Posture Should Be Easy, Part 3: "Chair Disease"

In Parts One and Two of this postural mini-series, I gave some basic tips on sitting and standing posture. But a major problem with any chair sitting, as you may have heard, is that it wasn't something we humans were made to do for long periods of time.. We didn't have computer desks or couches in ye olde wilderness, and we would have likely spent much more time standing, or squatting. (Really, squatting flat-footed may be the ideal form of sitting, but it's hard for most of us Westerners to maintain for any length of time.)

Since sitting in our modern styles goes against so much of our nature, it isn't the greatest thing to do for long periods, even with "perfect posture." Sitting for extended periods of time daily may impose serious health risks, including an almost 50% increased risk of death, according to the Mayo Clinic! This is the case even when someone gets regular exercise. A fascinating recent study showed that prolonged sitting (in front of the TV) may be worse than moderate smoking, although it would be hard to compare the two. In particular, sitting seems to radically increase the rate of cardiovascular disease. Having super-ergonomic chairs doesn't seem to help, either.

Why is this? For one thing, we burn less fat when we have a sedentary lifestyle. And there is speculation that somehow, our body shifts metabolic modes, leading to conditions like diabetes, if we sit for an hour or more.

Anyway, it's enough to make me slightly paranoid about even sitting down to type this. Of course, there are many things you can do to reduce the risks of long-term sitting. Obviously, you want to get up and move around, even briefly, at least once per hour. Another, if your work situation permits it, is to do work at a standing desk, or even walking on a treadmill if you have a lot of energy.

So why does sitting feel so good? My guess is that it's like why high-sugar foods taste good: Our bodies evolved in a time when sugar was scarce and love of sugar was a survival tool. Back in the day, we also wouldn't have had the luxury of sitting all the time, so we would want to take advantage of being able to sit sometimes and save energy, and the pleasant sensation evoked by sitting would have encouraged us to do it. So we need to adapt ourselves to this chair-rich environment in order to find our balance.