Work habits have shifted dramatically in recent decades, and many of us spend a large portion of the workday in front of a computer. Sitting with poor posture can have negative effects on your body, which is why we’re introducing four programs to help you care for your posture while at the computer. These platforms will alert you to take breaks and perform stretching exercises, helping you avoid the negative effects of poor posture.
Big Stretch Reminder
Big Stretch Reminder is a program that reminds you to take breaks. As a user, you can customize the timing of the alerts, the sound, and even its design (Balloon, Popup, or Micro-break).
Workrave
Workrave is another excellent program that reminds you to take regular breaks while you work at the computer. Unlike the previous platform, Workrave is fully configurable: you can customize break times, set a maximum number of alerts, and even add a ten-second warning before each alert. But most importantly, during the break the utility shows you an exercise tutorial.
Stretchly
Stretchly is another excellent open-source program that will alert you to take breaks when you work at the computer. In the pop-up window, in addition to alerting you about the break, it shows you stretching exercises, hand movements, and so on.
BreakTaker
We’ll finish with BreakTaker, a very good break reminder program. By default, the platform shows alerts every 55 minutes. From the Settings option you can change the time interval, the sound, and the design of the pop-up window.
If you spend many hours in front of the computer and poor posture is affecting your health, there’s no doubt that the programs we’ve mentioned will help you take regular breaks that will improve your health.
