久坐引發背痛怎麼辦 多運動纔是硬道理大綱

In case there was any doubt that back pain from sitting at an office desk is a huge problem, consider these statistics: in the UK alone, 2.5m people have back pain every day. Back pain costs the country £12.3bn ($20bn) a year, according to Cardiff University. In a recent EU survey, 36 per cent of European workers reported having back pain, the number one problem cited.

久坐於辦公桌旁引起的背部疼痛是個大問題，如果有人對這一點有疑問的話，不妨看看下面的數據：僅在英國，就有250萬人每天都背痛。據卡迪夫大學(Cardiff University)的研究顯示，英國每年在治療背痛上的花銷達123億英鎊（合200億美元）。歐盟一項最近的調查顯示，歐洲有36%的上班族聲稱患有背痛，背痛是上班族面臨的頭號健康問題。

Obviously, some of these back problems are caused by manual labour and others by pre-existing conditions such as disc ruptures. But sitting down all day is probably the primary cause of back pain, and most people do not even make the connection. You can usually tell who these poor people are because they walk around the office tilted forward from the waist like a human leaning tower of Pisa.

顯然，其中有些人的背痛問題是由體力勞動引起的，還有一些是由已經存在的如椎間盤突出等病患引起的。但整日久坐很可能是引起背部疼痛的首要原因，而大多數人甚至沒有想過久坐與背痛之間有何關聯。你通常可以看出哪些人患有背痛，這些可憐的人在辦公室裏走動時，身體從腰部以上向前傾，看上去就像一座人形比薩斜塔。

One solution is to use a standing desk for part of the day, as I suggested in an earlier column. But some workers do not have that option; and for executives who travel a lot, sitting on an aeroplane has become a weary fact of business life. You can get back pain even in the cushiest business-class seat.

一種解決背痛的方法是部分時間裏使用站立式辦公桌辦公，就像我在較早的一篇專欄文章中介紹的那樣。但大多數上班族並沒有這種方式可選；而對經常出差的高管來說，乘坐飛機飛來飛去已成了商務生活中的可惡常態，即便坐商務艙、座位再舒適，坐久了也會背痛。

Luckily there is a relatively easy way to mitigate the problem.

萬幸的是，有個相對簡單的辦法可緩解這一問題。

Gary Guerriero, co-owner of the US Athletic Training Center in New York, who treats hundreds of patients a year with back pain, says the problem stems from a tightening of the iliopsoas muscle complex when you sit all day. These are two muscles, the psoas major and the iliacus, which run from the lower back over the pelvis bone and connect on the leg.

加里•圭列羅(Gary Guerriero)是位於紐約的美國運動訓練中心(US Athletic Training Center)的合夥人，每年爲數百名背痛患者提供治療。他說，背痛源於整日久坐導致的髂腰肌緊張。髂腰肌由腰大肌和髂肌組成，起自背部下方，經盆骨連於腿部。

What happens is that the iliopsoas complex becomes like the strings of a violin: as they tighten, the abdomen is pulled forward and down, causing pressure on the lower back. That pressure is the source of the pain.

髂腰肌就如同小提琴的琴絃一般，下腹部隨着髂腰肌的繃緊而受到向前和向下的牽拉，給背部下方造成壓力。此壓力就是背痛的來源。

Mr Guerriero, who has worked with the New York Knicks basketball team and the New York City Ballet, says one way to limit this pain is to keep one knee lower than the other when you are sitting, which obviously requires you to sit near the edge of a seat. He says you should alternate legs after a few minutes in this position.

圭列羅曾與紐約尼克斯籃球隊(New York Knicks basketball team)和紐約市芭蕾舞團(New York City Ballet)合作過，他說減輕背痛的一種方法是保持一個膝蓋高一個膝蓋低的坐姿，顯然，做這個姿勢需要坐在座椅邊緣。他還說，採取這種坐姿需要每隔幾分鐘換一次腿。

But Mr Guerriero’s main advice is to practise frequently what he calls the hip flexor stretch. It is a simple manoeuvre that can be undertaken to prevent back pain, or to cure pain that is already there. For those familiar with yoga, this is essentially the position known as Anjaneyasana or low lunge, but this version puts less strain on your back and is better for beginners.

但圭列羅的主要建議是經常做他所謂的髖屈肌伸展訓練。這是一個防治背痛的簡單動作。熟悉瑜伽的人知道，這個動作基本上就相當於瑜伽中的“低弓步”(Anjaneyasana)，但圭列羅設計的這個動作對背部的壓力較小，更適合初學者。

Imagine kneeling down to tie your shoelace. One leg is bent 90 degrees behind you and the other is at 90 degrees in front. To accomplish this stretch correctly, you need to tighten your ab muscles as if preparing to take a punch in the stomach. At the same time, tighten your gluteus or butt muscles to ensure that you have a solid core.

想象一下單腳屈膝下蹲繫鞋帶的情形，一條腿以90度跪於身後，另一條腿以90度屈於身前。要正確完成這個伸展動作，你需要像肚子上準備吃一拳那樣收緊腹部肌肉，同時收緊臀肌，確保身體重心穩定。

Slowly advance the front leg until you feel a stretch in the other thigh. This elongates the iliopsoas but it should not hurt. Make sure the rear leg is fairly straight behind you. Do this stretch for 30 seconds, five times on each side. The accompanying Fit Executive video shows how it works in practice.

屈於身前的那條腿慢慢向前，直到另一條腿的髖部產生拉伸的感覺。這個動作能拉伸髂腰肌，但不應產生疼痛。注意跪立的那條腿大腿要基本垂直於地面。保持此拉伸動作30秒，每邊各做5次。所附的"Fit Executive"視頻演示瞭如何做這個動作。

Once you feel comfortable in the hip flexor stretch, Mr Guerriero says it can be enhanced by placing the arm on the other side from the front leg behind your head. An even better stretch can be achieved by then raising the arm straight up next to your head and leaning slightly towards the side of the outstretched front leg.

圭列羅說，等到你覺得可以毫不費力地做這個髖屈肌伸展運動的時候，你可以試着將與跪立那條腿同側的手臂置於頭部後方，來加大伸展強度。如果還想進一步加大伸展強度，可以將手臂舉起，筆直貼於耳側，身體稍稍向前屈的那條腿那一側傾斜。