While the title might seem dense, there is still a lot to learn about sitting and you might have come across this article just for that extra knowledge.
While teaching you how to sit in a gaming chair is quick and easy, this article will highlight more features you can get from a gaming chair and the health benefits you can acquire. Whether it is a console gaming chair, a gaming chair, or an office chair, it will be covered as well.
Getting the Perfect Posture
The posture you will always go for will be the neutral sitting position. What is the neutral sitting position? It is where your whole body is at a 90-degree angle while you are sitting.
You have your back straightened out firmly while your feet are flat on the floor. No awkward positions and everything is completely straight. Your buttocks are near the back of the seat and your legs are bent at a 90-degree angle with your feet planted firmly on the floor.
Your arms are bent at a 90-degree angle as well while the table is at the same height as your bent elbows. This is the perfect position for your whole body including the wrists. This will help you avoid getting Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, lower back pains, and hip pains.
This is commonly taught in schools and is basically the same fundamentals go. You sit on your chair for upwards of 2 hours and it can get dangerous for your lower back or even the spine in the future. Sitting at the correct posture in a gaming chair is a must.
Step-by-step guide
- Tuck your hips in and make sure your lower back is rolled on the lumbar support pillow. Find your perfect position here as your whole back is rested on the backrest.
- Align your elbows to the table. This is so that your forearms are perfectly straight and are not inclined at all. This gives less strain on your wrist as you would not want to overextend your wrists upwards or downwards when using the computer.
- Plant your feet firmly on the ground. Avoid crossing your legs and just make sure that it is flat on the ground with your knees straight. If you move or widen your knees while sitting, you will lose support and you will feel more burden on your glutes.
- Keep everything consistent because your goal is to ingrain this position to your head permanently. Once you are used to it, you will subconsciously avoid slouching and doing other awkward positions.
How Does the Gaming Chair Help Your Posture?
Most gaming chairs for computers are built like a bucket seat or a racing seat. It is designed as though it is meant to hold and contour a person. While there are no dangers of car crashes, the racing seat was designed to make the driver comfortable driving for more than 10 hours.
The gaming chair companies took the same concept and made their own brand out of it. It makes sense as gamers tend to play for a long time before taking a break.
Another reason the gaming chairs look that way is that they are pushing that sporty feel to gamers all around the world as esports continues to rapidly grow.
With all that said, the design of the gaming chair, where it has the wings at the sides of the seat, is meant to keep your body in the right posture. It also has lumbar support and, they usually come with a pillow to help your lumbar or lower back.
All ergonomic chairs are like this whether it is a gaming chair or an office chair. They are all going for the neutral sitting position no matter how awkward the design looks.
If you try to do the correct posture on a wooden chair, it would not be as comfortable as a gaming or an office chair. In fact, some chairs try to make it uncomfortable for you if you are not sitting correctly. This is a good thing in most cases.
For console gaming chairs, it is quite different. They are bulkier versions of a PC gaming chair and they can consume more space because the console gaming environment is more vast.
When it comes to posture, these console gaming chairs focus more on comfort as they can even recline to a point where they can be used as a bed. They are also ergonomic as they support your back and reduce muscle strain.
Using the Gaming Chair Features
While most of the gaming chair features are there to help your posture, some are there to enhance gaming experiences. Things such as Bluetooth connections, four-directional armrests, wider ranges for reclining, and comfortable padding with optional pillows.
Some gaming chairs are not only built for use on a computer but also, they can serve as a good gaming chair for playing games on consoles. You can even learn how to connect consoles to a Bluetooth gaming chair.
While some gaming chairs are specifically built for consoles or for computers, gaming chairs for computers can be used either way. However, gaming chairs designed for consoles are more like sofas or recliners with added features like Bluetooth connection to the consoles.
The connection is an option because some console gaming chairs have built-in speakers that can be connected to your console. It enhances the experience while giving you maximum comfort.
For the four-directional armrests, it would be easier to adjust your elbow to match any table. Since most gaming chairs have all of their parts adjustable, it would have more options to cater to what is best for the gamer.
The same goes for the reclining backrest. You can recline your gaming chair and it would still try to fix your posture. The pillows are a nice touch for your neck and lumbar support. Since most injuries for gamers are lower back pains and stiff necks, the added pillows support those particular areas.
Make sure to utilize these pillows and make sure the pillow is rolled up on your lumbar when you sit in the neutral sitting position.
Benefits of a Proper Sitting Posture
The most important benefit of attaining a proper sitting posture is getting a healthy spine. The spine is made up of 3 curves. They are the Lumbar curve, Thoracic curve, and Cervical curve.
Each of them is accounted for and prevents muscle strains in the future from bad allocation of weight. Here is a list of benefits you can get from being consistent with your sitting posture.
Keeping your muscles efficiently active
The main idea is to have the right muscles active when sitting. Curving your back or slouching will cause an imbalance in your muscles. This is why it is good to exercise or stretch every now and then. Spending even an hour straight on your computer is already bad for you.
If you are not used to the proper neutral sitting position, you will notice that you will have a hard time maintaining the posture. This might be because your core and lower back muscles are all weak.
You will need to strengthen them by doing other exercises on top of maintaining the neutral sitting position when you are on your gaming chair. If you are lagging behind, it might take years to fix your posture. For someone that is already quite old, it might be too late.
Realigning your spine
While this is quite rare, it is only common to those who spend 8 hours a day sitting on their chair either for work or just playing games. After a few years, you will definitely notice that your spine is misaligned.
If you try to sit straight or even just walk with the proper posture, you find it difficult to do. This is because your spine has been misaligned and your muscles are weak. Although realigning your spine is a benefit, it will not be guaranteed.
The main goal of sitting straight is that it decreases stress on the spinal ligaments.
Decreases wear and tear on your joints
This is just another effect of how weak your muscles are. If there are more muscle imbalances in your body, the more difficult it is to sustain your whole body.
Sitting with a proper posture is just helps with prevention, but if you want to fix the imbalances quicker, you should do regular exercises. With years of sitting on a bad posture, your body’s flexibility will have significantly decreased by now. It is up to you to change your habits and lifestyle for the future.
Final Thoughts
While the article turned out to be more of a medical approach, it is the proper way of sitting in a gaming chair. This is why gaming chairs are so expensive. On top of the added health benefits, it still provides comfort and enhances your overall gaming experience.
You can check out the best chairs for gaming so you can start investing in your health as early as possible. Whether it is a gaming chair, office chair, or a console gaming chair, as long as they are ergonomic, it would be beneficial for you in the long run.