Let’s start with where you are sitting. Your chair is very important. If you’re not using the right one, it may be affecting your posture. Try to find a chair that is rated for your activity. For example, someone that works at a data entry job is going to need a chair that allows for sitting for longer periods in comfort. The backs on these chairs are typically lower and it should not have arms. A manager will also need a different type of chair.

Check with your office supply company to see what kind of chairs they offer. If your company will allow it, you may be able to test out several different models until you find the one that will provide you with the best foundation for good posture. Most companies offer a 30 day money back guarantee, so your company will only have to pay for the chair that you keep. If you suffer from chronic neck and back pain, this may be the best solution.

I have this crazy sitting posture where I actually sit on one of my legs. It’s horrible and a habit I’m trying to break. How do you sit? Do you sit hunched over or are you straining to look up. You may need to adjust the height of your chair. If you cannot make it taller, you may be able to get a seat cushion that will lift you up appropriately. I’ve read that your eyes should be level with the top of the monitor.

You can also work on posture exercises while you’re working. Try to imagine a string that is connected from your belly button through the top of your head. Pull that string upwards and feel your body straightening up. Your shoulders should be slightly back and your head should be upright. You should immediately feel relief, especially in your lower back. Whenever you catch yourself slumping, try this to correct it. After time, you’ll be able to train yourself out of slumping.

Lastly, there are specific exercises that you can do away from work that will improve your posture. A lat pull down with a cable machine is the best for strengthening your neck and back muscles. You should be gripping the bar at a little wider that the width of your shoulders. Lean back slightly and make sure that your torso is straight. Pull the bar down and return it for about eight to ten repetitions. Another idea is to get a Wii Fit as it has some posture exercises. The best plan yet is to see an ergonomics expert – I’m certainly not one. Keep working at it and soon you’ll have perfect posture and a problem free back.

Photo Credit: Terry Bain

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At least he wasn’t right about their being fish in the river behind my house. Since he’s a pretty good fisherman, perhaps he’s just as humbled to have not caught a fish whenever I’ve been around.

Here are some links I liked this week from the Fitness Health Network:

Idea: Going Vegetarian For One Week – Jim is going to try to be a vegetarian for a week. In the past, I’ve tried it for a few meals and failed.

100 Pushups: Week One, Day Three – J.D. is repeating the first week of one hundred pushups. I barely survived the first week. I may be repeating week two.

Master List of Unconventional Benefits of Weight Loss – Israel has a list of unconventional benefits to weight loss. I wouldn’t have thought donating clothes to charity as one of them. That would mean that I would have to buy all new clothes.

100 Push Ups Week 1 Day 1 – 42 Push Ups!!! – No. Calories needed has joined the 100 push-up craze.

The Karl Lagerfeld Diet – Weight Loss Journal reviews the book. I liked this line: “The main premise of the diet is to simply lower the amount of calories you’re taking in and exercise more.” It’s too bad, I was looking for a diet that requires no exercise and lots of eating.

What is the 100 Pushup Program?

You can find out more about the 100 Pushup Program at the official website. I’m not 100% sure if it’s scientifically proven to work. However, I checked with my doctor and she says I’m fit enough to give it a shot. (I didn’t have any doubts, but I like to check anyway, you should think about it as well before you start a health-fitness program.) The idea is to start off with a small amount of pushups and over the span of six weeks gradually build up to the time where you can make a good run at 100 consecutive pushups. Where do I start? You start with an initial test to see how many pushups you can do to start the program. On my initial test, I got to 20 before I tired. My muscles weren’t particularly tired, but my breathing was off and I just had to stop and breathe better to continue. I think I probably could have done another 6 more, but I’m okay to start with 20. With that information I was ready for day one. Day one Yesterday was day one. I did 5 sets of push-ups. The sets had 10, 10, 8, 6, and 16 push-ups in them. The first four sets are dictated by the program, while the last one varies from person to person. That last one is supposed to be the most you can do before tiring. I was very happy to be able to hit that 16 number. It gives me confidence that I’ll be able to get through this week – though the end of the week looks difficult with repetitions of 15, 13, 10, 10, and 15+ on the docket. I will try to continue Monday, Wednesday, and Friday workouts. I will supplement that with some juggling for exercise, and follow that up with some Wii Fit.

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I only had a couple of minutes to play with the Wii Fit last night and a few more minutes today. Here are my findings thus far:

• The Educational Set-up is Very Good – I often downplay the importance of balance and focus more on building muscle and aerobic activities. However, after the explanation, I can see how improving my balance could help me quite bit.
• Wii Fit keeps the exercises fresh – Most of the activities you can do seem to be locked originally. However after just my first hour of play, I’ve unlocked more advanced options of the basic exercises and a couple new ones. Along the way, I’ve added quite a few minutes to my virtual Wii Fit bank. The bank is interesting in itself. I can see how I could be motivated to start saving up minutes.
• I Need to Lose 11.5 pounds – While my BMI of around 23.5 is normal, it said I should aim for 22. I thought that would be easy, but then it calculated that I needed to lose 11.5 pounds. Hmm, that’s a lot more than I thought.
• I Have No Balance – I thought I’d really like the soccer ball, but I can’t seem to lean to ball fast enough. By the time I get to where the soccer ball is going to be it’s by me. I then react to the next one a little late to watch it go by me as well. I’m better at the skiing. I improved my downhill time on the easy level from 1:27 to 50 seconds and it’s still not good enough. My Mii is very depressed at the end of any balance exercise.
• I Look Ridiculous Trying to Hula Hoop – I had to shut all my shades, so no one can see. As ridiculous as I look, I could feel the effect of just a couple of minutes in my legs. I don’t know if I’m just really out of shape, or if working new muscles… probably a little bit of both.

I haven’t gotten time to really use this in detail, but I think it’s going to be a revolutionary product. I don’t know if it will succeed on it’s own (I suspect it will), but if nothing else it will be a gateway to another great product. Perhaps that product is similar and works like a skateboard, surfboard, snowboard, skis etc. It won’t replace the real thing, but if the software behind it is good, it will allow people to practice in the comfort of their home, before hitting the slopes or waves. It could also spark virtual competitions nationwide (a little like John Madden tournaments) where people are actually active. This is extremely close to happening – I’d expect to see it within the next year.

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