When WFH takes a toll on your body.

The CB is over. But Working From Home (WFH) doesn’t seem to be ending, as most of us are encouraged to continue with this arrangement.

But WFH not that bad right? You can wake up later, wear your PJs and do work IN BED. So shiok!

But the one thing limpeh got notice is that sometimes I get body aches and pain. So I go consult Ms Fong Lum, a SuperFit Fitness Trainer (so solid her title!) for Singapore Sports Hub, to find out if this is a problem and how to fix it.

Adjust A Bit Leh

The way most people WFH is not like how they are in the office, because we don’t have the same desk setup. Sitting on the couch or working from the bed can be bad for your posture.

So we must adjust a bit to help prevent poor body posture that might give us body aches.

Ms Fong gives us some quick tips:

1. Elevate your laptop. Make sure your screen is at eye level so you don’t look down.
2. Don’t slouch! Sit upright to reduce strain on your back and neck.
3. Adjust your workstation to keep 90-degree angles throughout the body to reduce muscle and joint strain.

Also super important: Because you sit so long in the same position, your body might be aching and pain. So tolong, take a break every 60 mins by walking around for 5 to 10mins. Yes, even if your house damn small also must walk the same amount of time.

Everyone’s Working Out

Limpeh know a lot of you act one fitspo ah, start exercising like never before, maybe because you feel cooped up at home.

Good lah, sweat a bit. But before you go all Shaun T on yourself, Ms Fong gives us a little checklist of what to look out for. But if you not sure about your fitness or health, limpeh say first very important: please check with your doctor!

Start with these:

1. Mai gei kiang. Set goals that are realistic and what you can achieve.
2. Don’t act one fashionista. Dress properly with the correct shoes and sportswear.
3. Do light aerobic warm-up exercises with your bodyweight.
4. Don’t be impatient lah! Start at a slower pace before increasing intensity slowly and comfortably.
5. Stretch, as much as required, even during the workout.
6. Avoid sudden jerks in the joints.
7. Avoid high impact exercises.
8. Aim to do cross training and muscle strengthening exercises.
9. Learn and perform proper techniques and posture. Nowadays internet got a lot of resources. If not, can see here.
10. Understand that different exercises require different joint alignment.

For some areas, Ms Fong suggests you to do these things.

For Your Neck:
Do standing-up exercises (no, stand-up comedian not counted) and keep your neck in neutral position. But when you do exercises lying down such as sit-ups, make sure to keep your chin in.

For Your Back:
If you bench press, remember to arch your back. Then when you do squats, remember to keep your back flat. Brace your core at all times so that you have adequate back support.

For Your Knees:
When you go for those squats, make sure your knees don’t go over your toes. Then when you do lunges, keep both the knee in front and at the back in a 90-degree position. Also, when you do exercises standing up like bicep curls, shoulder presses and balancing on one leg, don’t tense up your knees, but keep them soft instead.

Don’t Shy. Ask For Help.

Going forward, now that we are post-CB, we still need to observe social distancing in some way. So Ms Fong says actually we can try out online personal coaching if we are still not sure about how to exercise properly. Trainers are knowledgeable and experienced, so they will be able to give the right instructions, as well as help you plan exercises that are suitable for your experience level.

Consider joining the Singapore Sports Hub’s 7x7workouts for Power, Balance and Endurance Sessions!

Go Slow.

Don’t need to be a hero from the start. Before CB, you never exercise, then now you exercise because you want to go outside for a while. Can is can, but slowly improve your fitness first. Don’t need to chiong all the way. You know hor, rest and recovery is sibei important if you want to get stronger!

So with every workout, always remember: safety first.

If got pain in any joint, stop at once. Your body is telling you that something cock up liao. Rest first and stretch. This stretching is sibei important. After every exercise session, must also do.

As we continue to WFH for a while more, these tips can be good to help us out. Take note ah!