There will be many people who use commercial furniture every day, and that especially applies to office furniture which you will find in the offices of businesses, health facilities, education centres, and other organisations all over the world.

For many, those items of office furniture will often be something that they sit on as part of their employment, namely an office chair, and sit at for the same length of time, and that will be their office desk.

Office chairs come in many forms and the differences can include their types, the materials they are made from, and their functions, which specifically refer to the adjustments of the office chair in terms of its height, tilt, and arms, for example.

One of the most important features that office chairs should have is that they properly support the person sitting on them, and the support we are referring to is lumbar support primarily, although support for arms and even feet is often present too.

Unfortunately, even with the best office chairs which provide excellent support and comfort, the number of hours that an individual will spend sitting on an office chair and at an office desk can cause problems relating to their physical well-being.

This is why there are so many doctors, physiotherapists, and specialists in muscular health who recommend those in employment who must sit at an office desk for several hours per day, should take action to help alleviate those problems.

One of the ways that can be achieved is by doing stretching exercises, specifically stretching exercises while sitting or standing at a desk.

These stretching exercises are relatively simple and only take a few moments to do at your desk. Below are seven of those stretching exercises.

Please note that most of them can be done sitting or standing at your desk except where specified.

Shoulder Shrug: With your feet shoulder-width apart and arms by your side, look straight ahead.

As you take a breath in, bring your shoulders up as far as you can, and then lower them again as you breathe out. Do ten repetitions, three times.

Chest Stretch: Arms are positioned behind you, and you interlock your fingers.

Keep your arms straight and lift your hands slowly until they are behind your head, or when you feel your chest stretching. Repeat five to ten times.

Spinal Twist: Do seated. With feet on the ground, and shoulder-width apart, contract your abdomen and slowly turn to your left. Return to the centre, and then do the same but turn to the right this time. Repeat ten times.

Tail Torso Stretch: Interlock your fingers, and as you breathe in, stretch your arms up above your head as far as you can.

Hold for 5 seconds. As you breathe out, unlock your fingers, and bring your arms down to your sides. Repeat ten times.

Neck Stretch: Do seated. Grab the seat section of your office chair with your left hand. As you grip, tilt your head gently to your right, and pull upwards with your left hand.

Hold for up to thirty seconds, and then repeat with your right hand and tilting your head to the left. Alternate this stretch up to five times.

Hip Flexor Stretch: Do this whilst you are standing. Place your right leg behind you with your foot at a point two to three feet back.

Bend your knee so your position is similar to a lunge.

Lower yourself whilst bending both knees, and hold for several seconds.

Repeat using your left leg and repeat up to 10 times.

Seated Hip Stretch: Do this stretch whilst sitting on your office chair.

Lift your left foot and place your ankle on your right leg at the knee.

From a position of sitting straight up, start bending forward slowly so that your torso moves toward your right knee.

Hold for up to 30 seconds then swap to your right ankle/left knee.