If you’ve ever worked in an office or had a desk job, you know the toll it takes on your body. A sedentary lifestyle – that is, staying seated all day – has myriad health impacts. One such issue: pain in the hips and lower back, which is caused by a number of factors.
“The hip itself is really complex and there are a number of different muscles that cross over the hip,” says Timothy Burkhart, an assistant professor at the faculty of kinesiology and physical education at the University of Toronto. “If those muscles become shortened or inflamed from prolonged sitting, it can cause pain and discomfort.”
Other muscles in that area, such as the glutes and low back, can also experience pain from prolonged sitting, says Doug Richards, a physician and professor of kinesiology at the University of Toronto. “Sitting is bad for you,” says Richards. “It’s bad for you in general, it’s bad for your back and it’s bad for you to stay still.”
Unfortunately, it’s common to sit too much. In Canada, we sit an average of 5.7 hours every day and a lot of Canadians spend too much of the day sedentary. Moving more can help, but if you’re glued to your screen for a majority of the day because of work, it can be hard to cut down on sitting time. Fortunately, there are ways to relieve the pain. Here are some tips and exercises to try.
How to reduce hip pain when sitting
Move a little
It’s important to take breaks throughout the day. Marie Westby, a physiotherapist and clinician scientist at the Centre for Aging SMART at the University of British Columbia, recommends getting up every 30 minutes and moving a little. This could mean going for a short walk around the office, doing some stretches or taking a stroll to the kitchen for a snack. For those who can’t get away from their work, Westby suggests trying to integrate walking into the day: maybe pace when you’re taking a phone call, or walk over to talk to a colleague instead of messaging them.
Make sure your setup is ergonomic
Ensuring that your desk is set up for comfort will also decrease pain, says Westby. Keeping your wrists neutral by having your keyboard at the right height, and making sure your neck isn’t straining as you look at your screen and that your back is supported are basics that go a long way.
Do strength training
Burkhart says that building strength is a good way to reduce the risk of injury. “It doesn’t need to be complex, it can be simple, really basic strength and conditioning training,” he says. “Getting stronger, building muscle, building endurance and building cardiovascular health by going for runs and walks all helps if we’re sitting all day.” Burkhart recommends picking an exercise program that works for you and staying consistent to see the best results (though he adds that focusing on legs, back and trunk muscles will all help reduce pain from prolonged sitting).
Three desk-side exercises to combat discomfort
Back bends
When we sit at our computers, we tend to slouch forward to get closer to our screens and keyboards, leading to poor posture and tension. To counteract this forward slouch, Richards recommends stretching in the opposite direction. “Get out of your chair once an hour, or every 30 minutes, and bend your spine backward,” he says. To do this, put your hands on the small of your back and lean as far back as you can go. “This stretch alleviates the chronic strain that occurs with prolonged sitting.”
Hamstring stretch
When we sit, the muscles in the back of our thighs (or the hamstrings) are in a constant shortened position, says Westby. To lengthen these muscles and stretch them out, Westby recommends a seated hamstring stretch, which can be done in your office chair and can reduce the tension in the low back and hips. To start, sit at the edge of your seat and stretch out your foot in front of you, with the heel planted on the ground and toes pointed up. Then, grabbing the bottom of your seat for support, lean your upper body forward over the outstretched leg to create a stretch in the thighs. Don’t forget to switch legs.
Hip flexor stretch
Your hip flexors are the muscles at the front of the thigh that are also perpetually shortened when you’re sitting, Westby explains. Tight hip flexors can be painful, but they’re easy to stretch out. In a seated position at the edge or side of your seat, sit up straight with your legs planted firmly in front of you in a 90-degree angle. Then, walk back one of your legs until it’s stretched out behind you. “It’s like doing a lunge, but I’m sitting so I don’t have to take the weight in my legs,” Westby says.
