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Ask HN: Any way to force yourself to sit correctly?

3 points by nkkollaw ↗ HN
I have a slouch. I've tried keeping my screen at a correct height and the usual stuff, but no matter what I do, I go back to my hold posture.

Is there a way to force yourself to keep good posture while sitting down at the computer?

I read that sitting on an exercise ball forces you to do that, and in Italy government employees (at least in my region) are given steps to keep their feet on, which I guess helps with posture.

Any idea what I could try? I don't want to end up not being able to look up when I'm 50.

6 comments

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pagutierrezn
Sitting correctly might mean different things for different people. I use an exercise ball for sitting and I believe that its benefits have to do with keeping a dynamic position rather than a static correct one
nkkollaw
What is the rationale behind it, though? I've tried it and it does nothing to make me sit without slouching :-/
pagutierrezn
I don't think that sitting straight all the time is desirable or even possible. I think that a ball makes you change your position so that you exercise (a little) all the muscles of your back. And for me this is a more interesting goal
muzani
I shared a link on this on HN earlier: https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2018/08/13/6360250...

The short of it is that the way most of us are taught to sit is not the "right way". The weight of your torso should not be supported by your lower back and you should not be slouching.

If you're sitting right, it should be very comfortable. The article suggests that your torso is supported by your hamstrings but I find that a good enough office chair should be designed so that you don't have to think about posture.

To know whether your office chair is good enough, see that you're not feeling uncomfortable after 1-2 hours of sitting.

shirleytan
HI there. I know this seems self-serving, but I just want to share with you an invention that I came up with. I created a lumbar support system that attaches to your chair that prevents you from leaning forward and/or slouching. I had to make this for myself (from prototype) because I too was having chronic neck and back pain to the point that I actually had to stop working a few years back.

Posture Keeper addresses the main problem which is leaning forward which causes Forward Neck syndrome which in turn causes health issues for your shoulders, upper and lower back.

You can check it out for on our Facebook.com/posturekeeper page.

I'm new to Hackernews and I hope its okay to share this here.