As an executive mum, long meetings are often unavoidable, but they can take a toll on your mid-back, especially if you're already dealing with pain and discomfort. The good news is that the way you sit can make a significant difference in managing mid-back pain during extended periods of sitting. In this blog lets discuss the best sitting positions to help you maintain good posture and keep pain at bay.
For executive mums, long meetings are often unavoidable, but by adjusting your sitting position and being mindful of your posture, you can significantly reduce mid-back pain. When sitting, maintain the natural curves of the spine by adjusting the seat of your chair to tilt backwards by 5 to 10 degrees or use a wedge cushion in your chair. This helps to keep the hips slightly higher than the knees, allowing your pelvis to tilt backwards, thus keeping the spine in a neutral position and avoids slouching.
The height of your chair should allow you to sit comfortably with your forearms parallel to the ground while sitting. This reduces the likelihood of shrugged shoulders. This is also a position we adopt when we are stressed. This physical tension in the shoulders can quickly travel to the mid-back, especially during stressful meetings. Keep your shoulders relaxed and down, away from your ears, and avoid hunching forward. Regularly check your shoulder position throughout the meeting and gently roll them back if you feel yourself tensing up.
Use a chair with back rest that can give support to your mid and upper back area. You can place a tennis ball or a massage ball on the thoracic spine at the level of the shoulder blades (anywhere from the top to mid of the shoulder blades), such that it sits between your thoracic spine and the chair. Whenever you slouch the ball will roll off your mid back, thus reminding you to keep your spine erect while sitting. This simple yet effective tip is very useful to prevent slouching at the mid back and thus prevent pain at the thoracic spine during long sitting. Watch this video to learn 'Two Quick & Easy Tips to Manage Your Mid Back pain'
Be mindful that our bodies are not meant for static postures, whether it is prolonged standing or prolonged sitting. Try and take regular breaks from sitting by standing up, where possible. If it is not possible to stand up in a meeting, try to shift your weight in your chair, cross-uncross your legs and do some ankle circles or knee movement while seated every 15-20 minutes to relieve muscle tension. Incorporate simple shoulder rolls, and gentle spinal twists to release tension, where possible.
When you get back to your desk after the meeting try and do some stretches and desk based exercises to relieve the muscle tension and mid back pain.
HERE is a free guide to Desk based exercises that are a set of simple exercises that take only one to three minutes of your time and can be done every hour.
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