Sitting in front of a computer for 8 to 12 hours can have various impacts on your body. One of the first discomforts experienced is eye strain, followed by headaches and backaches. By regularly performing simple yoga exercises, you can effectively reduce these discomforts that accompany prolonged computer use.
Medical study:
A study was conducted in a software development company in India with the help of 300 participants. Half of them had to include yoga practice in their daily work routine, while the others were placed on a waiting list as a "control" group. For two months, the "yoga" group practiced different yoga exercises for one hour a day, five days a week. The control group, on the other hand, pursued other recreational activities during the same time allocated to the yoga group.
At the beginning of the study, each participant evaluated the discomfort and the level of discomfort related to eye strain.
At the end of the study, it was found that discomfort related to eye strain was significantly reduced in the "yoga" group, while the control group reported no significant change in their eye problem.
The yoga group reported improvements in the following symptoms:
- Irritation
- Eye strain
- Blurred vision
- Dry eyes
- Redness
Researchers reported that the significant improvement in eye strain in the yoga group was caused by increased relaxation. When the human body is in a relaxed state, the eyes instinctively blink more often, thus reducing eye strain.
Practicing yoga:
If you are also considering performing some simple yoga exercises to reduce eye strain, here is the study's program:
- 10 minutes of regulated breathing
- 15 minutes of yoga postures
- 10 minutes of visual exercises
- 10 minutes of joint exercises
- 15 minutes of guided relaxation
- Up, down
- Up-left
- Down-left
- Up-right
- Down-right
- Counter-clockwise rotation
- Clockwise rotation
You can choose to perform an abbreviated version of these yoga exercises during lunch breaks, before starting work, or whenever you feel the need.
Yoga exercises for the eyes:
Here are the specific visual exercises that have proven to be very effective in reducing eye strain:
Eye movements:
Sit down and start moving your eyes by shifting your gaze in 8 different directions. Use your thumb to guide your gaze, following these instructions:
The flame:
For this exercise, you will need a candle. Place the lit candle at eye level. Start by staring at the flame, without blinking. After one minute, start to unfocus and look at various points further away than the flame. Perform the exercise several times.
Eye warming:
Sitting in your chair, rub your hands together to warm your palms. When they are warm, close your eyes and place both hands over them. This will block external light sources and allow the eyes to absorb the warmth from your hand. Take 10 deep, relaxing breaths and repeat the exercise if necessary.
To further enhance the positive effects of these exercises, wear blue light blocking glasses when in front of your screens!
