Stressors are everywhere. We wake up with stress and fall asleep with stress. Be it from kids, school, traffic, money, or health, stress will find us on the daily. For most, stress only elevates when we arrive work. Demands and deadlines may cause a variety of stresses, including mental, emotional, spiritual and/or physical. Taking deep breaths and having positive thoughts will help some, but if you let this stress build over time without enough proper relief, it will break you down.
Unfortunately, by job requirement, some people are subjected to elevated levels of physical stress. Lifting and moving heavy boxes or sitting and working at a computer desk cause similar problems, although very different tasks. These repetitive whole body movements or fixed postural positions wear down the muscles, especially after an eight hour day of continuous use. After months or years working this job, your muscle and skeletal health begins to suffer.
Can sore, broken down muscles be fixed? Sure, with treatment and activity modification SportsCare and Armworks will get you feeling better soon! But here’s a little secret, it can also be prevented!
To avoid getting sore and worn out, it is recommended that you take a mini break every 20-30 minutes. This mini break is not a mental break, it is a physical break which allows you time to perform a series of stretching exercises that will reduce or prevent the pain associated with your required tasks. Mini break exercises can be used for heavy lifters and seated workers. Exercises should completed for 20-30 seconds, without pain. If you typically start the day tight, try warming your muscles with a heat pack for 10 minutes before doing these exercises, or perform in a warm shower. If you end the day with sore muscles, try finishing with the below stretches then relaxing with an ice pack for 10-20 minutes.
For a list of Mini Break Drills, come in to one of our offices so we can walk you through the most appropriate for your position or request one via call or email.