Sit on the ground

Ok, many people don't do that now a days. But, it is probably the best posture for your body. Your body must be used to sitting and sleeping on the hard ground. The reason is that the bones of the body are then used to bending at their most. I know a person who can not sit on the ground and I tried to inculcate that habit. Now, it is easy for the person but a regular practice is necessary otherwise the joints become stiff and body refuses to obey properly and sitting on the ground becomes very difficult. 

Move the bones of your body. It is also helpful in arthritis and osteoporosis. There is even a condition called osteo-arthritis in which the lubrication of the joint reduces and joint pains start so avoid that by giving regular exercise to your muscles and joints. That is why it is advised to use the stairs as it increases the bending of the joints in the leg.

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Furniture and Sitting Postures

Furniture plays a lot of role in determining the body posture of a person. You must be well aware of the ergonomic studies being carried out these days. Did you know that in earlier days, there was a carpenter for each house who used to create the furniture specially for everyone based on their convenience and physical build? Yes, there were ergonomic practices in ancient times too. So, now we understand that how important it is to use the right chair and right stool. Even the furniture brands have research divisions these days. I know Godrej has.

Swivel chairs or rotating chairs should not be used as they put pressure on the back. If you have to use them, use the ones which have adjustment levers so that the chair can be adjusted according to your height. Always have the desk at the right height - not too high or too low. Your hands should always be parallel to the ground while resting on your desk and thighs should also be parallel to the ground while sitting in the chair with your buttock touching the back of the chair. Some offices have become pretty employee friendly in such issues and are taking care of the ergonomic needs while others have to yet realize the importance. If you do not like the furniture at your office, consider buying your own or moving some of the necessities. Some do agree but not all.

Similarly, bucket seats in the cars or the sofas might be too attractive and too comfortable but I do not think they are very friendly coz they suck you in and to get up, you really need to struggles and get up out of them. This is entirely my opinion. I have not done research on bucket seats. I personally do not like them coz I hate the idea of struggling to getting up and I don't really feel comfortable in them. Likewise, do not buy a sofa set or other sitting accessories which are too low for someone to sit. It puts a lot of strain. On the other hand, you can use a simple diwan setting which is just an inch or two raised from the ground. But, not anything in between. Thats just too uncomfortable and people, generally, don't even prefer that. Same things go for beds. 

When it comes to dining tables, it is better to buy chairs which do not have cushions. And, the chair should be of the right size to the table. You might have noticed in some restaurants which have sofas, if you sit on the sofas, you just fall into it and it is on an uncomfortable level in respect to the table. So, remember that while selecting your dining tables.

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Sit fully back on the chair

Many of us tend to sit just in the front portion of the chair. Sometimes our legs don't reach the ground or on other times, we are just nervous. But, the main part of body taking bearing all that burden is the spinal cord. Not sitting properly on the chair does not give proper support to the hips and the body is not in a relaxed position. Thus, sit with your buttocks touching the back of the chair and keep your spine upright. You don't have to sit poker straight but keeping spine in s reasonably straight position helps in strengthening the spine as well as providing proper support for the body. It is difficult to get used to in the starting so you may slump once every half hour for 2-3 minutes as a relaxation.

Also, it is said that keeping your spine poker straight at 90 degrees from the ground level is not relaxing but strains the spine. So, you can get a chair which has 105-135 degrees angle or you may also use a soft pillow to cushion the small of your back just above the buttock region. Either or doing both of these also helps in relaxing the spine a lot and creates a comfortable position for anyone to sit in.And, don't forget to rest your legs on a stool or something raised above the ground. Generally, a chair which has a holding connecting the legs acts as a good foot stool. 

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Do not hang your legs from the chairs

In the last post, I briefly described some situations where working for long time on computers is wreaking havoc on health. So, I am mentioning something from the last post itself. Never ever leave your legs hanging from the chairs. If you are not tall enough, keep a stool in front of the chair to rest your legs.

You might have noticed that there is a foot rest almost every where in the buses or flights or chair cars. That is not luxury but a necessity. Resting your legs on a little higher level than your ground does not put unnecessary pressure on the spinal cord and eases the blood circulation which stops when the legs are hanging. There is a lot of pressure on the lower spinal cord too when the legs are hanging. Even the hips hurt when you do that. And, kids tend to do this often. So, prevent that.

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