To perform at your best, whether you’re on trial, drafting an important document under pressure, or interacting with clients and staff, you need have as much energy as possible throughout the day — both mentally and physically. Think about it: your blood and brain need the right amount of oxygen for you to function at your best. But stress causes your breath to become shallower and your muscles to contract, thereby inhibiting proper oxygenation.
While there’s no single strategy for completely preventing fatigue, headaches and backaches (or other aches and pains), there IS a powerful, fast and free technique for minimizing them, and it’s the basic stretching and breathing regimen known by its eastern designation, yoga. If you’ve done yoga in the past (or do it currently) you may have already incorporated some routines into your day. If you haven’t, you can learn a handful of basic stretches to do right in your chair that will refresh you within seconds.
Here are two YouTube series to get started:
Remember, the core of good practice management is good self-management. So try a few of these stretches and breathing techniques throughout this week. You’ll have more energy, get more done, and just plain feel better too. If you’d prefer to read a book instead, go to Amazon and search for the term “office yoga” or “desk yoga”; there are several inexpensive titles from which to choose.
