Sitting all day at your job, how to prevent lower back pain? page

[Call Me Twitchy]

I started my job last friday and its one where it is sitting all 8hrs a day and talking with customers, and I can already feel my lower back start to tighten from sitting so long. What are some ways I can help that?

[mike_h]

Core strength and moving. Move at work as often as you can get away with. Hold a document and walk briskly to look busy if necessary. Stand if you get a moment when there's no customers.
Try to also walk outside of work to move those muscles and avoid long term stiffening.

Core strength exercises likes planks helped me a lot. There are other ways to develop the strength, but I've found those effective.

[Metric]

I work 12 hour shifts. I'm lucky though that my desk can raise up so that I can stand if I want to... however, most people are not so lucky. I find that getting up and stretching every hour helps with back stiffness.

[EvRevFit]

Stretch your hip flexors. If you have access to a foam roller, foam rolling them helps tremendously. When you sit for prolonged periods, your hip flexors get tight and pull your pelvis forward, putting tension on your lower back. Strengthening your core is also important, as is strengthening your hamstrings and glutes to help pull your pelvis back into a neutral position.

[HeyChelle]

Back when I was working (outside the home), I switched out my office chair for an excercise ball. I found it easy to maintain good posture on the ball, because it's almost impossible to slouch on the ball AND stay in one spot. As soon as you slouch, you start to roll. I know it's not for everyone, but it worked well for me.

[The Posture Doc]

Back pain with sitting often comes from bad posture. An informal sitting posture with its accompanying c-shaped slouching and pelvic tilt weaken your back muscles and put strain on your ligaments and tendons. Try scooting back in your chair and sitting up tall. If you are unable to do this on your own there are products available to help train your body in good sitting mechanics.

[Velocity J]

Try to maintain an arch in you back (avoid slouching) but more importantly don't stay in any one position for an extended period. Move as often as possible.

[sbhikes]

If you work on a windows computer, look for the Task Scheduler in the control panel. Schedule a task every hour that pops up a message telling you to get up and move. Keep a list of movements to choose from. When the alarm goes off, select a movement from the list and do it.

I have things like climb 6 flights of stairs (I'm in a 6 story building), squats, lunges, pushups, planks, dips on my chair or desk, etc. You could write down yoga positions. You could simply take a walk through all the hallways. Whatever works with your situation. I'm surprised how it makes a difference.

[Koobs]

At work, get up and walk around as much as possible. Hell, just move around even if it is just fidgeting in your chair.

Outside of work, glute bridges will be a lifesaver along with stretching your hip flexors.

[Leida]

I get back pains if I do not walk 20-30 min before and after walk (I walk to the bus) and at lunch. I also have to stretch as often as I can for my hamstrings, preferably daily. It works like a charm. I skip any of it - back pain.