Do Yoga at Work Without Leaving Your Desk
- By Christina Skiftun
- •
- 23 Aug, 2016
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By Ann Pizer
It's great to do a yoga routine before or after work, but what about incorporating some stretches into the rest of your day? Stretch breaks are especially important for people whose jobs require them to sit at a desk in front of a computer for long hours, which can result in back pain and repetitive stress injuries. Just taking a few minutes to do stretches at your desk can relieve stress, increase productivity, and most importantly, make you feel better.
1 Neck Rolls
1. Take your shoes off before starting these stretches if you are wearing high heels.
2. Close your eyes.
3. Let your chin drop down to your chest.
4. Begin to circle your neck slowly, taking the right ear to the right shoulder, the head back, and then the left ear to the left shoulder.
5. Try to keep the shoulders relaxed and not to hurry through any areas of tightness that you come across.
6. Take 3-5 rolls and then switch directions and take another 3-5 rolls.
2 Cat-Cow Stretch
1. Bring both feet flat on the floor.
2. Bring your hands onto your knees.
3. On an inhale, arch the back and look up toward the ceiling.
4. On the exhale, round the spine and let your head drop forward.
5. Repeat for 3-5 breaths.
Adapted from Cat - Cow Stretch.
3 Seated Forward Bend
1. Push your chair back from your desk.
2. Bring both feet flat on the floor.
3. Interlace your fingers behind your back.
4. Straighten your arms as much as possible, drawing your interlaced fingers down.
5. Fold at the waist, bringing your interlaced hands over your back.
6. Rest your chest on your thighs and release your neck.
Adapted from Standing Forward Bend.
