5 best stretches after sitting all day

Virtual School or Work Stretches

As Covid-19 continues to keep employees and school children at home, we are faced with spending a lot of time sitting down in front of computers and other electronic devices. Sitting at your desk can cause neck and lower back pain because you are compromising good posture, resulting in strains on the neck and lower back.

Why does it feel good stretching after sitting all day?

After an afternoon spent staring at a computer doing work, it’s great to get a good stretch in to release those tight muscles. Not only does stretching clear your mind by allowing you to focus on your body, it also releases endorphins!

What can you do to sooth your neck and back after sitting at the desk all day?

The human body is meant to move! The first tip is to get up from your desk every hour. Isabellas’ therapist’s big tip is to move your coffee and snacks away from your desk, forcing you to move in order to get it.  

1. Stand up with your feet hip width apart
2. Hands on hips and lean back 
3. Rock in and out 
4. Repeat 10 times

Standing hip rocks are a great way to loosen the muscles in the lower back and this stretch also opens up the chest.

1. Stand up straight with good posture
2. Bring shoulders up the ears and start to rotate in a forward direction
3. Complete 10 rolls and then change direction and repeat the stretch.

Rolling your shoulders is a very easy way to help relieve tension in your upper back, shoulders and neck.

1. Stand with your feet hip width apart
2. Bend your knees slightly and bend your torso over your legs
3. Put hands on elbows, drop down and hang 
4. Let your body weight go from side to side 10 times

This stretches the entire back of your body, from the upper and lower spine to hips and legs. A great stretch if you’ve been sitting at your desk for too long. It will reset your body and lengthen out the spine and hamstrings.

If your hamstrings are too tight for standing swings you can do this stretch without all the strain to your hamstrings. 

1. Sit at your chair
2. Bend over and stretch your hands to the ground
3. Reach out to the front and then to the side
4. Repeat 10 times

Enjoy these 5 at-home stretches during virtual school/work to improve and release tension in your lower back, neck and spine.