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By
Charles Staley, B.Sc, MSS
Director, Staley Training Systems |
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Perhaps the most common oversight
made by bodybuilders and other athletes is failing to consider
the risks of day-to-day, non-training activities.
Typically, most trainees will
be very careful about their form when exercising (which comprises
at most, 20% of all activities in any one given day) yet totally
ignore the potential consequences of other activities which
make up a much greater portion of our lives. When problems
arise, blame is usually assigned to the training activity.
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One position that everyone spends
a considerable amount of time in is sitting. Given this fact, it
would seem prudent to study this postural position,
and in particular, it's effects on the spine. People are usually
surprised to learn that pressures on the vertebral disks are higher
when sitting than when standing or even lying down. In fact, some
experts suggest that interdiscal pressure when seated is up to 11
times greater than lying down. This risk is particularly insidious
because sitting is not normally associated with back pain, whereas
standing often is!
How Sitting Results in High Loads to the Vertebral
Disks
Many people who, having had the experience
of back pain while standing for long periods of time, and the subsequent
relief that comes from sitting, have difficulty understanding just
how sitting can place undue pressure to the vertebral disks. In
order to understand this concept better, let's have a look at the
following:
1). First, the distinction must be
made between the back muscles and the vertebral disks. When you
stand for long periods, the disk pressure is relatively low, but
you nevertheless feel pain, which is a result of fatigued lowback
muscles.
2). Increased pressure on the disks
in and of itself does not necessarily result in immediate pain.
Thus, we are often unaware of this pressure, which in the long term
can lead to deformative changes in the disks.
3). Now to the real mystery—
how can sitting create higher intradiscal pressure than standing?
It's because, when standing, your bodyweight is distributed over
a wide variety of structures, including muscles, tendons, ligaments
and joints. Upon sitting down, however, the abdominal "corset"
relaxes, which causes a majority of your bodyweight to load the
disks. As we mentioned earlier, you probably will not feel any pain
at all when this happens. But over the long term, the constant,
increased load upon the disks can result in a multitude of problems,
from impinged nerve roots to degenerative osteoarthritic changes.
Workplace Ergonomics
Since sitting is inescapable for most
of us the best advice is 1) to limit time spent sitting as much
as possible, and 2), design your workplace (which includes, but
is not limited to your chair) with the following in mind:
- Chairs with lumbar supports (sufficient
to maintain, but not exaggerate the normal lordosis, or sway,
of the spine have been shown to result in lower interdiscal pressures
than chairs without these supports.
- Chairs with armrests also reduce
pressure on the disks.
- Sitting in an reclined position
(120 degrees seems optimal) lowers disc pressure, so make sure
your chair allows you to alternate positions!
- Since keeping the knees close together
makes you more prone to "slumping," choose a chair that
is wide enough to keep your knees apart. Also, you sit at a desk
for long periods of time, make sure that it allows you enough
space to open your knees.
- When selecting a chair, adjustability
is crucial. This is because people come in different shapes and
sizes, have have unique needs for their work-station set-up. An
adjustable chair will ensure that you can optimize your own workstation
for the best possible ergonomic effect.
- At your work-station, your chair/desk
arrangement should be such that your forearms rest on the desk,
elbows at a 90 degree angle and close to your sides— this
position reduces stress on the trapezious and surrounding muscles
of the upper back and neck.
- If you work with a computer monitor,
or anything else that you visually refer to often, keep it straight
ahead and at eye level— if your focal point is lower than
this, it sets you up for a rounded, slumped forward posture.
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Remember—
virtually all postural related spinal disorders are preventable!
Although the dangers of sitting
for prolonged periods of time may not seem like a pressing
issue at the moment, over the years it has a cumulative
effect on the spine— just take a look at many older
people who have acquired debilitating hunchbacks and other
deformities from lifetimes spent in poor posture.
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About
The Author
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His colleagues call him
an iconoclast, a visionary, a rule-breaker. His clients
call him “The Secret Weapon” for his ability
to see what other coaches miss. Charles calls himself
a “geek” who struggled in Phys Ed throughout
school. Whatever you call him, Charles’ methods are
ahead of their time and quickly produce serious results.
His counter-intuitive approach and self-effacing demeanor
have lead to appearances on NBC’s The TODAY Show
and The CBS Early Show.
Currently, Charles competes
in Olympic-style weightlifting on the master’s circuit,
with a 3-year goal of qualifying for the 2009 Master’s
World Championships.
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