Office Workers: 3 Right Angles to Maintain While Sitting
A survey by the American Move Foundation shows that adults sit for an average of 8 hours a day. Sedentary lifestyles can lead to up to 18 health issues, such as cervical spondylosis, lumbar diseases, and loss of appetite. Therefore, maintaining proper posture is crucial. Recently, The Huffington Post published an article pointing out that remembering the "3 right angles" is the key rule for sitting for long periods. Noémie Sudnik, a massage therapist at a physical therapy and rehabilitation center in New York, details a head-to-toe sitting posture to help you get more support and protect your whole body while seated.
Head and Neck: Keep your eyes facing forward, with your line of sight parallel to the top of the computer screen (or the top third of the display). This way, when you need to look at text or images below, your head will naturally drop without straining your neck. A reminder: always face the screen directly; do not twist your upper body. This twisting between the shoulders and hips can easily put pressure on your body.
Arms and Elbows: Placing both arms on the chair armrests can cause your shoulders to hunch, leading to pain. Therefore, your arms should be at a height that allows your shoulders to move freely forward, backward, and up and down, without requiring extra effort to reach the mouse and keyboard. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) suggests that the ideal elbow position is bent at a right angle, so that your forearms are roughly parallel to the ground and not overly strained.
Lower Back: You can buy a small lumbar pillow to place in the curve of your chair's back. This helps maintain the natural "C" curve of your lower back, preventing excessive swaying due to lack of support and protecting your spine.
Legs: Physiologists believe that keeping your knees bent at a right angle is the most important rule for prolonged sitting. If your knees are higher than your hips when seated, the chair is too low. If your knees are much lower than your hips, the chair is too high. Neither situation is ideal for achieving a right angle at the knee. OSHA recommends the ideal position is for your knees to be slightly lower than your hips, which allows your thighs to be parallel to the ground and your shins to be perpendicular to the ground.
Feet: It is recommended to keep both feet flat on the floor, allowing your ankle joints to form a natural right angle. If your feet cannot always reach the floor, gravity will pull you out of this natural curve. It is suggested to use a footrest, or place a shoebox or a few books under your feet to maintain this right angle.