Trouble sitting in a chair? Posture issues? Legs go numb?

Bartholomew · Oct 24, 2008

If you've got a gripe with normal chairs, I hit on a really nice, comfortable solution. Giant therapy balls. You may laugh, but they're extremely comfortable to sit on, and they force you to balance, which alleviates a lot of stress from the back and neck.

http://www.exercise-ball-exercises.com/images/sit_1b.jpg

Decent therapy balls run about 12 bucks, and they're more comfortable than the best computer chair.

Best thing I've ever blown money on.

maxmordon · Oct 24, 2008

Sounds better than the XIX century Spanish chair I am sitting right now (though it looks so great, it's black with leather...)

Bartholomew · Oct 24, 2008

It's like sitting on a cushion of air.

And I'm to the point where I can sit cross legged on it. That means my abs are working while I freaking type, I think. Woo!

stephenf · Oct 24, 2008

I sit on the floor,which is covered in thick rugs,thin mattress and lots of cushions.I hate furniture ,it takes up to much room

dpaterso · Oct 24, 2008

I bought one of those foam rubber rings for hemorrhoid sufferers and cut out a V-section at the back, so my coccyx (or arse bone for purists who prefer the medical Latin term) floats on air and never touches the chair. Makes quite a difference.

Respect to everyone for not making jokes about Bart's big blue ball.

stephenf said:
I sit on the floor,which is covered in thick rugs,thin mattress and lots of cushions.I hate furniture ,it takes up to much room

Damn hippie!

-Derek

Lauren · Oct 24, 2008

I have arthritis in my lower back and issues with my coccyx so I have tried and will try just about anything to get some relief so I can sit and write for hours on end. I need to get one of those giant therapy balls - that sounds like a good idea.

I recently bought a therapeutic spinal alignment pillow from one of those loose-leaf insert ads. It was great for the first two days and now it's completely flattened and I'm back on my butt. Okay, so I could stand to lose a few pounds but we're not talking anything major here and in my estimation anyone over 20lbs. would have flattened it in a few days. The thing cost about $13 and it said a foam insert but I still figured it would work.

I'm going to have to look for the foam rubber ring too because I love the idea of the pillow I got but it just wasn't a great quality or made properly or something...

Ken · Oct 24, 2008

sounds cool. My own chair is falling apart. The back rest fell off a few months back, so it's now strapped on with an old belt and wiggles back and forth when I lean on it.

Bubastes · Oct 24, 2008

They can work your abs too?

:runs to store:

ishtar'sgate · Oct 24, 2008

Bartholomew said:
And I'm to the point where I can sit cross legged on it. That means my abs are working while I freaking type, I think. Woo!

Ugh, that sounds like too much work. I like to keep my writing and exercising separate ..... all right, my writing and eating separate .... my writing and websurfing separate..... uh, what was your point again?

stormie · Oct 24, 2008

Great idea, but it wouldn't work for me. Being vertically challenged and having this monstrous desk I inherited, I need height. My legs don't even touch the floor so I have to use a little wooden stool to rest my feet on.

<Sigh> I wish your idea would work for me. By the end of the day, my lower back hurts and I'm hunched over. I even tried a lower back massager-thingy machine. But every time I'd get up, I'd trip over the cord and end up on the floor.

Can someone lend me about seven inches of height?!

katiemac · Oct 24, 2008

MeowGirl said:
They can work your abs too?

:runs to store:

Staying straight and balanced on a therapy ball requires you to focus on your core. So yes, you work your abs and core while sitting on them long-term.

You probably shouldn't get one for the office, though.

Williebee · Oct 24, 2008

I'm a little concerned with what the cats would do with the therapy ball. Still sounds worth trying out, though.

stormie · Oct 24, 2008

(katiemac's link above) :ROFL:

Ken · Oct 24, 2008

stormie said:
...every time I'd get up, I'd trip over the cord and end up on the floor.

I recently found a solution to this, for an extension cord I use for my desk lamp. Just tape the cord to the floor with transparent packaging tape. Works on rugs, too. Doesn't look so hot but as they say, "safety first."

katiemac · Oct 24, 2008

Williebee said:
I'm a little concerned with what the cats would do with the therapy ball. Still sounds worth trying out, though.

Most brands use a rather thick plastic--it almost feels like a silicone. Depending on the quality, I think cats would have to do some pretty major damage to pop one.

mscelina · Oct 24, 2008

Wow, I haven't sat up to write in months. Nope--me and my laptop on the couch. It works out well. My feet are always warmed by a cat, I keep my soda on the coffee table, the TV is on mute so I can screen calls, and I don't have to take extra pain pills just to sit upright for another half hour.

Simply perfect. Excuse me while I fluff my pillows.

katiemac · Oct 24, 2008

stormie said:
Great idea, but it wouldn't work for me. Being vertically challenged and having this monstrous desk I inherited, I need height. My legs don't even touch the floor so I have to use a little wooden stool to rest my feet on.

<Sigh> I wish your idea would work for me. By the end of the day, my lower back hurts and I'm hunched over. I even tried a lower back massager-thingy machine. But every time I'd get up, I'd trip over the cord and end up on the floor.

Can someone lend me about seven inches of height?!

Are you working on a desktop computer or a laptop? Exercise balls come in a lots of different sizes, so if you're on a laptop you might have some flexibility if you set up a small tray table or something. Eventually, once you're used to the stability, you could even use the laptop on your lap (concept!

).

stormie · Oct 24, 2008

I have a laptop and a desktop. But it's the desktop that I do most of my writing on because of all the papers, books, and the printer/fax etc. Laptop is for when I can write without having to have immediate access to all of that. (I post here in between writing. )

blacbird · Oct 24, 2008

My biggest problem is that my brain goes numb.

caw

stormie · Oct 24, 2008

At least your brain goes numb. Mine is numb.

Danger Jane · Oct 24, 2008

I might consider a therapy ball, once the TV box I've been sitting on collapses. I mean it's full of styrofoam still, but there are about two inches of empty space, and I'm slowly crushing it.

I'm so indie :tongue

Pat~ · Oct 24, 2008

Bart, I am having lower back issues, so thanks for the post...but I think I'm beyond the therapy ball solution at this point <<sigh>>. (Those were helpful when I had muscle strain, but I have disk deterioration and spinal compression now.) The excessive sitting and writing I've been doing these past four years has, unfortunately, not been beneficial in regards to this.

My only solution has been to curtail writing (any laptop stuff, including emails) to a few hours a day max, and get regular again with the exercise. I've added swimming and cycling to the daily regimen for lower back issues.

C.bronco · Oct 24, 2008

I'm sitting in a crappy Ikea director's chair that has been my "computer chair" for 15 years. It stinks on ice!
Seriously, I can't sit for 2 hours or I cramp up. Must Keep Moving!!!!! Much like my six year old. I can't remain idle. On the other hand, I can't stand in one position for long or my back will hurt. I have no ailments that I know of. Perhaps I'm just antisedimentishtabliantarianist. (I just made that word up.)

Trouble sitting in a chair? Posture issues? Legs go numb?

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