Keeping a healthy posture when working from home

In the current Lockdown conditions, it will be the first time for many people, they’ve experienced a longer-term, work at home situation, and they may be realising that trying to work while lounging on sofas and beds, or even in the garden can begin to play havoc with the back, neck, and shoulders.

For people much more experienced in running a home-based business, it is something you learn early on; that it’s important for those longer tasks, to set yourself up properly and get into a comfortable sitting position, rather than paying for it later in the form of aches, strains, and sprains sneaking up on you!

healthy posture working from hme

Even with a good place to work in the home, sometimes a little intervention is required to set you up in comfort and with good spine alignment, so you can concentrate and not be distracted by the onset of pain, through being in a poor position – this applies equally to times of relaxing, sleeping or travel (not that there’s as much of this right now!).  If you do suffer from pain and discomfort using appropriate support pillows alongside safe and effective natural pain relief can make all the difference to your posture and productivity.  

So what’s out there to help? 

Support pillows can be a great idea and they come in a wide range of shapes and sizes, to give you a little extra support when needed, usually made from memory-foam, they can be a great addition for a little extra lumbar (lower back) support for the office chair, through to use in the bed or sofa.

When you love the flexibility of being able to work from anywhere in your home or garden, and especially whilst these lockdown restrictions are in place, it’s a good idea to make yourself as comfortable as possible.

Another benefit of support pillows is that they often come in different grades of support, so you can choose a level of firmness that suits your own personal tastes and where you intend to use it.

Support pillows can also come as inflatable models, such as the Leg & Back Pillow. This pillow is good for supporting the back to give a better posture for reading in bed, as per the photo, or to help take the pressure off the legs and feet by allowing you to raise them up a little when you’re taking a break from working or relaxing on the bed or sofa at the end of the day.

restwell memory foam cushionAnother option is the Restwell Memory Foam Backrest Cushion, this versatile cushion is great for use anywhere where you want to maintain a better posture, or give a little extra support to target areas of the body.

Its thermosensitive properties will shape according to body temperature and the pressure points of the bodyweight so allowing for a longer period of sitting when working and easy to position on the office chair, sofa, outside bench, bed, or even in the car.

The Restwell Memory Foam Backrest Cushion also enhances better blood circulation and can help to avoid soreness caused by the compression of nerves.

Coming in at just under £18, it’s a good investment in your health and your ability to hold concentration harder when you’re working for extended periods in the same position.

If you want to take your comfort and support that little bit further, or you just like adding to your collection of tech, while helping yourself relax, the 5 Function Massage Cushion with Heat may be worth a look.

posture working from homeAlthough shown on a car seat, it’s actually very adaptable to may different chairs, sofas or even your bed or the floor. 

It’s a massage therapy aid that’s been designed to deliver relaxing heated massage to many areas of the body where relief is required. 

The soothing heated seat cover has been designed with five massage motors, (massage modes) operated with the attached remote control, and comes with 3 speeds of intensity, allowing a very gentle back massage, to something more stimulating – keeping aches and pains at bay and aiding relaxation and concentration.

Another product that can really help to save your back, when working for longer periods, or even after you’ve had your daily exercise and need to wind down faster, is the Heated Memory Foam Lumbar Support.

Like the Massage Cushion above, the heated lumbar support is designed to be versatile for use anywhere in the home, or when travelling in the car. 

It works by combining the shaping and support features of the shaped memory-foam cushion, with heat that can penetrate the muscles and take down inflammation, while soothing joints in the hips and lower back. Its “D” shape design and memory foam construction provides the user with good levels of support and comfort whilst also helping to keep the spine in proper alignment to relieve lower back pain.

Price-wise, not bad, coming in at just under £30, so again another great investment if it allows you to regain comfort and posture, allowing you to work from home easier.

biofreezeIf you already have a painful area of your body, due to poor posture, a sports injury or just because you may have slept in the wrong position, BioFreeze is a good product to have on-hand, to help relieve the pain in the affected area.

Biofreeze is the only analgesic with ILEX, a herbal extract from a South American holly shrub. 

ILEX works to extend the properties of the three analgesics contained in Biofreeze, the result being a deeper, long-lasting pain relief period and acceleration of the basic healing process through relaxation of stiff, aching muscles.

The product shown here is the 28g tube, but it also comes in a wide range of other sizes and application types such as handy sprays, sachets and roll-ons. 

Whilst we’re currently all working much more from home, it makes sense to do it in comfort, while protecting our back and muscles by maintaining better posture in the office, home, garden or car. We hope you’ve found a few good ideas to help.

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Phil Ashforth is a staff writer for Mobility Smart, an online retailer of health, wellbeing and mobility equipment to help you recover from injury, recuperation and protection of joints and muscles when exercising or just helping you in normal daily life. 

This post complies with my Disclosure Policy.

 

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6 Comments

  1. July 4, 2020 / 6:36 pm

    This is very good information on healthy posture. A good posture not only gives you confidence but also make you stay healthy. Thanks for sharing!

  2. Crom Rehab
    September 22, 2021 / 7:54 pm

    Great post! Sitting and standing with proper alignment improves blood flow, helps keep your nerves and blood vessels healthy, and supports your muscles, ligaments, and tendons. People who make a habit of using correct posture are less likely to experience related back and neck pain.

  3. May 29, 2023 / 4:11 pm

    Maintaining a healthy posture while working from home is crucial for our overall well-being. With the freedom to create our own workspace, it’s important to prioritize ergonomics and take proactive steps to support our bodies throughout the day.
    Cynthia @ Activefamilychiroaz recently posted..Dos and Don’ts Of Chiropractic CareMy Profile

  4. August 23, 2023 / 9:03 am

    This article has introduced me to a whole new world of support pillows that I never knew existed!I’ve personally struggled with maintaining a good posture while reading or working in bed, and the Leg & Back Pillow sounds like a game-changer. The idea of being able to adjust the angle to support my back and even elevate my legs a bit is fantastic. Plus, the versatility of using it on both the bed and the sofa is a big plus.

  5. October 27, 2023 / 4:46 pm

    I do an 8 to 10 hrs shift daily, I find changing position regularly more important than sitting in one perfect position also keeping a 250ml water bottle instead of 1 litre to make myself walk for 4 – 5 times at least for water.