Do you suffer from back pain when you have to sit at work or drive for a period of time?
Have you been told that this could be down to your posture and in order to prevent this back pain from happening you should sit up straight with ‘better posture’?.
If you answered yes then please read on because I’m going to share a simple bit of advice that could make your day a lot easier.
We can’t avoid sitting.
You’ll probably have heard or read some quotes that say ‘sitting is the new smoking’ and is a serious health risk of the 21st century and while I feel this may be a little over the top, too much sitting and not enough varied movement is not ideal for anyone.
However, we all have to sit for often long periods of time at some stage, whether we like it or not. So, instead of just bashing sitting and saying that you shouldn’t sit for too long, let’s look at a way that we can make it easier for you, especially if you suffer from back ache.
How can you sit without causing back ache.
In order to sit comfortably for long periods without ending up with back pain, you need to sit in a way that avoids putting excessive tension on your low back .
Often when people come to the clinic with back pain they will be sitting in an opposite way to this…… very straight and upright ……because that is how we have been told we should sit …or else we will end up with a bad back.
But there is a big problem with this and it is often not the best way to sit if you suffer with back pain, and here is why.
The problem with ‘good posture’
If you sit up really straight in what traditionally would be called ‘good posture’, you will feel two ridges of muscles sticking out either side of the spine. They will feel quite tense.
If you stay in this position for a long time, those muscles will start to get tired and you will find that you will naturally want to slouch a little.
What you will actually find is that when you slouch a little bit, the tension will go out of those muscles and your back will feel more relaxed, which will make sitting for long periods much more comfortable for you.
So, if you complain of low back after sitting, then you can try this out.
How to sit with a ‘relaxed posture’
The first thing you need to do is to sit right into the chair. Make sure your lower back up to your mid back area is in contact with the back of the chair.
Now allow the rest of your back, from the mid back area up, to relax. This DOES NOT need to touch against the chair.
If you struggle to relax your upper back, a good tip to do is to take three exhales or three sighs to help it drop and slouch a little.
When you do this, put your hands behind your back and you SHOULD NOT feel those ridges of muscle either side of your spine. They should feel soft and relaxed.
From there you want to breathe in a calm and relaxed way, in and out through your nose as you sit and go about your days work.
Of course, it is advisable to change position every now and then, or get up and move around if you have the option to do so.
While, there is no such thing as the perfect posture (in my eyes anyways) , I do believe that the best posture is one that is able to adapt to different positions and do not hold excessive tension in a particular area.
If you need help reach out
If you, or someone you know, are struggling with back pain when driving or sitting for long periods then please know that this can be helped.
You can contact us by calling 09064 66761 to see how we can help or you can book a physio appointment online at www.midlandsphysio.ie
Join our mailing list for more health tips and advice
If you would like to receive access to all my latest movement, injury and health related advice sent straight to your email then enter your email below.
