Working from home gives you lots of flexibility, but that doesn’t make you immune to the stiffness and soreness that comes from sitting at a desk for hours on end. On top of this, it can cause some serious posture issues because you’re used to sitting in a relaxed position on the couch when you’re at home. Prolonged bad posture can lead to quite a few painful conditions like dowager hump or a stiff neck. Taking a break to stretch, relax and realign your body can do wonders for your mood and boost your creativity as well as your health, so put your favorite Scentsy Oil in your Diffuser and take 5-10 minutes for our simple desk yoga routine that requires no equipment except your desk:
Seated Lateral Flexion
Scoot to the edge of your chair, feet flat on the floor and hip width apart. Relax your shoulders back and down, and sit straight. This is your neutral posture. Inhale, circling your arms overhead, palms facing each other. Exhale, dropping your left hand to your left side, palm facing inward and keeping your right arm extended. Keeping the weight balanced between your sitz bones (or sitting bones), lean to your left. Think about extending through your right and left middle finger in opposite directions, feeling the space between your right hip and rib widen. Hold for 3-5 breaths, then switch sides.
Seated Chest Expansion
Woman at her desk doing yoga stretches with the Scentsy diffuser releasing the best scented oil blends
On your next inhalation, come back to neutral posture. Interlace your fingers behind your back and straighten your elbows. You should feel a nice stretch across your chest and shoulders. For more intensity, exhale and hinge forward at your hips, leading with your chest. Hold for 3-5 breaths.
Cow Face Pose
On your next inhalation, come back to neutral posture. Extend your right arm overhead, bend your elbow and place your right palm between your shoulder blades. Keeping your left arm at your side, bring the top of your left hand to the middle of your back. Strive to hook your fingers together and pull. (If that’s just not happening, you can hold a bathrobe tie or necktie in your right hand and grab it with your left.) Hold for 3-5 breaths, then switch sides.
Seated Pigeon Pose
On your next inhalation, come back to neutral posture. Sitting up nice and straight, cross your left ankle over your right thigh. Apply gentle pressure to your left knee to deepen the stretch. To add more intensity, put your left foot in your right hand and draw it to your chest, or place your left foot in the crook of your right arm. It’s very important to keep your back straight, so if you notice you’re rounding your upper back, reduce the intensity until you can perform the pose correctly. Hold for 3-5 breaths, then switch sides.
Seated Side Angle Pose
On your next inhalation, come back to neutral posture. Exhale and hinge forward at your hips. Place your right palm flat on the floor, twist your torso to the left and extend your gave and left palm to the sky, facing away from you. Hold for 3-5 breaths, then switch sides.
Seated Spinal Twist
On your next inhalation, come back to neutral posture. Exhale and bring your right hand to the front left corner of the seat of your chair, extending your gaze over your left shoulder. For more intensity, reach for the left back corner of your chair. Hold for 3-5 breaths, then switch sides.
Standing Cat and Cow
Stand an arm’s length behind your chair, feet hip width apart, and place your palms shoulder width apart on the back of the chair. If your chair has wheels, push it in to your desk so it is more stable. Exhale, drawing your navel to your spine, rounding your shoulders, and separating your shoulder blades. Inhale, pressing forward with your chest, retracting your shoulder blades and extending through the crown of your head and tailbone. Repeat 5-10 times.
Standing L Pose
Stand at arm’s length from your desk, and place your palms flat on the desk, shoulder width apart. Move your feet hip width apart. Leading with your chest, hinging forward at your hips, bend forward until your head, neck and back are parallel with your arms. Hold for 3-5 breaths.
Standing Crocodile Pose
Keeping your palms and feet in the same position as Standing L Pose, exhale, bend your elbows and lower your chest to the edge of your desk. Keep your elbows close to your ribs. Inhale and press up, with a flat back, straight legs and your torso parallel to the floor. Exhale and lower your chest back to the desk. Hold for 5-10 breaths or repeat 5-10 times.
Do this routine once or twice a day for maximum results. You’ll be surprised at how much better you feel after just a few days!
