A study by the Best Practice Institute found that while 83 percent of CEOs want employees to return in person, only 10 percent of employees want to come back full time.
After over a year of homeworking though, many workers may have found themselves getting into bad habits, like taking their laptop to work from the couch, or even their bed.
Why Is Correct Sitting Position Important?
“Most people don’t realise when we sit that we are still activating some of the postural muscles around the upper and lower spine just as we do when we’re standing. And if we stay in position long enough, those muscles will fatigue and become tired and sore,” Jayden Arnold, Head of Physio at Ten Health & Fitness told Newsweek.
“Seated posture is important because correct spinal alignment ensures that the muscles that are having to work are in the most efficient position possible, and the load of the body is transmitted throughout the body’s supporting structures, reducing the demand on these muscles as much as possible.”
Making sure you’re set up correctly also helps prevent pain in areas like your back, neck and shoulders.
What Is the Ideal Sitting Position When Working From Home?
You might think that the answer is to sit firmly upright with your shoulders back and chin tucked, but Arnold explained that it is not that simple.
“Even if you hold this position perfectly, you will still be left wondering why your neck and shoulders are hurting.
“When you are sitting you need to be set up to allow your body to relax into this position: a firm, supportive chair that doesn’t fall back as you put your weight into it, your forearms supported by a desk with enough space and the correct height, and a foot stool to stop yourself from sliding forwards.”
Screen height is also important as he added: “Too low and the head cranes forward, and the shoulders hunch up, increasing the strain on the neck, shoulders and upper back.”
Which Sitting Positions Should I Avoid?
Though tempting at times, it’s best to avoid working from the couch if you can.
According to Arnold, having a supportive chair is the most important thing in your home office set-up.
He recommended using an office chair that can lock the sitting position of the back and adjust the height up and down. If you find yourself working from a dining chair instead, you can use a McKenzie lumbar roll which can be tied to any chair to support your back better.
Despite this, no position is necessarily bad, as long as you don’t stay in it for too long.
“Sometimes curling up into a ball in your chair can feel great for a little bit of time. What we know is that certain supported positions make the muscles work less, meaning you can stay in that position for longer without causing issue.
“Those seated positions that are often referred to as ‘bad positions’—slouching for instance—are usually the ones that make certain muscles work harder causing irritability quicker.
“Learn what these are, accept that you will almost inevitably be in those positions during the day. Just try to be aware when you are, don’t stay in them too long, and stick to the principle of regular movement and changes in position.”
How Can I Improve My Posture While Working From Home?
Not only does homeworking often leave us sitting at hastily improvised workstations that don’t support our backs properly, it’s also made us even more sedentary.
“All our meetings are now on our screen via zoom or similar, rather than being even a short walk away. And even small amounts of activity, repeated regularly, add up,” Arnold explained.
Whenever you can, you should get up and move around a bit, or perhaps take a phone call as you pace around the house.
Doing Pilates stretches can also help iron out any work from home related posture issues.
“For necks and shoulders I’d highly recommend doing some neck rotations. For lower backs doing ten squats onto your office chair every couple of hours can be really helpful.”
