Column How to Sit in a Chair and How it Relates to Back Pain ①

November 30, 2023

Back pain is greatly influenced by lifestyle habits.
We believe that a majority of people are still working at home due to COVID-19.
In general, many people suffer from lower back pain because the chair they sit on daily is not adapted to them.
That is why we would like to talk once again about the relationship between chairs and lower back pain.

First of all, before going any further, understand this:
“Good posture does not necessarily mean sticking your chest out”.
Please assimilate that fact before we explain in more detail below.

First, we will explain how to not sit on a chair.

〇 Back pain caused by poor posture when sitting in a chair
When you sit on a chair, are you always conscious of how you are seated, willfuly thinking, “I will sit this way”?
Depending on the way you sit, you may be causing lower back pain.
If you habitually sit in your chair in a bad position without being aware of it, it may not only affect the muscles around your lower back, but also areas other such as your hip joints and chest.

How to not sit on a chair

We would like to first introduce the common postures likely to cause back pain for patients who work at their desk and are seated for long periods of time.

• Sticking your neck forward
  This is common when working with a computer, and the weight of the neck can put strain on the spine, leading to neck and shoulder stiffness as well as lower back pain.
  
• Sitting leaning against the back of the chair
  → The pelvis tilts backwards, making it impossible to use the buttocks muscles properly.

• Sitting with your feet off the ground
  If your feet aren’t touching the ground, you will not be able to relax well, as your whole body will be unstable. This position forces you to use more muscles than when youa re on your feet, which in turn tends to add to your overall fatigue. In other instances, the muscles in the lower body may become tense as they support the upper body, eventually leading to lower back pain.

• Sitting on a chair with your legs apart
  There is a risk that if you sit with your lower back arched, even if your posture may appear to be good at first glance, in reality, you will end up with a hunched back, and this posture will increase the risk of back pain.

As you see, the way you sit on a chair has a variety of effects on your body.

That will be all for this time.
For now, remember to regularly check your position to see if you are guilty of some of the “bad sitting postures” introduced in this column.
If you have been doing any of the above, please try to be conscious of your bad posture whenever you sit down.
In the next column, we will talk in detail about the correct way to sit on a chair.