Joan Price: Book Review: Stretching at Your Computer or Desk

Human beings weren't designed to sit at desks and work on computers all day. Backaches and neck and shoulder pain are rampant. Repetitive strain injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome and tendinitis have risen by 80% since 1990 and are now epidemic. Stretching guru Bob Anderson says you can counteract the ill effects of your workday if you stretch frequently. He shows you how with Stretching at Your Computer or Desk (Shelter Publications, 1998, $9.95 U.S./ $13.95 Canada), a book you'll want to keep near your computer and use regularly.

Anderson hopes the electronic revolution leads to a stretching revolution, and he makes it simple by showing you when and how to stretch to relieve fatigue, tension, stiffness, and overuse. Jean Anderson's line drawings make the stretches easy to imitate -- she even shades in the area where you should feel the stretch if you're doing it correctly.

This book has different stretch routines for whatever you need at the moment. Start the day with the "good morning" routine. Follow specific stretches for neck, shoulder, hand, arm, wrist, chest, back, and legs. If you're a keyboard operator or a graphic artist, there's a special routine for you. During a meeting, try the "office meeting stretches," and while you're waiting for a web page to load, do "online stretches." There are stretches to do in doorways, at file cabinets, on the phone, at the copy machine. For particularly tough days, Anderson includes "stressed-out stretches" and "really stressed-out stretches." Be sure to read the chapter on ergonomic principles, which shows you how to make sure your computer set-up and work habits are as safe and stress-free as possible. At $9.95, this 100-page book is a bargain. Now get up and stretch!