Easy Stretches for Students and Desk Potatoes

To a lot of us stretching might seem like something only yoga nuts, gym junkies and athletes need to do, but stretching and flexibility are actually incredibly important for everyday health – especially if you sit at a desk and in front of a computer for much of the day. Unless you have a nice and expensive chair that provides awesome lumbar support - even if you have one - you might still be experiencing back pain, neck pain, tension headaches, and of course pain in your wrists and fingers from all that typing.

Did you think you would just have to accept all that discomfort as an inevitable by-product of a screen-oriented existence? Well, I’m here to tell you there’s actually an easy fix, or at least a way to greatly improve this: Just do these easy stretches every day and watch your in-flexibility and aches diminish!

Before we get to the stretches, here are some ways that stretching can improve your health:

• Improved flexibility – Important even for everyday activities and to fight against the reduced mobility that comes with aging.
• Increased blood circulation to your muscles.
• Improved posture.
• Reduced back pain.
• Stress relief – When you’re stressed out your muscles are tense, stretching them out and relaxing them will in turn help relax you!
• Help prevent and get rid of tension headaches. 

 

Before you jump right into the stretches, remember to do all of them gently and never force the movements. Stretching should never cause pain. Doing all of these stretches should only take a few minutes, so really try to do them at least once or twice a day. Now let's get stretching!

 

Shoulder roll:

 

Sit up straight and slowly shrug your shoulders up and then forward, and then down and backward in an exaggerated circular motion. Do this for 5 repetitions then repeat in the opposite direction.

 

Neck stretch:

Sit up straight. Then use your hand to gently pull your head towards your shoulder like in the photo. Hold for 5-10 seconds then repeat on the other side. Do this twice on both sides.

Next slowly tilt your head forward towards your chest. Keep your shoulders relaxed and arms loose by your side. Hold for 5-10 seconds. Do this twice.

Standing upward stretch:

Stand up and stretch your arms up over your head as far as you can so that you really feel that stretch in your back and shoulders. Hold for at least 10 seconds at a time. This stretch is incredibly healthy for your back and easy to do, so try to repeat it multiple times throughout the day.

 

Seated spinal twist:

Sit down on a chair with your back straight. Bring your left hand over to rest on the outside of your right leg, then twist your torso to the right. Hold for 20-30 seconds then repeat on the other side.

 

Shoulder pull:

 

Stretch your arm out in front of your body like in the image and use the other hand to gently pull it against your chest.
Hold for 20-30 seconds then repeat on the other side.

 

Tricep stretch:

Sit or stand up straight. Extend one of your arms straight above your head, then bend your elbow and put your lower arm behind your head. Use your other hand to gently pull down on your elbow. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat on the other side.

 

Ankle to knee stretch:

Sit down on a chair with your back straight. Bring your left ankle to your right knee while keeping your right leg on the ground. Slightly lean forward if you want a deeper hip stretch. Hold for 20-30 seconds then repeat on the other side.

 

Hamstring stretch:

Put one of your legs out in front of you with your heel on the ground and your toes stretched back towards you, then lean down and try to touch those toes until you feel a stretch in your hamstring. Hold for 20-30 seconds and repeat on the other side.

Hand/finger stretch and wrist roll: 

We'll finish off with some easy ones that you can do many times throughout the day, which are great for relaxing your hands and wrists after a lot of time writing or typing!

Tense your hands into tight fists, then open them extending and tensing your fingers. Do this a couple of times for each hand. Then finish off with some wrist rolls, i.e. just "roll" your hand around your wrist a few times until changing direction. Do this for both hands.

 

Bonus Morning Stretches (do these right after waking up to feel great!)

Child’s pose (at least 30 sec to 1 min):

  

Cat/Cow (5 slow repetitions for each):

Cobra (20 to 30 sec):

Toe-touch stretch (20-30 sec):

 

 

 

 

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