In case there was any doubt that back pain from sitting at an office desk is a huge problem, consider these statistics: in the UK alone, 2.5m people have back pain every day. Back pain costs the country £12.3bn ($20bn) a year, according to Cardiff University. In a recent EU survey, 36 per cent of European workers reported having back pain, the number one problem cited.

久坐于办公桌旁引起的背部疼痛是个大问题，如果有人对这一点有疑问的话，不妨看看下面的数据：仅在英国，就有250万人每天都背痛。据卡迪夫大学(Cardiff University)的研究显示，英国每年在治疗背痛上的花销达123亿英镑（合200亿美元）。欧盟一项最近的调查显示，欧洲有36%的上班族声称患有背痛，背痛是上班族面临的头号健康问题。

Obviously, some of these back problems are caused by manual labour and others by pre-existing conditions such as disc ruptures¹. But sitting down all day is probably the primary cause of back pain, and most people do not even make the connection. You can usually tell who these poor people are because they walk around the office tilted² forward from the waist like a human leaning tower of Pisa.

显然，其中有些人的背痛问题是由体力劳动引起的，还有一些是由已经存在的如椎间盘突出等病患引起的。但整日久坐很可能是引起背部疼痛的首要原因，而大多数人甚至没有想过久坐与背痛之间有何关联。你通常可以看出哪些人患有背痛，这些可怜的人在办公室里走动时，身体从腰部以上向前倾，看上去就像一座人形比萨斜塔。

One solution is to use a standing³ desk for part of the day, as I suggested in an earlier column. But some workers do not have that option; and for executives who travel a lot, sitting on an aeroplane has become a weary fact of business life. You can get back pain even in the cushiest business-class seat.

一种解决背痛的方法是部分时间里使用站立式办公桌办公，就像我在较早的一篇专栏文章中介绍的那样。但大多数上班族并没有这种方式可选；而对经常出差的高管来说，乘坐飞机飞来飞去已成了商务生活中的可恶常态，即便坐商务舱、座位再舒适，坐久了也会背痛。

Luckily there is a relatively⁴ easy way to mitigate⁵ the problem.

万幸的是，有个相对简单的办法可缓解这一问题。

Gary Guerriero, co-owner of the US Athletic⁶ Training Center in New York, who treats hundreds of patients a year with back pain, says the problem stems from a tightening⁷ of the iliopsoas muscle complex when you sit all day. These are two muscles, the psoas major and the iliacus, which run from the lower back over the pelvis bone and connect on the leg.

加里•圭列罗(Gary Guerriero)是位于纽约的美国运动训练中心(US Athletic Training Center)的合伙人，每年为数百名背痛患者提供治疗。他说，背痛源于整日久坐导致的髂腰肌紧张。髂腰肌由腰大肌和髂肌组成，起自背部下方，经盆骨连于腿部。

What happens is that the iliopsoas complex becomes like the strings⁹ of a violin: as they tighten⁸, the abdomen¹⁰ is pulled forward and down, causing pressure on the lower back. That pressure is the source of the pain.

髂腰肌就如同小提琴的琴弦一般，下腹部随着髂腰肌的绷紧而受到向前和向下的牵拉，给背部下方造成压力。此压力就是背痛的来源。

Mr Guerriero, who has worked with the New York Knicks basketball team and the New York City Ballet, says one way to limit this pain is to keep one knee lower than the other when you are sitting, which obviously requires you to sit near the edge of a seat. He says you should alternate legs after a few minutes in this position.

圭列罗曾与纽约尼克斯篮球队(New York Knicks basketball team)和纽约市芭蕾舞团(New York City Ballet)合作过，他说减轻背痛的一种方法是保持一个膝盖高一个膝盖低的坐姿，显然，做这个姿势需要坐在座椅边缘。他还说，采取这种坐姿需要每隔几分钟换一次腿。

But Mr Guerriero’s main advice is to practise frequently what he calls the hip¹¹ flexor stretch. It is a simple manoeuvre¹² that can be undertaken to prevent back pain, or to cure pain that is already there. For those familiar with yoga, this is essentially¹³ the position known as Anjaneyasana or low lunge, but this version puts less strain on your back and is better for beginners.

但圭列罗的主要建议是经常做他所谓的髋屈肌伸展训练。这是一个防治背痛的简单动作。熟悉瑜伽的人知道，这个动作基本上就相当于瑜伽中的“低弓步”(Anjaneyasana)，但圭列罗设计的这个动作对背部的压力较小，更适合初学者。

Imagine kneeling down to tie your shoelace. One leg is bent¹⁴ 90 degrees behind you and the other is at 90 degrees in front. To accomplish this stretch correctly, you need to tighten your ab muscles as if preparing to take a punch in the stomach. At the same time, tighten your gluteus or butt¹⁵ muscles to ensure that you have a solid core.

想象一下单脚屈膝下蹲系鞋带的情形，一条腿以90度跪于身后，另一条腿以90度屈于身前。要正确完成这个伸展动作，你需要像肚子上准备吃一拳那样收紧腹部肌肉，同时收紧臀肌，确保身体重心稳定。

Slowly advance the front leg until you feel a stretch in the other thigh¹⁶. This elongates¹⁷ the iliopsoas but it should not hurt. Make sure the rear leg is fairly straight behind you. Do this stretch for 30 seconds, five times on each side. The accompanying Fit Executive video shows how it works in practice.

屈于身前的那条腿慢慢向前，直到另一条腿的髋部产生拉伸的感觉。这个动作能拉伸髂腰肌，但不应产生疼痛。注意跪立的那条腿大腿要基本垂直于地面。保持此拉伸动作30秒，每边各做5次。所附的"Fit Executive"视频演示了如何做这个动作。

Once you feel comfortable in the hip flexor stretch, Mr Guerriero says it can be enhanced by placing the arm on the other side from the front leg behind your head. An even better stretch can be achieved by then raising the arm straight up next to your head and leaning slightly towards the side of the outstretched front leg.

圭列罗说，等到你觉得可以毫不费力地做这个髋屈肌伸展运动的时候，你可以试着将与跪立那条腿同侧的手臂置于头部后方，来加大伸展强度。如果还想进一步加大伸展强度，可以将手臂举起，笔直贴于耳侧，身体稍稍向前屈的那条腿那一侧倾斜。