Bending at the hips while keeping a straight or “neutral” spine is a fundamental motion. But constant sitting can shorten your hamstrings and weaken your core and gluteus muscles. This makes proper hip hinging difficult, and consequently, can shift the burden of movement to the individual vertebrae in your spine. Over time, this leads to pain and dysfunction.
My work with clients always begins with the basics of functional movement like hip hinging, squatting, and reaching overhead. Relearning and reinforcing good dynamics during our training sessions leads to better movement habits outside the gym.
Check out this article for more on the importance of proper hip-hinging: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/02/26/587735283/lost-art-of-bending-over-how-other-cultures-spare-their-spines