Treadmill Workstations Reduce Muscle Pain

A new study has revealed that treadmill workstations have been effective towards making office related computer work a lot more comfortable since they help reduce neck and shoulder muscle pain.

"Even though office workers may not naturally see it that way, their body is basically their work instrument, just as it is for an athlete," said one of the researchers Julie Cote from McGill University in Canada.

"It can get injured in similar ways and for similar reasons: overuse of certain muscles," Cote said. -

The findings showed that people who type while walking can benefit from reduced muscle activity in the neck and shoulder areas.

For the study, participants were asked to undertake a 90 minute typing task while they were walking or sitting. The researchers then measured the muscle activity in their shoulders, neck, wrists, forearms and lower back.

They observed that the participants' experienced lower neck and shoulder activity while walking when compared to while they were seated.

"Whether you are a computer worker or a middle-distance runner, injuries happen when you tense a particular muscle or group of muscles for too long, and the blood cannot flow into the region as it should and regenerate the muscles," Cote said.

"Bodies are made to move," she said.

The researchers have pointed out that 1 out of 10 office workers will experience muscular and skeletal stress related pains at some point in their careers.