5 Expert-Recommended Ways to Fight Tech Neck
This content is brought to you in partnership with OrthoCarolina, one of the nation’s leading orthopedic practices with offices across the Southeast.Like mama always said, “Sit up straight and eat your vegetables." Turns out, she was right — when you don’t do that, it can come back to haunt you!We spoke with Carol Green, a clinical specialist at the OrthoCarolina physical therapy clinic in SouthPark, about the dangers of poor posture and how spending so much time on our devices (phones, computers, tablets, and more) can contribute to "tech neck."Here are some issues that can Green told us could potentially occur from poor posture when texting:
1) Slumped upper back (also known as a "hunch back") and forward head posture can occur due to the person looking down at the phone for extended periods.2) The deep neck flexor muscles are the longus coli and longus capitus muscles. These muscles are the core muscles in the front of the neck, which can et weak due to the head being forward with the chin jutted out. Green noted that this one is particularly important!3) The muscles in the back of the neck (subocciptials) can get very tight and hard.4) The shoulder blade (scapula) muscles and upper back muscles can become weak due to overstretching of this area from slumped posture.5) Cumulative trauma to the thumbs can occur due to the high repetitions of keystrokes. Did you know your thumb is used in 60% of all hand movements that are performed daily?
Here are some exercises that can be done to prevent pain and weakness of the neck, upper back, and thumbs (aka "tech neck") over time. Green recommends that you perform these exercises 2-3 times per day, and do 15 reps of each one.
Say Yes
Simply say “yes” with a small head nod. Sit tall and nod your chin toward your throat (not your chest!) and you can strengthen the deep neck flexors in the front. Green recommends setting a goal of doing these repetitions at every stoplight on your commute.
Drop The Blades
Pull your shoulder blades down and back by clasping your hands behind the back to strengthen the shoulder blade muscles.
Spread Your Wings
Stretch your arms out to the side with elbows bent to 90 degrees, like football goal posts. Then, squeeze shoulder blades together behind you. Feel those back muscles work!
Switch Fingers
To reduce thumb issues, Green recommends using other fingers to text a few times a day, even though it may slow you down a bit.
Look Ahead
Like, straight ahead. Think "tall" and bring your phone or device up to chest height so you can look straight ahead instead of looking down.Fun Fact: Your head weighs 10-15 lbs, or 8% of your body weight. That might not seem like much, but if you had to hold a 10-pound bowling ball on an outstretched arm all day, it would get very heavy!"For every inch your head goes forward, that is an additional 10 pounds of force on your spine," Green said. "That is similar to what happens with the neck when the head is pitched forward. So sit or stand up straight!"Happy texting, y'all.
Learn more about making healthy choices from the wellness experts at OrthoCarolina!
Whether you’ve recently experienced an injury, need help with recovery after tough workouts, or are simply experiencing chronic pain and need help managing it, OrthoCarolina can help. Make an appointment at a location near you to start getting the treatment you need.