Most of us sit for hours a day. And while many military members have a physically demanding job, those who are in administrative billets or who drive trucks, tanks and fly planes and helicopters likely feel the pains caused by long-term sitting.
Long hours pulling G’s or riding bumpy terrain in military vehicles is a special kind of sitting that requires a proper resistance training schedule to stay strong. If you skip your resistance, cardio and stretching workouts, you have a recipe for weakness in your lower back, hips and legs that eventually can lead to injury in those areas.
The reason why sitting is so tough on the human body is that it prevents the motion of the hips, glute muscles, lower back and legs. When these muscle groups get stiff, it affects our posture when walking, standing up, bending over and doing any basic movements.
Being in the military automatically adds fitness to your day, whether it’s training with your command or taking fitness tests. The two things you must not forget are the importance of warming up and cooling down, especially if you’re stiff from sitting long hours.
Here are some solutions to problems caused by too much sitting.
1. Quick Fix: Move More and Sit Less
If working at a desk, set a timer for 15-20 minutes and do a simple stand-up and sit-down cycle for a few repetitions when the timer goes off. Walk for 30 seconds and do a short stretch of the lower back, hips and legs.
Another option is to get an adjustable standing desk so you can sit down for part of the day and stand up for part of the day while you work. I have an adjustable standing desk that works well for my office hours. I split my day with half sitting and half standing.
2. Add Sitting-Specific Exercises
If you can, sit like a catcher in baseball with your heels flat on the floor and butt as low as it can go, sometimes called a “sumo squat.” Hold for one minute and stretch the lower back, glutes, hamstrings and calves. This is not an easy pose -- and you may want to hold on to something for balance at first -- but it can be a gentle stretch you can do during a break from long periods of sitting.
I like to do this one and add other fundamental movements such as standing with or without weights. Pick up a few dumbbells off the floor; stay in the down position for 10-15 seconds, then stand up straight and tall and repeat. This also is known as thrusters with dumbbells -- you can do these with dumbbells as well or even a single plate. The goal is to squat and forcefully stand and use the momentum of the upward movement to lift the weight over your head.
Hip rolls: This is an easy rotation from left to right with the muscles of your lower back and hips, sometimes called a supine twist. Lie flat on your back with your knees in the air as in the picture below.
Keep your shoulders on the floor and rotate your hips and legs to the left and right as shown below.
Swimmers: This is a favorite lower-back exercise that is safe and effective. Lie on your stomach and lift your feet and knees off the floor by flutter-kicking repeatedly as if you were swimming freestyle -- build up to one minute -- or keep feet still but off the floor. If the flutter kick is too difficult, just lift the legs off the floor and hold as an isometric flex.
Plank pose and one-arm plank: Hold the plank position and see if you can hold it for at least one minute. As you advance, lean on the left or right arm as you increase the time. Or do the plank in the "up" push-up position for longer periods of time. This is a classic lower-back strengthening exercise that will benefit you when having to sit for long periods.
Dirty dogs: This is one of those old-school exercises that works well for working the glutes again after resting them while sitting. Get in the all-fours position. Lift your right leg from the hip, working the glutes to help balance the hip/iliotibial band/thigh connections.
Side bends with weight overhead: This can be done with a dumbbell or plate over your head held with both hands. Simply lean to the left and right at least 10 times each side; feel the stretch on one side and the flex of the other.
These exercises and poses above are mainly used for the stretching purposes with a few strength-building exercises as well. When moving, you will flex and stretch opposing muscle groups to perform that movement, whether it is sitting down, standing up or more advanced movements as in the new Army combat fitness test -- a deadlift or leg tuck. Both are great to build a strong core to handle the G forces of flying as well as the effects of sitting too long.
Topping this series of exercises, you could add in yoga-based stretching exercises, or you can do classic dynamic stretches, then static stretches. These will help fight off the effects of lower-back problems caused by sitting all day.
Stew Smith is a former Navy SEAL and fitness author certified as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) with the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Visit his Fitness eBook store if you’re looking to start a workout program to create a healthy lifestyle. Send your fitness questions to stew@stewsmith.com.
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