We were born to move and stay active, but how can you keep your body moving while sitting? Conventional chairs provide passive support while the chair does all the work. This type of inactivity can lead to future health problems. A healthier alternative is active sitting.

What is active sitting? There are ways to break up the time we spend passively sitting in chairs that don’t require much on our part while at work. One type, a kneeling chair, requires you to sit with your lower legs resting on one support while sitting on the upper part. These will make you sit straighter, and your body does more of the work while sitting.

Another type of chair is a single-legged chair, also known as a wobble stool. It has a flat base with the ability to bend and is adjustable in height. You can rock somewhat as you sit and get some exercise too. Active sitting burns more calories too.

There are additional ways to make your daily sitting more active, such as standing up while on the phone. Another option is to use a desk that can raise and lower, allowing you to make adjustments throughout your day. This way, you can spend part of your day standing and the other sitting. Anything you can do not remain sitting in a chair all day will help maintain your energy throughout your workday and is healthier for you.

Are you working remotely? You can apply many of these same principles at home.

Rethink your sitting style with active sitting. RS SafetyTV has a good video here.

Rick Means, Director of Safety and Education, is available to help members draw up safety plans and suggest topics for safety meetings. Contact Rick at 360-943-9198, Ext. 118 or [email protected].