Is your office chair actually causing your back pain?

Is your office chair actually causing your back pain? Probably.

Do you already know your sitting posture is bad? Probably.

People spend a lot of time sitting (11 hours a day, on average), and most of that sitting is done in an office. But who has time to concentrate on posture all day, or bother getting up every hour? In a world where most of us now rely on our watch or bracelet to remind us to get up and move around, active sitting is a solution that simplifies the quest for perfect posture and higher daily activity levels.

These are a few common tips for easing back pain while sitting in a standard office chair, and how a QOR360 chair can help you find relief more quickly:

1. Keep your body in alignment

While sitting in an office chair, sit up straight and align your ears, shoulders, and hips in one vertical line.

Finding a natural vertical alignment can be difficult in static, even “ergonomic” chairs, which actually constrain the ability to adjust your hips. Active sitting chairs allow your hips to adjust freely, letting your body find a more natural and comfortable alignment.

2. Move often

Take advantage of any chance you have to get up and move around; visit the water cooler every hour or have a walking meeting.

Staying active throughout the day is highly important, but can also be highly inconvenient for most of us. Sitting motionless for any length of time weakens your muscles and exacerbates pain; it can also have grave consequences on your health. “Sitting disease” is a constellation of metabolic disorders which have shown to shorten life. Even if you workout and eat right, sitting stationary for hours on end undoes your health benefit. With chairs designed for active sitting, your body unconsciously stays in a constant state of gentle motion. This slight movement has big benefits, keeping your metabolic rate up throughout the day, even burning calories (skip that walking meeting!).

3. Don’t rely on lumbar support

Shifting forward to the edge of the seat with a straight back, not using the “support” of the chair back, uses different muscles and can actually ease the work of back muscles.

Sitting on the edge of the seat with your knees below your hips allows the pelvis to rock forward, shifting your spine into a more natural position. This can be awkward in a standard chair but our chairs, designed purposefully without a back, very simply allow your body to come into this comfortable position, which promotes your body’s ability to support itself.

4. Stay balanced

Avoid unbalanced postures such as crossing legs unevenly while sitting, leaning to one side, hunching the shoulders forward, or tilting the head.

While shifting your weight around to lean typically happens within a few minutes of sitting in a standard office chair, sitting unbalanced is nearly impossible in a QOR360 chair. Our patented RedRocker allows the seat to tip in all directions, naturally encouraging your body to stay in balance.

Active sitting chairs that allow your body to find a natural position can offer a more comfortable and healthier alternative to standard office chairs. Most users find that their posture immediately improves when they sit on a QOR360 chair which in turn, alleviates back pain. Also, the continuous motion maintained by using an active sitting chair keeps your metabolic rate up and strengthens your core. In studies, active sitting has been shown to increase your metabolic burn by up to 15%.

QOR360’s chairs simplify the process of finding your perfect posture, strengthening your core, and staying active throughout the day. Take a look at our complete line, here.

-Dr. Turner Osler