Bad posture will make your bum saggy! It's true, and now I have your attention, we can get down to business. Modern working practice encourages bad posture, leading to musculoskeletal problems (pain, injury or tightness of the muscles and joints), and slack tummies and buttocks. Think of a typical day in the life of an office worker; a seated journey to work in car, bus or train, a day seated; shoulders rounded, peering at a computer screen, followed by a journey home, and a night slumped on the sofa. Even if only some of this applies to you, you need to focus on your posture now! Continual bad posture affects your health, appearance and performance.

'Computer posture' encourages rounding of the shoulders, shortening of the chest muscles, lengthening of the buttock muscles from sitting (hence the floppy appearance), and shortening of the front hip muscles for the same reason. Ham strings (back of the thigh) also become tight and in addition, prolonged sitting and slumping weakens our core stability muscles; the muscles of the torso which are responsible for holding us up straight, pulling our tummy in, and more importantly keeping our spine in healthy alignment, avoiding back problems. Each year in the UK 119 Million working days are lost to back pain alone, with the problem growing every day.

Here are seven simple steps which you can take to improve your posture, appearance, and reduce the risk of long-term back problems;

1. Keep good posture when sitting and standing; pull your tummy button in towards your back bone, lift shoulders, roll them back and down, but keep them relaxed. Keep your chin level and your neck in line with the spine. Imagine that you are being drawn up towards the ceiling by a thread attached to the crown of your head. Place a note on your monitor reminding you to work on that posture. Alter chair height, monitor height, and neck/arm rests so that you can maintain this posture.

2. Stay as active as possible; walk or cycle to work, and participate in varied exercise throughout the week. Staying strong and mobile helps prevent injuries, and activity encourages a healthy weight. Excess weight will put added strain through bones and joints.

3. Move around every 20 minutes; staying mobile will prevent muscle and joint stiffness. Go for a walk during breaks to mobilize joints and revitalize. Even taking a couple of minutes to stretch at your desk will help.

4. If you carry a lap-top, briefcase or bag, regularly swap from one shoulder to the other to prevent muscle imbalance.

5. Drink more water; staying hydrated maintains the health of the intervertibral disks in the spine which are filled with fluid (these are the ones you 'slip'- ouch!).

6. Stay flexible; learn about stretching, there are plenty of books and DVDs available. Concentrate on stretching key postural muscles; chest, front of shoulders, back of thighs (hamstrings) and front of the hips (hip-flexors).

7. Try a Yoga or Pilates class, these will include good postural practice along with flexibility, and core stability, to strengthen the muscles supporting the spine and pulling the tummy in.

Vikki Scovell

Vikki Scovell BA(hons) PG DIP is a fully qualified Personal Trainer and Fitness Coach. She is a qualified Nutrition Adviser and runs successful Community Exercise classes. Vikki is a consultant in Healthy Eating and Exercise initiatives to schools in the independent sector and publishes School and General Healthy Living newsletters. She has recently been studying specific health problems and how to improve them through exercise and diet. Vikki lives in Bristol in the UK with her partner and two young children.