Take A Break!

Ever notice that as you go through your day sitting at your desk that you start to slump, ooze, and contort yourself into a gelatinous blob while typing? Do your co-workers sarcastically comment on how “great” your posture is? More importantly, are you sore after a long day of sitting and are just putting up with it, passing it off as an “everyday ache and pain”?

Well, your Pacific Beach Physical Therapy team at Isis Physical Therapy is here to come to your rescue. Here are 3 things that you can do RIGHT NOW to help your body through your workday:

Take frequent breaks from sitting.

We’ve heard it (and said it) many times before, if it hurts, don’t do it! The more breaks you can take if you’re going to be sitting for extended periods the better. Go for a drink of water (we don’t condone the use of that heaven-sent coffee), walk over and tell your boss how “great” his tie looks, or razz your cubicle buddy about the money you took from him on the golf course this weekend. Your body will thank you for it (even if your coworkers won’t!).

Stretch your hips and your chest.

When you’re sitting in your office chair all day, your knees are generally bent to 90 degrees and it’s a safe bet your shoulders are rolled forward. Staying in this position for the 6-10 hours shortens up your pectoral muscles as well as your hip flexors. If you think of working as exercise (and not an exercise in patience or testing your Sudoku skills) you’re training your body to be in a bad position for a long, long time. Just think if you went to the gym for that same 6 hours each day…you’d be in the best shape of your life!

Check your desk to see if it’s ergonomically set up for YOU.

If you find yourself looking down towards your computer screen, you’re going to be slowly straining your neck throughout the day. Put a book (or two) under your screen to raise it up to eye level. You also want to make sure that your chair is tall enough so your knees are below your hips while your feet are staying down on the floor. No dangling feet! As for your keyboard and desk, you want to make sure that 1. your hands are below your elbows and 2. your elbows are supported and bent to 90 degrees. If you have any questions, we at Isis Physical Therapy San Diego are available to accompany you to your office for an ergonomic consultation.

Now that you have all of this great info, START USING IT! We’ve attached a link with a great hip and chest stretching routine you can do at your office or desk. You may look like the office jokester while you’re doing them, but your improved posture will have you looking taller, thinner, and everything else a late night infomercial can promise you. As always if you have any questions about these exercises, feel free to drop us a line at info@fitatthetee.com or give us a call at 888-348-2884 and we’ll be happy to answer them.

Thanks for reading and be sure to check back every week for our latest installment of how you can improve your health from home!

Start the golf season off right and train like the pros at the Masters by taking advantage of this great coupon to expereince Fit at the Tee and get a lesson with one of our favorite golf pros.

http://www.groupon.com/deals/fit-at-the-tee-san-diego

Good Scores for San Diego's Golf Economy

Viva La Golf! Golf is alive and well in San Diego despite trying times according to the Union Tribune this morning (click the below link to read the full article). It makes me think about why we won't give up on golf but are willing to live without that fancy dinner out or a new pair of shoes. Golf gives us peace, at least for most of us. It allows us to commune with nature, hang out with friends, and yet be challenged beyond what our brain's fairway can handle. It is our time away to focus on something other than work, bills, and family life. Plus, you can never run out of things to work on in your golf game, so you are rarely bored and often surprised. So get out there this weekend and take advantage of all of the great golf deals out there. HHhhmm, Maderas sounds fun!

www.signonsandiego.com/.../on-the-local-economys-score-card-golfs-a-winner/

Fit at the Tee at San Diego Golf Fest 2010

What a fun few days! Zach, Kevin, Adam and I had the pleasure of spending the weekend meeting hundreds of passionate golfers and puting them through a 3D Motion Analysis. One thing I continue to find so interesting is how differently people swing, yet achieve the same results. It reminds me that even among the pros, their swings vary so greatly, but all have the same sequence with their pelvis, thorax and hands. We had a great time watching some interesting swings and then seeing how efficient they were in 3D. When given the opportunity, we did some physical screens on golfers and found that the most glaring problem among those golfers was the inability to touch their toes. Not being able to touch your toes could be indicative of hamstring inflexibility and lack of hip or low back flexion leading to early extension, loss of posture and many other potential swing killers. In our next blog we will show you how to touch your toes in minutes, even if you haven't done so in years!

Welcome to The Golf Fitness Expert Blog!

We look forward to providing you weekly golf exercises and tips to keep your body healthy and pain-free and your golf game top-notch! Feel free to ask our Doctors of Physical Therapy and Titleist Performance Institute Golf Medical and Fitness Professionals any health or fitness related questions you may have. In the meantime, get out there and there and enjoy the weather with a game of golf, just don't forget to warm-up--more on that next time!