The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 24 percent of employed Americans did some or all of their work at home in 2015. This is a five percent increase over the last decade and the trend should continue as technology allows us to be more location independent.
Working from home can be a great opportunity to have more freedom and to spend more time with family. However, losing the workplace outside the home can result in decreased activity levels and greater risk for certain health conditions.
One of the biggest health risks is long periods of sitting at a desk while working. Mayo Clinic endocrinologist James Levine, M.D., Ph.D., says that research has linked prolonged sitting with obesity, metabolic syndrome, and many other conditions. He has been quoted as saying that sitting is the new smoking.
Some of the other health risks from sitting include elevated blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist and abnormal cholesterol levels. Excessive sitting also seems to be related to a higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease and cancer.
In addition to the physical health risks, people who work from home can experience other problems including difficulty focusing, increased stress, and depression. They may develop poor eating and sleeping habits or difficulty separating work from home life.
If you do some or all of your work at home, follow these steps to improve your health and to reduce your risk for medical problems.
Best Advice For Staying Active Working at Home
- Setup For Success
- Take Breaks and Walk Around
- Stretch Out
- Get Stronger
- A Home Office Activity Plan
- Stretching Exercises
- Strengthening Exercises
- Bottom Line
Setup for Success
The first thing you should do to ensure success when working at home is to create a proper working environment. You should have a dedicated workspace with a desk and chair that support your posture and allow ergonomically correct positioning.
Proper ergonomic seating reduces the strain on your neck, back, and shoulders while working. If you chose to sit while working, you should adjust the height of the chair so that your hips and knees are positioned at 90 degrees. The arms of the chair should support your elbows and forearms where they naturally fall in the seated position. The chair should not be so deep that the front edge pushes against the backs of your knees because this can restrict circulation in your lower legs. Some chairs have adjustable backs that allow you to change the seat depth by moving the seatback forward toward the front edge.
Standing desks, adjustable desks, or desktop converters are other options that can reduce sitting time. The benefits of standing workstations have been debated, but most experts agree that spending some time standing has positive effects on health.
Sitting at a desk for several hours can cause significant muscle tightness in the neck, back, shoulders, and legs even with the best ergonomically correct workstation. The best advice to change working positions between standing and walking throughout the day. If you’re more daring, you could even try a treadmill desk.
Take Breaks and Walk Around
You should take breaks throughout the day to change positions or to walk around. Use a timer, smartphone, browser extension, or standalone app to remind you to take breaks at set intervals. You can choose traditional break intervals based on 30 to 60-minute blocks or you can try the Pomodoro technique.
The basic units of the Pomodoro technique are 25-minute blocks of focused work called Pomodoros. After each 25 minute session, you take a 3-5 minute break, then begin the next Pomodoro. Once you’ve completed four Pomodoro sessions (~2 hours of work), take a longer 15-20 minute break before resuming your work. These longer breaks are the perfect time to go for a walk.
If possible, go for a short walk around your neighborhood. This will improve the blood flow to your muscles and reduce the postural strain on your body. The movement from walking can increase hip, knee, and ankle flexibility after prolonged sitting.
Walking also improves cardiovascular function and reduces stress. Many people claim that walking improves their ability to focus and process information. A 2014 Stanford study found that walking, particularly outside, improves creativity. In this study, walking outside produced nearly twice the creative output as walking inside.
Stretch Out
Stretching exercises are an important part of your home office activity plan. The hip flexors, hamstrings, and calf muscles are most affected by hours of sitting at a desk. However, the muscles in your neck and back are also at risk.
If you don’t stretch these muscles regularly, they can develop adaptive shortening which limits your flexibility and your ability to perform functional movements. For example, adaptive shortening of the hip flexor muscles makes it difficult for you to stand fully upright because the muscles try to keep your hips slightly flexed. When you push through this restriction and stand fully upright, the hip flexor muscles put additional strain on the lumbar spine and can cause back pain.
Get Stronger
Nearly every functional activity improves when your body is strong. Working at home is no different. Strong muscles and joints are more resistance to postural stress, repetitive strain, and the effects of prolonged sitting.
Improving the strength and muscular endurance of the trunk muscles (also called core muscles) improves your tolerance for upright positions sitting and standing. It enables you to maintain correct posture for longer periods in different positions.
Several studies have shown that exercise improves brain function. A study published by a King’s College London team in the journal Gerontology reported a correlation between leg strength and cognitive function. They stated that leg power can be a useful marker of whether someone is getting enough exercise to help keep their mind in good shape.
A Home Office Activity Plan
Staying active can be difficult when we’re focused on work. Our default response is often to try to get one more thing done before taking a break. Suddenly three hours have gone by and we’re still sitting hunched over the desk.
The best solution is to create a home office activity plan that fits into your work schedule. This can be beneficial even if you participate in a regular fitness program. The plan should include designated breaks, walking, stretching, and strengthening exercises.
Take Breaks – Get up and move around at least every 1-2 hours throughout the day.
Walking – Take a 5 to 15-minute walk to increase blood flow and to warm up.
Stretching – Choose a few exercises to stretch the arms, legs, and torso.
Strengthening – Choose a few exercises that work multiple joints and muscle groups.
The list below includes sample exercises that you can use to create your own home office activity plan.
Stretching Exercises
Hip Flexor Stretch
- Stand with the left foot forward and the right foot back
- Place your hands on your hips
- With your trunk straight, shift your weight toward the front foot
- Keep your back foot on the ground to maximize the stretch
- As you shift your weight forward, you should feel a gentle stretch in the front of the right thigh and hip
- Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then repeat 3-4 times; switch feet and repeat the exercise
Seated Hamstring Stretch
- While seated, rest your heel on the floor with your knee straight.
- Gently lean forward until a stretch is felt behind your knee/thigh.
- You should keep your low back straight to focus the stretch on the hamstring muscles.
- Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then repeat 3-4 times on each leg.
Calf Stretches – Upper and Lower Calf
- While standing and leaning against a wall, place one foot back behind you and bend the front knee.
- Your back knee should be straight the entire time.
- Shift your weight forward until you feel a gentle stretch in the upper calf of the back leg.
- Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then repeat 3-4 times; switch feet and repeat the exercise.
- To focus on the lower calf, bend the back leg slightly until you feel the stretch in the lower part of the calf muscle.
Upper Trap Stretch
- Sit upright in a chair and place one hand under your chair.
- Lean toward the opposite direction until your shoulder is anchored.
- Gently tilt your head to the opposite side until a comfortable stretch is felt in the upper shoulder/neck area.
- Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then repeat 3-4 times on each side.
Doorway Upper Back Stretch
- Stand in a doorway with a frame, anchor your hands in a crossover manner so your right hand is on the left of the door frame and your left hand is on the right of the door frame.
- Slowly push your upper back backward while tucking your head gently to achieve a stretch in the neck and upper back.
- Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then repeat 3-4 times.
Corner Pec/Chest Stretch
- Find a corner and place your forearms against the walls at a 90-degree angle.
- Slowly lean forward into the corner until you feel a stretch across the front of your chest.
- Return to the starting position.
- Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then repeat 3-4 times.
Side Stretch
- Standing with right hand on a table or wall, cross left leg in front of the right leg, feet pointing forward.
- Shift into the left hip and reach left arm up and overhead, creating a long line from the left ankle to the left fingertips.
- Hold 20-30 seconds while taking a few deep inhales and exhales. Perform 3-4 repetitions on each side.
Overhead Tricep Stretch
- Raise one arm overhead with your bicep near your ear, then bend the elbow.
- Use your other hand to slowly pull your elbow backward and toward the opposite side until you feel a comfortable stretch.
- Hold the stretch for 20-30 seconds, then repeat 3-4 times on each side.
Strengthening Exercises
Wall Pushups (Chest, Shoulder, and Arms)
- Stand facing a wall. Lean forward placing your hands on the wall slightly wider than shoulder-width apart with your arms extended so that your body is at a slight angle.
- Bend your arms until your nose is about 2 inches away from the wall, then press out extending your arms until you return to the starting position.
- Repeat in sets of 8-10 repetitions.
Doorway Bicep Curl/Lat Pull (Arms and Back)
- Stand in a doorway straddling the door frame.
- Reach forward and grab both sides to the door frame with your hands.
- Move your feet forward, closer to the door frame.
- Extend your arms and lower your body away from the door frame.
- Pull your body toward to the frame using your arms and mid-back muscles, then slowly return to the starting position.
- Repeat in sets of 8-10 repetitions.
Chair Dips/Triceps Press (Arms and Shoulders)
- While sitting in a chair, slide forward and place your hands on the front edge of the chair.
- Your hands should be slightly more than shoulder-width apart.
- Your feet should be farther forward than the normal sitting position.
- Bend your elbows and lower your body until your elbows are approaching 90 degrees (avoid going too low to prevent shoulder strain).
- Press up to the starting position.
- Repeat 8-10 repetitions.
Squats/Mini Squats (Hips, Knees, and Ankles)
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and toes pointed straight ahead.
- Bend your knees to approximately 45 degrees of flexion lower your body, then return to starting position.
- Make sure that your knees do not pass the front of your foot to prevent knee strain (the movement should be like preparing to sit in a chair).
- Repeat in sets of 8-10 repetitions.
Lunges (Hip, Knees, and Ankles)
- Start in a standing position.
- Keep back straight with shoulders and hips facing forward as you step forward with one foot.
- Bend the front knee and lower your body toward the floor, but keep the knee behind toes.
- Lower the back knee to the floor at the same time, keeping most of your body weight on the front leg.
- Push upward with front leg to return to a standing position.
- Perform 8-10 repetitions on each leg.
Standing Calf Raises (Lower Legs and Ankles)
- Stand next to a countertop or stable chair with your feet shoulder-width apart. Place your hands on the surface for support.
- Slowly raise your heels off the ground by pushing up onto the ball of your feet.
- Slowly lower your body and return to the starting position.
- Repeat 8-10 repetitions.
Summary
Your home office activity plan can be performed in one block of time or broken up into several short sessions throughout the day. Either way, you should find that you have less pain, improved flexibility, and more energy at the end of your workday. You’ll also want to make sure that you drink the FDA recommended 12-15 8oz glasses of water each day to stay hydrated. You should consult your physician before starting any exercise program. If you do some or all of your work at home, following this plan should improve your health and reduce your risk for serious medical conditions.
Additional Office Ergonomics Resources
- The History of Ergonomics in the Office
- How Proper Ergonomics in the Workplace Reduces Employers’ Cost
- Importance of the Neutral Reach Zone
- Top 7 Problems and Solutions for Keyboard Trays
- Top 6 Reasons to Buy an Ergonomic Keyboard Tray
References
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/five-health-benefits-standing-desks-180950259/
Stanford Study – http://news.stanford.edu/2014/04/24/walking-vs-sitting-042414/
