Recently I was diagnosed with tendonitis, and, of course, there is nothing special in it, and it can be cured, but I realized that I did not treat my health too well up to this point. I’m not talking about jogging or going to the gym several times a week, but about seemingly other little things that have a serious impact on our career.
Who would have thought that my hands are important for writing code.
Let's think about what you can do right now to prevent future health problems.
Passive changes in habits
Watch your back
Start with a comfortable pose in your chair. If you have good lumbar support, it will be easy for you to maintain a straight posture. If you tend to forget about your posture, try to remind yourself every few minutes until it becomes a habit.
It is better to sit at an angle of 90 ° or 130 °.
Put your elbows on the armrests
And if you do not have armrests, try to purchase!
Hands should rest comfortably on the armrests and pressure should not be felt on the shoulders or elbows. If you feel pressure, adjust the height of the armrests so that it matches the height of the table.
The wrists should not press on the hard edge of the table.
Choose a comfortable pose at the table
As mentioned above, you should sit upright. Probably my biggest mistake is the uncomfortable chair standing at home.
In addition, your legs should be flat on the ground, and your knees should be bent at an angle of 90 °.
Monitors
Ideally, the monitor should be at eye level in front of you so that you do not have to constantly turn your head.
Working with laptops often means that the neck will be at an angle, and being in that position for a long time can cause pain. To solve this problem, grab a laptop stand and add an external keyboard!
Keyboard
I will emphasize this: hands should rest comfortably on the keyboard, do not type diagonally. Also, do not bend your arms over the keyboard.
Mouse
First, do not hold it too tight, avoid a firm grip. Try to use the entire arm and wrist to move it in order to increase the load on the muscles. Finally, try to keep your hand closer to you.
Active changes in habits
Take breaks
Ideally, it would not be bad to take breaks for 5-10 minutes every 50-60 minutes of work.
I know that this can not be possible due to the nature of the work, but still it’s worth trying for health.
If the work requires you to remain at the computer for a long period of time, try to take breaks less often, but longer, even though it is recommended that you use the first method.
Do exercises for the hands
I discovered a lot of exercise after learning that I had tendonitis. They help warm up your hands, and it only takes a couple of minutes. You can even combine exercises with the breaks mentioned above.
There are many useful exercises, but we often forget to get ready for work and neglect them.
Do not hurry
Sometimes it’s worth slowing down your usual course of work so as not to strain your hands.
Drink plenty of water
One of the best treatments for tendonitis is water! Therefore, always keep a bottle of water near the workplace.
"Investments"
Ergonomic mouse
An ordinary computer mouse is not too comfortable and forces you to inconvenience. Ergonomic mice provide a comfortable position of the hand - the wrist is not twisted with it.
Pay attention to the foam pad for your wrist. It is worth remembering that some types of hand position are not recommended, as they block blood circulation.
My mouse and mat, 17 € and 9 € respectively
Ergonomic keyboard
To have a good posture when typing, you can purchase an ergonomic keyboard. Apparently, it takes time to get used to it (if at all possible), but I can’t say for sure, because I don’t have it, although I heard a lot of good things about them.
If necessary, clips (wristbands)
In the event of an injury, a wrist rest may be useful, for example, as in the picture below. It increases pressure on the arm and helps to avoid unnecessary movements, allowing you to quickly restore muscles and ligaments! It can be found in any sports store or pharmacy.
Autumn trend 2019, 10 €
conclusions
Our work is not so close to physical activity, but this does not mean that we should not think about possible health problems and avoid them whenever possible. Health is important, so take care of yourself and happy coding!