A 9-to-6 desk job means getting up everyday, looking forward to professional challenges and putting our skills to the test. However, while we are too busy doing our work, we tend to engage in unhealthy work-habits like sitting all-day long and staring at a computer screen. Believe it or not, these activities are risks which can cause nerve glitches, and before you know it, they may have already taken over your whole body.

 So, what are these bad working habits and how do we combat them to maximize our office productivity? Here’s a quick read that will help you ensure a glitch-free, workplace-active body and nerves.

DESK JOB HEALTH RISK NO. 1: LOWER BACK PAIN

Slumping back in your desk chair or slouching forward means your spine is out of alignment. This puts a strain on the ligaments and back muscles which can cause nerve glitches.

 Whether it’s an occasional twinge or an ongoing ache, sitting at your desk chair for hours can cause back pain and can keep you from performing at your best.

QUICK GLITCH-FREE SOLUTION:

To tame muscle tension, do these activities while seated in your desk chair:

• Rock your pelvis back and forth.
• Tilt your hips up and down.
• Repeat both exercises for 3-5 minutes.

DESK JOB HEALTH RISK NO. 2: WRIST STRAIN

Too much time spent on your keyboard responding to emails or writing reports can cause nerve glitches that can become a serious health issue.

 A combination of overuse and how you’re positioning your hand can cause wrist strain. Whenever you operate a keyboard or mouse, the tendons in your wrists go back and forth. These tendons are parallel to each other, so they glide back and forth and create friction called microtrauma. That repetitive motion causes fatigue, and the tendons may become inflamed.

QUICK GLITCH-FREE SOLUTION:

Perform a prayer stretch, also known as a Buddha stretch:

• Place your fingers and palms together with your hands in front of your chest, fingers pointing upward.
• While keeping your palms together and your elbows moving out, lower your hands until you feel a good stretch in your wrists.
• Hold for five seconds.

DESK JOB HEALTH RISK NO. 3: NECK AND SHOULDER PAIN

You never realize just how much you move your neck and shoulders until they’re injured—and then you feel every single shift and twist. These glitches may come from placing your keyboard or computer monitor too far away on your desk, causing you to jut your neck and shoulders forward, throwing them out of alignment with the spine and straining the muscles and soft tissue.

QUICK GLITCH-FREE SOLUTION:

Try a chin tuck exercise, also known as neck retraction:

• While standing or sitting upright, keep your spine straight and push your head forward, jutting your chin out as far as possible.
• Slowly reverse the movement by pulling your head back as far as possible, as if recoiling away from someone.
• Repeat up to four times.

 To relieve tension in your neck and shoulders simultaneously:

• Face forward.
• Tilt your right ear down toward your right shoulder, leaving your left arm hanging straight down to increase the stretch.
• Hold for 20 to 60 seconds and repeat on the left side up to four times.

DESK JOB HEALTHRISK NO. 4: EYE STRAIN

Staring at your computer for hours at a time can cause eye fatigue, as can having a computer monitor that’s too far away (making your eyes strain to read the small print) or too close (making your eyes work harder to focus). People also tend to blink less often while staring at their computer, which leads to eye-related glitches—dry eyes and fatigue.

QUICK GLITCH-FREE SOLUTION:

• Every 20 to 30 minutes, look at something off in the distance, such as a window across the length of the office, for 20 seconds to give your eyes a break.
• Better yet, get up and chat with a co-worker in another area of the office or run to the supply closet to grab a new pen—anything to give your eyes a break from the computer.

DESK JOB HEALTHRISK NO. 5: STRAINED HIPS

Over time, being stuck sitting in a bent position on a daily basis—from your desk at work to your couch at home—shortens your hip flexors, a group of muscles located at the inner part of your hips, causing pain. Tight hip flexors also contribute to lower back soreness, another common complaint.

QUICK GLITCH-FREE SOLUTION:

Try doing a stretch to release tight hip flexors:

• Kneel and then put one leg forward.
• Keep your foot flat on the floor.
• Flatten your lower back and lean your hips forward slightly until you feel a stretch at the front of your hip.
• Try to keep your body upright as you do this.
• Hold this position for 15 to 30 seconds.
• Repeat 3 times with each leg.

So please, keep yourself glitch-free every single work day, especially when performing your tasks. While bad work-habits can be classified as inevitable, at least take comfort in knowing that there are quick solutions whenever you feel some discomfort in your body every once in a while.

 And while you’re at it, be a good colleague and share these tips with people in the office.

 To make sure that all body systems are running well, don’t forget your daily dose of B-Complex—your #1 weapon against nerve glitches. If discomfort continues, do not hesitate to consult a doctor right away.