RELAXATION
NEVER AGAIN BACK PAIN IN THE OFFICE !
It is called the disease of the century. You guessed? Yes, we are talking about back pain. Up to 20% of adults would suffer from lumbar disease. The pain is sometimes inflammatory, but its origins are most often mechanical. This is basically good news, because it means that it is possible to act, provided that you adopt the good gestures and good habits in the office. Follow this little tutorial, and you will never have a back pain.
You know it well: sitting all day is not very good for your back. Bad postures are the main causes of pain, largely due to stress and unbalanced diet. That's why you're careful to sit upright in front of your computer: it's a good start but it's not enough.
Start by sitting comfortably
Forget the stool (it is the worst enemy of the back in the long run) and choose a hollow-backed office chair: it will better respect your natural lumbar curvature and prevent your intervertebral discs, pushed forward, do you cause pain. Then check that your seat is correctly adjusted to your screen: neither too high (risk of hunched back) nor too low (risk of neck pain). Set it to a sitting position and maintain a posture with an angle of about 90 degrees. The top of your screen should be at the height of your eyes, your keyboard should be parallel to the screen and the axis of your shoulders. Preferably choose a seat equipped with a safety back-up system to avoid any impact on the spine in case of a violent return of the backrest. More and more seats are now equipped with a synchronous system that allows greater comfort because the backrest and seat tilt together in a coordinated and at the best angle for the trunk, pelvis and legs. Do not refuse the comfort of the wheels, which are not a gadget: they make it possible to avoid many unnecessary movements and stay at a safe distance from your screens.
Some actions to avoid absolutely
These gestures, we do without thinking at any time of the day but our back does not like too much. Crossing the legs, for example, slows the venous circulation and causes heaviness: to avoid. Stalling your phone between the ear and the shoulder is not very good for the neck. Stowing to get a folder stuck deep in his locker created many undesirable twists (better to squat to keep your back straight, and especially better to stow).
But the worst enemy remains sedentary: it is strongly discouraged to sit for two hours in a row without moving. If you are in this case, read on!
A bit of exercise to build your muscles
Remember to get up as often as possible during the day: for the coffee break and the toilet break of course, but also at the slightest opportunity to see your colleagues, using the stairs if there are any. Feel free to take big steps and extend your arms to the ceiling and in front of you to relax your body and eliminate muscle tension in the shoulder blades. You could also, from time to time, make a standing meeting: talk about it around you! When you reach the coffee machine, weave your hands and extend your arms over your head. Stretch your back to the back, then tilt the trunk to the left and right to stretch the waist. Back at your desk, move your seat away, sit on the edge and stretch your legs. Cross your fingers behind your neck, let the head go forward and breathe deeply as your hands accentuate the stretch. Being seated does not necessarily mean standing still: stretch your legs in front of you or under your seat, and do not hesitate to extend them on your desk from time to time!
The day is over? Do not take the opportunity to let yourself go: avoid carrying too heavy loads by curving and practice one of those sports that your back will love (swimming, running and cycling). Lumbago, acute lumbago and herniated disc will soon be an old memory!
AT WORK!
TIDY UP YOUR DESK AS MARIE KONDO
Who has not heard of Marie Kondo, the Japanese popess of storage and personal development? She is in the headlines of the home decor, lifestyle and fashion magazines. Her method is offered in book form but also in manga. She even owns her own show on Netflix. Her creed: helping all of us tidy up his house to feel better and happier. A true philosophy of life that we propose to apply to the office. Are you ready ? So get out and follow the guide!
Born in Tokyo in 1984, Marie Kondo became a storage consultant at age 19 only. Its anti-fuzzy and anti-waste method makes it possible to air its daily life to quickly gain serenity, provided you follow a few simple rules. Your work space, which may be an individual or shared desk and one or more cabinets, is often cluttered? You waste a lot of time finding the right folder? Marie Kondo can help you!
Commit yourself to tidying up seriously
Tidy up seriously, do not postpone anything and act right away: take care of your office today (or at the latest tomorrow). Good intentions are not enough, only the action counts. Start by splitting the work by first taking care of your decor and your small office accessoiries. You will then pass, and only then, to the professional documents.
Imagine a desk that would make you happy
An office that makes you happy is a soothing office because rid of the superfluous. The picture of your children next to the screen: yes. The cups of cold coffee piling up, the old post-it crumpled ball, the dry felts, the stapler that you never use: forget, and even throw. Because with Marie Kondo, we do not hesitate to get rid of what we have not used for a long time. Marie Kondo suggests thanking each deleted object for the happiness it brought us, but you are of course not obliged (or so be discreet, your colleagues might make fun of).
Each object in its place
Marie Kondo's KonMari method favors the vertical storage of clothes in order to save space and find what you are looking for. With her, t-shirts are no longer stacked in columns but folded and stored in small open boxes. A glance is enough to navigate it. "If you pile up," she says, "you feel like you have an inexhaustible storage space. The batteries get bigger without you noticing the increase in volume. However, when you store vertically, any increase in volume takes up space and you end up running out of space. "
Do the same for your binders, folders and documents: they must all be identifiable at a glance and at hand. Do not bury anything at the bottom of the box! Store by color, paste labels and especially categorize (using multiple boxes if necessary): customers of the moment, old customers, suppliers, fees, purchases .... each subject must be in its place and stay there. Also consider using thin wallets for current folders, and thicker wall folders for curated folders.
"To keep a room in order, the secret is to look for the ultimate in simplicity, so you can see at a glance everything you own." Marie Kondo
Finally, think about grouping all around you to create a personal space that belongs to you and that you have complete control. This makes it easier to keep it tidy. "If the storage spaces are scattered," says Marie Kondo again, "the entire work space is quickly disordered."
You now know how to tidy up your desk. Spread the word to your colleagues and talk to your boss: he may also need a good lesson!