Active Sitting at the Office

Practicing improved balance & posture is all in a day's work!

I purchased a second stability ball during my recent trip to the IDEA Health and Fitness Conference in Las Vegas. Purchasing this ball wasn't for doing abdominal crunches - it was to serve as my desk chair at work.

It's an unfortunate reality that many of us are chained to our desks for eight hours, or more, during the work day. I can sympathize because believe it or not I'm a victim too. The majority of my day is spent on my website writing duties, and that means I'm hunched over a computer. However, I decided long ago that having a desk job didn't necessarily mean that I had to give in to a sitting posture I like to call "computeritis" - you know bad posture, rounded shoulders, shortened neck and shoulder muscles! Instead, I decided to make the most of my desk by incorporating ergonomic seating to improve my posture, balance, circulation, and overall core strength. I do this by sitting on an exercise ball.

Sitting on any unstable surface - like a stability ball or inflatable cushion - introduces ergonomic seating into your daily routine. By creating an unstable surface to sit on, your body is forced to find the most efficient way to stay balanced. Since the best way to sit is with proper spinal alignment, you'll notice in a very short period of time that you're suddenly sitting upright with better posture.

Sitting on any unstable surface is something that health professionals refer to as "active sitting", because it engages your postural muscles. So in other words, it helps strengthen your abdominals and back muscles, improves your balance and posture, and enhances your core stability - all while you sit and type away at your computer. In fact, studies show that performing stability exercises during the work day will actually keep you more productive and alert! Pitch that case to your boss and see how fast he pitches in for new, rounder office chairs.

I often find that my desk-chained clients appreciate multi-tasking their exercise programs. Well if you're the king or queen of multi-tasking, then I know you will appreciate how the benefits you get from sitting on a stability ball will transfer into your daily routine. It's true, active sitting will improve your sports performance, leisure-time activities, and other routine daily tasks by reducing your risk of injury and heightening your enjoyment. Better yet, studies indicate that the minor physical activity it requires to sit on an exercise ball instead of a desk chair, will actually burn up to 350 extra calories a day.

Who thought that sitting at your desk could be so healthy?

Incorporate the following active sitting tools from Fitterfirst into your workday, and reap these benefits:

Stronger abdominal and back muscles
Improved blood circulation
Heightened productivity and alertness
Better balance and posture
Improved core strength and stability
Improved spine stabilization
Lessens the chance of back and abdominal injury
It's a BIG stress reliever!

ProActive Disc - The ProActive Disc can turn any seating environment into an "active sitting zone". This self-inflating synthetic disc is light and portable, so it can easily be taken from the office to the gym for performing balance board exercises, rehabilitation exercises, total-body workouts and stretches.

Classic Sit Disc - Constructed in Germany, the durable Sit Disc will keep you actively moving while seated to improve abdominal, back, postural, balance and core strength and stability. Simply place the Sit Disc on any chair to give yourself the active sitting advantage.

Swopper Chair - German innovation finds another stability success in the Swopper Chair. The Swopper Chair offers the challenge of stability in a whole range of natural and intuitive movements. This chair forces you to keep balance on a tilting, swaying and bouncing surface. Plus it's adjustable for various desk heights, user weights, and tasks.

Balance Tip: For even more of a challenge, convert your Sit Disc into a balance training device. Simply set a wooden wobble board (with no holes) on top of your Sit Disc and voila - a complete balance trainer to stand on!

Anna Fleet is a certified personal trainer based in Guelph, Ontario, as well as the face and voice of FitnessGear101.com, an online magazine that encourages fitness and living a health-conscious lifestyle.