If you’re a white-collar professional, you’ve likely experienced discomfort from sitting nearly all day in your office chair. If this pain is in your glutes and hips area, you might be suffering from dead butt syndrome (DBS).
DBS, also known as “gluteal amnesia” occurs when your gluteal muscles become weak due to prolonged sitting. DBS can be painful and can also disrupt your office workflow. Below, we’ll discuss the main causes of DBS and what you can do to prevent this discomfort from happening to you.
Cause 1: Inactivity + Tight Hip Muscles
One of the main causes of DBS is inactivity. If you’re working long hours at home or in the office and don’t get up to move around enough, then you’re cutting off blood circulation, which helps muscles stay active and healthy.
Additionally, sitting for a prolonged period ensures that not only do your hip muscles become weak but tight as well due to overcompensation and pulling from other fatigued or deteriorating muscles.
Cause 2: Sedentary Lifestyle
Not only can sitting in an office chair all day cause DBS, but if you go from the office chair to the couch to watch television after the workday, you’re more likely to experience DBS. Again, the more sedentary you are, the higher your chances of suffering from DBS are.
Ways to Prevent DBS
There are several ways to help prevent DBS. Most of them include some sort of physical activity. Don’t worry though, this doesn’t require you to purchase new gym equipment or to get a gym membership. These exercises can be built into your daily work-from-home routine. Here are three simple ways to prevent DBS:
1. Daily Stretching
You ought to stretch daily to help prevent DBS. Stretching just five minutes each hour of the day can help prevent DBS. Some of the key stretches are:
- Butterly stretch
- Variations of the pigeon stretch
- Hamstring stretches
- Hip thrusts
- Quad stretches
2. Exercise
Not only does stretching help, but also daily exercise or activity. Most of these stretches you can do in your home office or at your office desk:
- Forward lunges (2×10)
- Body-weight squats (3×8)
- Donkey kicks (2×10)
- Glute bridges (2×10)
3. Proper Posture
Proper posture can also help to prevent DBS. If possible, purchase a standing desk, this will help you not sit as long during the day. Whether you’re standing or sitting at your desk, check to make sure you’re doing these things correctly for good posture:
- Your monitors are at eye level with your chin parallel to the ground.
- Your monitors are an arms-length from your body.
- Your shoulders are relaxed, but straight against the chair and not slouching if standing.
- Your arms are bent at a 90-degree angle
- Your abs are somewhat tight to prevent slouching
For more tips on ways to prevent DBS, check out this infographic from Hello TUSHY.
Also published on Medium.
