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Hip angle is not the issue, or at least, it's a secondary concern. The main concern is spinal flexion. You want to be sitting with a neutral spine, regardless o

by kyllo 13y ago

Hip angle is not the issue, or at least, it's a secondary concern. The main concern is spinal flexion. You want to be sitting with a neutral spine, regardless of hip angle. You'll start to get issues like bulging discs and strained muscles if your lumbar spine is in flexion for long periods of time. Problem is, most sedentary people, especially men, do not know and cannot feel the difference between hip flexion and lumbar spinal flexion. When you ask them to touch their toes, they keep their hips mostly extended and flex their spine instead. Very bad. Strength training (particularly powerlifts like weighted squats and deadlifts with proper form, as well as assistance movements like back extensions and good-mornings) can help strengthen the muscles of the lower back, making it much easier to keep your lumbar spine neutral while sitting.

timr 13y ago
"Problem is, most sedentary people, especially men, do not know and cannot feel the difference between hip flexion and lumbar spinal flexion. When you ask them to touch their toes, they keep their hips mostly extended and flex their spine instead. Very bad." Agreed. This is something I didn't know I was doing until I started doing Yoga regularly -- after a while, you become very aware of the weakness of your back muscles, the tension of your hamstrings (if you're the typical male), and how the overall tendency is to tip your pelvis backward while seated, which makes your spine bulge to the rear. And when you're standing, you tend to tip your pelvis the other way (due to weak abs), leading to the "beer gut" phenomenon, and impinging the lower back. It's no wonder that people have back trouble as they get older! For men especially, Yoga focuses on stretching the hamstrings, straightening/strengthening the back, and increasing range of motion in the hips and legs. I highly recommend it -- if you keep at it, it really helps reduce pain in the lower back (plus, you get addicted to the stretching).

by kyllo 13y ago

timr 13y ago

"Problem is, most sedentary people, especially men, do not know and cannot feel the difference between hip flexion and lumbar spinal flexion. When you ask them to touch their toes, they keep their hips mostly extended and flex their spine instead. Very bad." Agreed. This is something I didn't know I was doing until I started doing Yoga regularly -- after a while, you become very aware of the weakness of your back muscles, the tension of your hamstrings (if you're the typical male), and how the overall tendency is to tip your pelvis backward while seated, which makes your spine bulge to the rear. And when you're standing, you tend to tip your pelvis the other way (due to weak abs), leading to the "beer gut" phenomenon, and impinging the lower back. It's no wonder that people have back trouble as they get older! For men especially, Yoga focuses on stretching the hamstrings, straightening/strengthening the back, and increasing range of motion in the hips and legs. I highly recommend it -- if you keep at it, it really helps reduce pain in the lower back (plus, you get addicted to the stretching).