HOW TO MAINTAIN GOOD POSTURE AT YOUR DESK

We all spend at least seven hours hunched over our desks or our smartphones. It is no wonder that even the most active and athletic person can experience back pains. And bad posture. It is something we all deal with. But according to Well and Good, here are some desk-friendly yoga poses that you can do to help throughout the day:

1. Figure four: “This will help to relieve outer hip and low back tightness from sitting all day,” says Lindsay Pirozzi, a New York City-based yoga instructor at Y7 Studio. “To accomplish this seated on a chair be sure to sit close to the edge of the chair so you can sit with a tall spine. Place your right ankle mindfully in top of your left thigh and let the outer hips relax. To add more sensation feel free to gently press in your right inner thigh to guide the hip open even more.”

Hold for 8-10 breaths each and complete on other side.

2. Side bend: “Side bending will lengthen the spine, releasing the psoas [muscles that connect the lumbar vertebrae to the femur] and shoulders simultaneously and helping to improve posture and improve breathing throughout the day,” says Pirozzi. To begin, sit up tall, interlace your fingers, and stretch them overhead so that your palms face the ceiling. Keep your tailbone heavy and alternate leaning to one side.

Hold for about 5 breaths and switch sides.

3. Forward fold: While intentionally rounding forward may seem counterintuitive, Sarrah Strimel, a 650-hour certified yoga teacher and co-founder of Montauk’s BYoga, says it feels straight-up amazing if you suffer from poor posture. “Widen your feet hip-width and bow your chest down—and if it’s accessible—between your legs,” she instructs, releasing your lumbar spine, or lower back, which will be none-too-happy after a day spent sitting in a subpar office chair.

Hold for about 10 breaths. 

Read about more desk friendly yoga poses here.