“Repetitive activities can contribute to aches, pains, and eventual injuries,” says Colleen Louw, PT, MEd, American Physical Therapy Association spokeswoman and physical therapist at the Ortho Spine Pain Clinic. If typing away on your keyboard, surfing the net on your tablet, and swiping on your phone are among your most-frequent activities, these are the exact motions Louw warns of. “Sitting at a desk while using a keyboard for hours daily can result in poor circulation to joints and muscles,” she says. The stress alone that comes from working for hours without a break can cause muscle tension and pain too, Louw says. Recent research from San Francisco State University also confirms that logging lots of computer time can lead to shoulder and neck pain from a slouching and forward head posture. Instead of accepting tech neck, try these specific at-your-desk tricks to undo the muscle tension cause by your daily use of technology. (Save the lower back stretches and hip stretches for your after-work stretching routine.) Alternately, do a palm down wrist stretch: Gently flex your left wrist by curling your fingers down toward your inner wrist. Use your right hand to gently assist. Repeat on opposite side.
