Protracted Shoulders
By the end of a long workday, especially if you have a desk job, you may find that your neck, shoulders and back are aching and that your legs feel very tight. Day in and day out you may spend a large portion of your day sitting behind a desk with your eyes glued to a computer screen, and it may be hours before you budge from that position. Besides the fact that sitting in one position for extended periods of time is not conducive to calorie burning, it can also be very hard on the body if proper posture is not maintained. In this article we will discuss the importance of good posture, how to prevent muscle imbalances, how to treat existing imbalances and how to properly sit at your desk.
When considering movement and the human body, one must take into account the kinetic chain. According to NASM, the kinetic chain is “the combination and interrelation of the nervous, muscular, and skeletal systems”. Much like the old saying that you are only as strong as your weakest link, the same applies to the human body. When one piece of the kinetic chain is not properly functioning, it can alter the rest of the operating systems. Therefore, “optimum posture and alignment provides optimum structural and functional efficiency to the kinetic chain,” (Clark and Russell 2009).
Structural efficiency is “the alignment of the musculoskeletal system that allows our center of gravity to be maintained over our base of support,” (Clark and Lucett 2008). This is stating that good posture allows our body to support our own weight without causing stress on isolated parts of our body, such as our back. Functional efficiency is “the ability of the neuromuscular system to monitor and manipulate movement during functional tasks using the least amount of energy, creating the least amount of stress on the kinetic chain,” (Clark and Lucett 2008). Functional efficiency is similar to structural efficiency, except that it refers to our bodies in motion while doing daily tasks. These two terms help us to understand that good posture is critical in helping us perform daily tasks in the most efficient and pain free way possible. When one is unable to maintain good “balanced “ posture, muscle imbalances are likely to occur.
Muscle imbalances can occur because of one of the following reasons: postural stress, pattern overload, repetitive movement, lack of core stability, or lack of neuromuscular efficiency (Clark and Russell 2009). If one muscle is too tight, it can affect the quality of movement in the rest of the body. The process that describes how this works is called altered reciprocal inhibition. According to Clark and Lucett, altered reciprocal inhibition is the concept of muscle inhibition caused by a tight muscle, which decreases the neural drive of its functional opposing muscle. This can produce synergistic dominance and ultimately alter your movement patterns, causing dysfunction within the kinetic chain
Synergistic dominance is “the neuromuscular phenomenon that occurs when synergists take over function for a weak or inhibited prime mover,” (Clark and Lucett 2008). For example: if you have a tight hip flexor, it leads to reciprocal inhibition of the gluteus maximus (Clark and Lucett 2008). The result is that the synergists for hip flexion (hamstrings, adductors and some back muscles) are working overtime to compensate for those muscles not able to function properly. This can explain tightness in the hamstrings, adductors and lower back. When this occurs, it is crucial that you stretch the tight muscles and strengthen the weak ones. If you tend to hunch your shoulders, your pectoral muscles are contracted and your upper back muscles (rhomboids, mid/lower traps) are stretched. In order to improve your posture you will need to stretch the tight muscles (the pectoral muscles), and strengthen the weak muscles (rhomboids, mid/lower traps).
Swayback Posture
The best way to prevent altered reciprocal inhibition and synergistic dominance is to maintain proper posture on a daily basis. While at work sitting at your desk keeping good posture can be difficult, but there are a few things that you can do to optimize your body positioning. Dr. Haselkorn recommends making the following adjustments to your workspace to improve the ergonomics:
• Lower the height of your chair so that your back touches the back
of the chair and your feet rest firmly on the floor slightly in front
of you.
• Center the keyboard in front of you and position your screen so that the toolbar is eyelevel for you.
• The keyboard and mouse should be moved close to the edge of the desk
and your wrists should be supported by a gel pad or wrist support.
• Avoid repetitive gripping of the mouse.
• Never reach for anything! Keep commonly used items close.
• Do finger, wrist and hand exercises.
These tips can help you organize your workspace in a way that will help you to maintain proper posture. At Livestrong.com they also recommend that you sit facing your desk with your weight evenly distributed across both hips. Always sit with your shoulders pulled back and your back straight. To help achieve proper posture, you can place a rolled up towel or small pillow behind the natural curve of your lower back. Try to avoid craning your neck to look at documents; keep everything important straight in front of your face. If you spend lots of time on the phone, it would be a good idea to get a headset so that you are not holding the phone between your shoulder and your ear.
As we’ve discussed in previous articles, taking regular stretch breaks can also help to maintain proper length-tension relationships in the muscles and prevent synergistic dominance. Working on your posture, stretching the tight muscles, and strengthening the weak muscles will help to alleviate some of those aches and pains you normally feel at the end of the day. Once you are able to reverse the muscle imbalances and maintain good posture, you will be amazed at how much better you feel physically, mentally and emotionally.
Written By: Kinsey Cave
Edited By: Matt Trudo, MS
References:
Clark, M., & Russell, A. (2009). Postural Considerations. Nasm Optimum Performance Training for the Enhancement Specialist (pp. 5-23). Calabasas, CA: NASM.
Clark, M. A., Lucett, S., & Corn, R. J. (2008). NASM essentials of personal fitness training (3. ed.). philadelphia: wolters kluwer.
Correct Posture At A Desk. (n.d.). LIVESTRONG.COM – Health, Fitness, Lifestyle. Retrieved November 8, 2010, from http://www./article/88933-correct-posture-desk/
Haselkorn, A. (n.d.). Proper Posture & Ergonomic Tips. Dr. Alex Haselkorn, M.D., P.A.. Retrieved November 8, 2010, from http://www./ergo
