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The Posture

Think about your Work Posture

Chapter. 1: Work Posture and Health

Physical problems at work

"What effect does poor posture have on the body?"

Poor posture creates repercussions on the eyes, neck, shoulders, and lower back.

The percentage of office workers being aware of the physical fatigue symptoms.

Parts of the body feeling pain

Source: Survey results related to innovation and labor by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, 2008

Approximately 70% of workers suffer from physical fatigue.
According to the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare, more than 68.6% of office workers are reported to be physically fatigued. Symptoms include eyestrain, neck and shoulder stiffness, and back pain. These problems are said to be brought on by poor posture in the office where many of them spend around one-third or more of their day.

Chapter. 2 Good posture and body mechanics

5 things to know for ideal posture

Do you think sitting is a non-strenuous activity?

Sitting posture adds a tremendous amount of pressure to the back.

The 100% body pressure on the lumbar intervertebral discs when standing increases to 140% when sitting, and 185% when hunched forward.

Changes in the load on the intervertebral discs

Load-applying mechanisms

When standing, the pelvis is upright and the spine draws a natural S-shaped curve

When sitting, the pelvis rotates backwards and the spinal S-curve is deformed.

The intervertebral disk is compressed, which could induce back pain.

Before

After

Chapter. 3 Changing your Work Posture

5 Work Postures Recommended by Okamura

It is important to change your posture to best suit the task at hand.

Writing a report, working on a computer, doing presentations in a meeting, talking on the phone…

There are various tasks performed in the office. To keep the ideal posture in each situation, Okamura recommends five different postures. However, even the most ideal posture can only be maintained for approximately 30 minutes. In order to eliminate strain on your body, try to make a shift from one posture to the other, alternate between sitting and standing, take a break, and make use of a chair and a desk, or support apparatus.

Low seat-rear tilted posture

Basic posture

Forward tilting posture

Perching

Standing