pull the head back, keeping the chin down. Hold your head in this double chin position, then push it forward again.

• Repeat exercise 3 to 5 times

The above is a mobility exercise to improve joint functionality. To use it as one of our neck stretches

1. push the head forward as before.

2. Then pull the head back and down again and hold this position for about 10 seconds, feeling a stretch in the back of the head and neck. • Repeat stretch 3 times

Head Turn

neck stretches

1. Keeping the shoulders straight and still and rest your hands in your lap.

2. Turn your head as far as possible, looking over your shoulder. Repeat on the other side. Compare the two sides and see if you have equal mobility when turning your head.

• Repeat 3 to 5 times

 

You will find Part III of the Active Sitting Program and more neck stretches in the next post.

 

Are you looking for Back Strengthening Exercises?

On this site you will find a comprehensive back strengthening exercises program. Next to back strengthening exercises we include stretches and mobility exercises for the back in particular stretches for lower back pain and neck tension. We have been teaching this program for over fifteen years. Our back strengthening exercises have helped our program participants to reduce and eliminate their back problems.

We also have found in order to get rid of back pain and other back problems people need to know what causes them. When you know how your back problems are caused you can learn to prevent them. You will also know what kind of back strengthening exercises are good (see our movement and exercise guidelines). You quickly realise that some so called back exercises are not so good. Unfortunately there are a lot of back damaging activities and exercise programs out there claiming to be good for the back. Once you know how to avoid back damaging activities you can re-engage because you will know how to do these activities in a way that they don’t cause you problems.

Back strengthening exercises are a really good idea and a lifestyle choice if you have an otherwise sedentary lifestyle or are engaged in activities that caused your back problems. Sometimes it takes as little as 15 minutes of our back strengthening exercises every couple of days to balance out the acitivities of your life that might have caused you problems before.

All our participants have successfully got rid of their back problems. they are using our back strengthening exercise program. With it they have regained good core stability.

Core stability describes the correct functioning of those muscles, mainly the hips, stomach and back musculature, responsible for uprightness and stability of the upper body.

If muscles in your stomach are weak and/or your back muscles are tense and tight weakness in these areas can result in misalignment of the spine. This can cause discomfort and pain, often in the upper and lower back. It can also lead to increased wear and tear causing irreversible damage to the in the spine and nervous system.

Therefore a central part of the program we do is to provide exercises to re-establish and maintain a good muscle balance.

However, we strongly believe it is important to learn about good movement practices. That way we can ensure that not only is our exercise program is done correctly — but any other activity we engage in, too!

•information about the source of back problems and the structure and functionality of the spine

•simple guidelines on how to move in a back friendly way on a day-to-day basis and during exercising

•a comprehensive set of back strengthening exercises to re-establish a healthy musculature which supports the spine

Our back strengthening exercise program is for men and women of all ages. We use an exercise ball for many of the back strengthening exercises. Just sitting on a ball, much like you would sit on a chair is a back strengthening exercise.

active sitting - stomach exercises and back strengthening exercises for the ball

active sitting – stomach exercises and back strengthening exercises for the ball