10 Tips for Optimal Sitting Posture

To sit properly, keep both feet flat on the floor, your hips and knees at about 90 degrees, your back against the chair with your lower curve supported, and your ears, shoulders and hips stacked in a line. Keep your forearms parallel to the floor, your monitor at eye level, and get up to move at least once an hour.

Office work means long hours in a chair, and the human body was built to move. Sitting for most of the day already limits activity, and poor posture on top of that adds neck pain, back pain, stiffness and lower mobility.

What Is Good Sitting Posture?

Good sitting posture is a position that keeps your spine in its natural curves and puts the least strain on your muscles and joints: feet grounded, pelvis neutral, lower back supported and head balanced over your shoulders.

Good posture applies to standing, walking and lying down as well as sitting. In every case, the positions that place the least pressure on your supporting muscles count as good posture. Holding good posture through the day helps you:

• Use your muscles efficiently
• Reduce unnecessary wear and tear on your joints
• Prevent muscle fatigue
• Look and feel more confident

The table below is a quick checklist you can run through at your desk. The 10 tips that follow explain each point.

Body Part	Correct Sitting Position
Feet	Flat on the floor or a footrest, legs uncrossed
Hips and knees	About 90 degrees, knees level with or slightly below hips
Pelvis and lower back	Neutral pelvis, back against the chair, lower curve supported
Shoulders and head	Ears, shoulders and hips stacked; shoulders relaxed
Elbows and forearms	Elbows at about 90 degrees by your sides, forearms parallel to the floor
Monitor	Arm's length away, top third of the screen at eye level

What Are the 10 Best Tips for Optimal Sitting Posture?

The 10 best tips for sitting posture cover your whole body from the feet up: grounded feet, balanced hips, 90-degree joints, a neutral pelvis, a supported lower back, stacked alignment, relaxed arms, a well-placed monitor, a balanced head and regular breaks.

1. Keep Both Feet Flat on the Ground

Crossing your legs, tucking your feet under the chair or resting only your toes on the floor puts extra stress on the supporting muscles of your back, pelvis and hips. It can also restrict blood flow to your lower legs. Crossing your legs tilts your pelvis, so you end up leaning to one side.

If your feet don't reach the floor once your office chair is at the right height for your desk, use a footrest. Better still, lower the desk: electric standing desks like the Nimble, Terra, Wildwood and Grove go down to 23", so you can set the chair for your legs and the desk for your arms.

2. Sit Balanced Between Your Hips

When you get tired, it's natural to lean to one side. Doing it for hours bends your spine sideways and loads one side of your back, which can lead to strain and soreness. With your feet flat on the ground, sit so your weight is spread evenly across both hips.

3. Keep Your Hips and Knees at 90 Degrees

Keep your knees about level with your hips, which makes it easier to hold a neutral spine. Avoid sitting so low that your knees rise above your hips, or so high that your thighs slope steeply down. Both positions can reduce blood flow to the legs and add stress to your lower back.

4. Keep Your Pelvis Neutral and Your Back Against the Chair

Use your sitz bones, the bony points under your buttocks, to find a neutral pelvis. Sit on your hands, then slowly round your lower back and tuck your pelvis under until you feel the sitz bones flat on your hands. Next, arch your lower back and tilt your pelvis forward until your weight shifts toward the back of your thighs. Neutral is the midpoint between the two, where you feel the sitz bones pressing straight down. Then slide back until your lower back touches the backrest.

5. Support Your Natural Low Back Curve

Your lower spine has a natural inward curve called the lordotic curve. Without support, your lower back tends to round the other way into a slump, which strains the muscles and discs of the lower back. Use a rolled towel or small pillow, or adjust your chair's lumbar support so it fills the curve of your lower back.

6. Line Up Your Ears, Shoulders and Hips

Stack your ears over your shoulders and your shoulders over your hips. This keeps the natural curve in your lower back and takes extra stress off your spine, which helps reduce pain over a long day.

7. Keep Your Forearms Flat and Parallel

Like your hips and knees, your elbows should sit at about 90 degrees, which keeps your forearms parallel to the floor. Keep your upper arms by your sides, resting on the armrests if your chair has them. You shouldn't have to reach for your mouse or keyboard, so bring them closer or adjust the desk height.

8. Adjust Your Computer Monitor

Place your monitor about an arm's length away, roughly 20 to 28 inches (50 to 70 cm) from your face, with the top third of the screen at eye level. If you keep moving your neck up, down or sideways to see the screen, you strain your neck, which can lead to headaches and stiff shoulders. We recommend an adjustable monitor arm so you can move the screen to exactly the right spot.

9. Watch Your Head Position

Make sure your head isn't drifting forward out of line with your shoulders. A forward head makes your neck muscles carry much more load, with common estimates of about 10 extra pounds for each inch your head moves forward. Check regularly that your ears, shoulders and hips are stacked, your hips and knees are at 90 degrees and your elbows are by your sides. With practice, good seated posture becomes second nature.

10. Take a Break and Stretch

Once an hour, get up for a few minutes to stretch, walk around and step away from the desk. Breaks relieve pressure on your body, get your blood moving and rest your eyes from the screen. Try these easy stretches:

• Standing, rotate your hips slowly in a circle.
• Standing, gently push your pelvis backward and forward.
• Stand in a doorway, raise one arm until your elbow is level with your shoulder and your hand is above your head, rest your forearm on the door frame and step forward to stretch your shoulder and chest.

A standing desk makes breaks easier, because you can switch to standing for part of the hour without stopping work.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best sitting position for back pain?

The best sitting position for back pain is upright with your lower back supported, feet flat and hips slightly higher than or level with your knees. Change position often, because staying still in any posture tends to make back pain worse. See a doctor or physiotherapist if pain lasts.

How long should you sit before taking a break?

Aim to get up at least once an hour, even for a few minutes. Short, frequent breaks are easier to keep up than long ones, and alternating between sitting and standing at an adjustable desk adds movement without interrupting your work.

Is it bad to sit with your legs crossed?

Crossing your legs now and then is fine, but doing it for long periods tilts your pelvis and can pull your spine out of line. Keep both feet flat for most of the day and uncross your legs whenever you notice them crossed.

Should your feet touch the floor when sitting?

Yes. Your feet should rest flat on the floor or on a footrest, with your knees at about 90 degrees. Dangling feet or tiptoes put extra pressure on the backs of your thighs and make it harder to keep a neutral pelvis.

What height should an office chair be?

Set your chair so your feet are flat and your thighs are roughly parallel to the floor, then adjust the desk so your elbows are at about 90 degrees. Our desk height calculator suggests chair and desk heights for your body.

Small Changes Make a Big Difference

Simple changes and paying attention to your posture through the day help your overall comfort and health. Long hours in a poor seated position add pain and stress to the body that you don't need, while a well set up chair, desk and monitor make good posture the easy option.