Most people who suffer from back pain while sitting begin their search for a better office chair with lumbar support.
There are many things to consider when beginning the search for a quality ergonomic office chair but it is most important to increase your body awareness to understand what exactly is meant when discussing lumbar support for office chairs.
When we stand with a nice neutral balanced position, our spine assumes natural curves such that our lumbar spine has an inward curve, otherwise referred to as a lordosis.
This lordotic lumbar spine curve transitions into a outward or kyphotic curve through the mid back and finishes with an inward curving cervical or neck spine position.
This is the natural shape of the spine and the objective for sitting is similar as it is for standing. We want the pelvis to be best supported to be in a neutral upward position to encourage the aforementioned shapes of the spine.
When we experience sitting in even a very high end ergonomic chair, we may find that our pelvis is in a good position. When the sit surface in parallel to the floor, our sit bones gradually slide forward on this sit surface. When our sit bones slide forward, the top of the back of our pelvis tilts rearward.
When the pelvis is allowed to tilt rearward, this causes our lumbar spine to flatten and lose the natural inward curve that is necessary for this region of our spine.
This is generally when someone tells you that you need a lumbar support office chair. In this case a lumbar support office chair addressed the symptom of the flattened lumbar spine by actually pushing on the lumbar spine to attempt to push it into extension to create the desired inward curve or lordosis.
Unfortunately in many cases, this solution is limited in its effectiveness. Not only does it apply forces on the relatively tiny bony structures of the spinal vertebrae but often it causes the user to slide their sit bones forward on the sit surface. Now the lumbar flattening is still occurring but with excessive force and the pelvis is still tilted rearward.
The well intentioned objective of this lumbar support office chair is to attempt to create extension or an inward curve in the spine so that the mid back attempts to stay as open as possible and so that the cervical or neck spine does not begin to hyper-extend.
The best design solution for a lumbar support office chair is to focus on the pelvis. This is achieved by introducing a sculpted or shaped seat that prevents the sit bones from sliding forward and a pelvic support that prevents the upper back portion of the pelvis from tilting rearward. These two opposing forces, when designed properly, keep the pelvis in such a position that one attains optimal lumbar alignment without applying excessive forces on the actual vertebrae.
This concept of the biomechanics of sitting is often elusive for most to understand as we have always assumed that a lumbar support office chair is just that, lumbar support in the lumbar spine region.
The idea of applying forces over the spine in a traditional lumbar support office chair is simply addressing the symptoms of this poor alignment, whereas a properly designed pelvic support, below and above, address the cause which is a rearward tilting pelvis.
CoreChair has integrated the design of a sculpted seat and a low back, or pelvic support, to place the user into an upright balanced position by positioning the pelvis in this neutral position. When fitted properly, CoreChair is effective in preventing flattening of the lumbar curve and optimizes the balance and alignment of the ascending spine up the back and into the neck.
The added benefit of supporting the pelvis instead of just pushing on the lumbar spine, is that the spine is now able to achieve its other naturally designed features which include flexion, extension and lateral rotation.
When you begin your journey to find the best lumbar support office chair, it is important to understand the biomechanics of your body and attempt to address the cause of your discomfort and not just the symptoms.
