What’s all the hype surrounding gaming chairs? Are they really all they’re cracked up to be, or is it all just for show? The vast majority say they aren’t just about looking cool but also about keeping you healthy. How true is this? Let’s find out.
Bad Chairs Lead to Bad Sitting Habits
It’s common for some people to sit straight in the morning but then gradually wilt into a curve as the hours pass. This is typically what happens to those under the screen-based work culture, regardless of the chairs they sit on. Their backs, necks, buttocks, and shoulders get abused, which contributes to long-term health problems.
A poorly-built chair can negatively impact your sitting habits. In turn, these poor sitting habits will develop into back knots and muscle strains that may or may not lead to more serious issues, like a herniated disk, drooping spine, or chronic back pain.
The Benefits of Good Posture
Assuming a correct posture while sitting can yield tons of benefits, such as:
1. Less Joint and Muscle Stress
Sitting or standing awkwardly, like leaning against a wall or crossing your legs while sitting, can cause your joints and hips to tense up.
2. More Energy
A sedentary lifestyle means long periods of minimal muscle activity. This can lead to posture imbalances, which cause you to become slow and inactive. Sitting up straight helps counteract this by making your body and mind more alert and focused.
3. Improved Breathing
Constant slouching can lead to more pressure on your lungs, affecting your breathing. When you sit up correctly, your lungs will have enough room to expand.
4. Improved Digestion
This ties into the ill effects of bad posture on your lungs, which compresses the organ and takes away from its function. This time around, bad posture targets your digestive organs, impacting how effectively your food is digested.
5. Less Pain on the Back
It has been established that bad posture can cause backaches. This is because when you sit for long hours without properly aligning your back, neck, and buttocks, tension starts to creep into these areas.
6. Fewer Headaches or Migraines
With increased pressure on your back, neck, and shoulders from poor posture, you start to experience migraines that can disrupt your everyday life. One way to effectively reduce the occurrence of headaches is to practice safe posture.
Gaming and Office Chairs That Support Correct Posture
Standard office chairs aren’t built with ergonomics in mind, so unless you get a high-end model, you’re probably not going to get enough back support. The data is conclusive, with hundreds of millions of workdays lost annually in the USA alone due to back pain.
Given these ramifications, it’s important that you steer clear of anything cheap where gaming and office chairs are concerned. Unlike mid-price-range office chairs, similarly-priced gaming chairs tend to be structured more ergonomically. They’re typically better for blood circulation and spine alignment than their office-used counterparts.
If you typically spend long hours in front of the computer screen, a good-quality gaming chair can help reduce back stiffness and pain by providing adequate support to your lumbar region.
Healthy Sitting Tips
Whether you’re using a gaming chair or an office chair, keep these tips in mind to help minimize lower back pain and other poor-sitting-posture-related problems:
1. Distribute Your Weight Evenly Across the Seat
Your bodyweight should be spread evenly across the pad of your seat. It’s also important that you avoid leg crossing or foot propping. Both your feet should be level on the floor’s surface.
2. Make Sure Your Chair Is the Right Height
If your chair isn’t quite the right height, make some adjustments. The height of your chair should be such that your knees are able to bend at the right angle, which is about 90 degrees.
3. Lean Your Elbows on the Armrest
When you lean your elbows on the chair’s armrests, you’re able to relax your shoulders better.
4. Make Sure Your Chair Is as Close to the Desk as Needed
Your chair should be close enough to the desk that you can view your computer screen from a comfortable angle.
5. Place a Cushion Behind Your Back If Needed
In case you’re using a chair that doesn’t provide lumbar support, place a foam or a cushion behind your back to serve that function.
6. Make Sure Your Arms are Parallel to the Keyboard
When your arms are comfortably positioned and parallel to the keyboard, that tells you you’re at the right sitting distance from your computer.
Final Thoughts
Is a gaming chair good for lower back pain? Evidence suggests that it is. The chair has the potential to help you better deal with a hurt back and other health issues resulting from bad sitting habits and poor posture.
When you visit HelpAndWellness, you’ll find a broad range of gaming chairs ideal for dealing with sciatica. Still, a high-quality gaming chair can only do so much. You must also couple it with healthy sitting and standing postures to ensure holistic, long-term results.