Serious Q, anyone use a swiss ball at work?
Discussion
I have a sit-at-a-desk job so am doing nothing but tapping for 10 hours a day. I find I tend to slump and have bad posture after a few hours, and despite getting up and walking abut as much as possible, am worried about my posture and back in general.
Ive been getting a few twinges in the back that are relieved with a walk or excercise, but I did hear that to develope a really strong stomach and back, and maintain a good posture, you could sit on a swiss ball at your desk for a few hours a day.
Despite the MASSIVE amount of grief this would no doubt get me, and not being 100% sure whether my company would even allow it, I thought Id see what peoples thoughts are, has anyone ever done it?
I could always site back pain as the reason I require to do it, but despite looking a plum, are the benefits very good?
Ive been getting a few twinges in the back that are relieved with a walk or excercise, but I did hear that to develope a really strong stomach and back, and maintain a good posture, you could sit on a swiss ball at your desk for a few hours a day.
Despite the MASSIVE amount of grief this would no doubt get me, and not being 100% sure whether my company would even allow it, I thought Id see what peoples thoughts are, has anyone ever done it?
I could always site back pain as the reason I require to do it, but despite looking a plum, are the benefits very good?
I would say it depends on what you do out of work as to how it will effect your posture/back etc...
If you do plenty of exercise outside of work I would have thought you will be fine, I am a runner and sit at a desk all day but I actually see it as a positive now as it gives me chance to recover from the previous nights session!
Can you not just maintain good posture in you seat and think about keeping your shoulders back/stomach pulled in etc...thats what I try and do when I find myself slumping!
(oh and you will probably look like a bit of a tard sat on an inflatable ball in an office
)
If you do plenty of exercise outside of work I would have thought you will be fine, I am a runner and sit at a desk all day but I actually see it as a positive now as it gives me chance to recover from the previous nights session!
Can you not just maintain good posture in you seat and think about keeping your shoulders back/stomach pulled in etc...thats what I try and do when I find myself slumping!
(oh and you will probably look like a bit of a tard sat on an inflatable ball in an office
)Might not be do-able then, have found a cushion that seems to do some of the same, as in activates your core while seated: http://www.physioroom.com/product/Gymnic_Movin_Sit...
Im not massively active outside of work, apart from a lot of weight training, and when I do cardio it tends to be on a bike, as I dont enjoy running, so lots of sitting down.
Im not massively active outside of work, apart from a lot of weight training, and when I do cardio it tends to be on a bike, as I dont enjoy running, so lots of sitting down.
I have one, but then I work from home.
I've had problems with my back for years, nothing serious enough to disable me, but constant aches and pains that I'd just learned to live with.
Once I started working from home I thought I'd give the swiss ball a try. The first two or three days I felt okay on it, but once I got up my back would hurt more than ever, though after the first few days that went away completely.
I can sit at the desk all day and night (sometimes work all day and then use that computer for personal stuff at night) and I'm fine. AFAIK, there isn't any settled science proving that they are good for you, but since using mine I now never have the slightest twinge from my back. I ride a motorbike and touring for 8-10 days used to murder my lower back, but that's not a problem now either. I tend to get a bit carried away talking about it, but it's because I'm so happy to have gone from constant pain to pain free. I don't think I realised how much by back bothered me. It could be that there were other factors as well as the ball and ymmv, but if there are, I don't know what they are (no change in diet, no exercise at that time etc).
At the very least, it's built a fair bit of strength and balance since I can sit on it anyway I like perfectly steady and stable, but when friends try, they can usually hold a position for a couple of minutes before they're wobbling about and shaking from the effort.
I told my story to a friend that's had constant back problems and he give one a shot and now swears by them too.
As much as I love mine though, I'd feel like a tit using one at work. When I'm on it I tend to cycle through various positions, sometimes sat upright like a regular chair, sometimes sitting cross legged on top, sometimes kneeling on it or with my legs out to one side. And yeah, often, especially when listening to music, I'll be gyrating around like Missy up there. Sometimes I'll roll forward and lean right back over so the ball is in the small of my back and my hands are on the ground over my head I'm in a 'crab' type position. Great in the privacy of your own home, not so in a blokey office!
I've had problems with my back for years, nothing serious enough to disable me, but constant aches and pains that I'd just learned to live with.
Once I started working from home I thought I'd give the swiss ball a try. The first two or three days I felt okay on it, but once I got up my back would hurt more than ever, though after the first few days that went away completely.
I can sit at the desk all day and night (sometimes work all day and then use that computer for personal stuff at night) and I'm fine. AFAIK, there isn't any settled science proving that they are good for you, but since using mine I now never have the slightest twinge from my back. I ride a motorbike and touring for 8-10 days used to murder my lower back, but that's not a problem now either. I tend to get a bit carried away talking about it, but it's because I'm so happy to have gone from constant pain to pain free. I don't think I realised how much by back bothered me. It could be that there were other factors as well as the ball and ymmv, but if there are, I don't know what they are (no change in diet, no exercise at that time etc).
At the very least, it's built a fair bit of strength and balance since I can sit on it anyway I like perfectly steady and stable, but when friends try, they can usually hold a position for a couple of minutes before they're wobbling about and shaking from the effort.
I told my story to a friend that's had constant back problems and he give one a shot and now swears by them too.
As much as I love mine though, I'd feel like a tit using one at work. When I'm on it I tend to cycle through various positions, sometimes sat upright like a regular chair, sometimes sitting cross legged on top, sometimes kneeling on it or with my legs out to one side. And yeah, often, especially when listening to music, I'll be gyrating around like Missy up there. Sometimes I'll roll forward and lean right back over so the ball is in the small of my back and my hands are on the ground over my head I'm in a 'crab' type position. Great in the privacy of your own home, not so in a blokey office!
I've used a Swiss Ball to sit at a desk...you need to take it slowly at first maybe half an hour at a time for the first week or two. You also need to make sure you get the right size for you and also that you can change the height of your desk so that it's at the right height when you are sitting on the ball.
I used to work with someone who swore by a kneeling chair to help his back.
A bit like these here http://www.backinaction.co.uk/kneeling
He got slightly less grief using one of those than he would have done with a Swiss ball!
A bit like these here http://www.backinaction.co.uk/kneeling
He got slightly less grief using one of those than he would have done with a Swiss ball!
OP, if you want some specific exercises and advice PM me. all are very good, evidence based stuff which challenges spinal musculature without putting strain on the spinal facet joints or IV discs. many people say it's good to have core musculature, it's true, but they forget the spinal muscles. sitting in a desk all day still places a lot of stress on sacroiliac joints (where sacrum meets pelvis...as the name suggests) and so getting up and walking around will help for this. i can also give you some stretching exercises to help relax the surrounding musculature. all will help in the long run by increasing spinal stabilizer muscles (e.g. QL's) endurance. endurance is more important than strength, since they are under strain for all the time you're sitting.
if you generally want advice, PM me. I train in this stuff
if you generally want advice, PM me. I train in this stuff
Edited by E21_Ross on Thursday 4th March 22:04
Edited by E21_Ross on Thursday 4th March 22:04
Thanks all, I think the grief associated with a swiss ball at work will outweigh the benefits, even mentioning it got a lot of laughs.
Ill make sure I walk around a bit more and concentrate on correct posture in the standard office chair I have.
Ross, Ill PM you for some furtehr info on excercises etc, Im guessing most important for sitting down all day jobs is posture in the chair?
Ill make sure I walk around a bit more and concentrate on correct posture in the standard office chair I have.
Ross, Ill PM you for some furtehr info on excercises etc, Im guessing most important for sitting down all day jobs is posture in the chair?
yeh posture is of course very important. The problem with sitting all day, even in a good posture, puts a lot of constant strain in specific areas. Particularly the sacroiliac joints as ive already said. This is why getting up, walking around is so important. Good spinal and abdominal muscles can help transmit loads to help the joints. Pm me your email address and i can scan in some images and a few lines to try and help you out. It takes time, dont expect results in a few days, its just like if you start running or cycling. It takes a while before u start to improve muscle endurance.
Cheers.
Cheers.
emailed 2 people with the information. might take a while to get to you (it's about 11-12MB in total)
hope they help you out. any issues at all just email or PM me.
thanks.
edit: got an error message saying the email was 2 big. sent in 2 emails now.
hope they help you out. any issues at all just email or PM me.
thanks.
edit: got an error message saying the email was 2 big. sent in 2 emails now.
Edited by E21_Ross on Friday 5th March 15:59
E21_Ross said:
emailed 2 people with the information. might take a while to get to you (it's about 11-12MB in total)
hope they help you out. any issues at all just email or PM me.
thanks.
edit: got an error message saying the email was 2 big. sent in 2 emails now.
Hi Ross, PM on it's way.hope they help you out. any issues at all just email or PM me.
thanks.
edit: got an error message saying the email was 2 big. sent in 2 emails now.
Edited by E21_Ross on Friday 5th March 15:59
Nige.
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