
Proper Sitting Posture for Crazy NJ Traffic
BY: Chris Lybarger, PT, DPT
If you live in New Jersey, and especially North and Central aspects, then you know a little about sitting in traffic. Whether it’s the daily commute to and from work or trying to head into Philadelphia or NYC for a day trip on the weekend, most of us understand all too well the struggle and time consuming beast it is. What most of don’t take into account though is the toll this takes on our bodies. Biomechanically, we are not designed to sit and especially for prolonged periods. It increases the load placed throughout the spine. If you have this increased load/weight placed through the spine for an extended period and repeat day after day, at some point the body will biomechanically falter. This leads to those all too familiar spinal disc issues we hear about, as well as hip/spinal mobility restrictions, soft tissue strains, trigger point irritations due to postural dysfunction, headaches, etc.
Several positioning tips for sitting in the car to maintain proper posture are as follows: