Squatting Vs Kneeling: Which is Good for You When Working?

People try out different exercises to stay active and perform better at work. Most of them believe that getting an adjustable standing desk is enough to avoid the conventional sedentary behavior, but this is not true. You need to do more than just changing your position, and this is where kneeling posture and chair squat exercises enter the picture.

Standing for extended hours every day is equally bad as sitting for extended hours. So, having a variation like a set of squats on the chair is a great idea to stay active at work. There are also certain types of kneeling positions that activate your muscles and ensure you stay fit. But the question that most of the office workers have been asking us is which one, squatting or kneeling, is better for you when you are at work.

We know that you have come here in search of the answer to that question. The good news is that you will not only get an answer to the reported question but will learn a lot about squatting and kneeling in this article. Although squatting and kneeling are quite different from each other, they have different techniques and target different muscles.

Nevertheless, adding any such variation is great to keep you active at work. Still, many office workers wonder which one they should go for. So, let’s evaluate them one by one. 

How Far is Squatting Good for You When Working?

The simplest way to explain the squat is that it is an exercise that is done with your feet on the ground while you bend your knees the way you would do sitting on a chair. You stay in the seat-like bent knee position and then get up straight. You must keep your back straight throughout.

Many people do the same exercise using an ergonomic chair to do the chair squat exercise, but with some variations depending on the muscle they wish to target. In most cases, the targeted muscles are the glutes and calves, which makes it quite beneficial. Nevertheless, squatting at work has many other benefits and some drawbacks as well, so let’s have a look at them. 

Pros

• There is a wide variety of squat exercises, so you can do any of them at work and target different muscles daily.
• Squats are an excellent exercise to strengthen your core and back muscles.
• Squats are a great way to improve your posture at work since you must keep your back straight throughout.
• It can be thought that squatting can help improve your knee’s flexibility. 

Cons

• In some cases, squats may cause a back injury, especially if you round your back or are leaning too forward. You may think of going for many other safer chair stretches.
• If you are coupling squats with weight-lifting, it may put a lot of strain on your shoulders, making you tired at work.
• At times people move their knees too far while doing a squat; this can often cause knee injury.
• Since the posture matters a lot while doing squats, you may need a spotter as a beginner. 

How Far is Kneeling Good for You When Working?

Kneeling at work is ideal for those office workers who have healthy knees and firm knee-supporting equipment. If there is an adjustable standing desk in your office, you can easily lower its height to align its height with the kneeling position.

In this way, you will be able to work while kneeling. In order to get the best result, you may invest in a kneeling ergonomic desk chair that provides support to your knees and help you maintain the kneeling posture.

Since the kneeling ergonomic chairs lack back support, they ensure your core muscles are engaged, and you have a better posture at work. This means you can deal with the slouching problem if you constantly shift between kneeling, sitting, and standing throughout the day.

There are different types of kneeling positions that you may adopt to add more variation. These types include short kneeling, tall kneeling, and half-kneeling positions. You can adjust your chair to adopt any type of kneeling. 

Pros

• The kneeling ergonomic chair that is used for maintaining this position creates a pelvic tilt which helps improve spine health, so if you wonder how to realign the spine, you can adopt this posture for some help.
• The kneeling position opens the waist, which encourages better gut health as well.
• You can use this exercise to increase your core’s strength.
• Since this position aligns your pelvic region and hips, it prevents spinal compression. 

Cons

• The kneeling posture does not encourage much movement and keeps you still in a position, so your muscles may feel fatigued if you maintain this position for an extended time.
• Continuing this posture for an extended period may hurt your shins.
• It is not an ideal way of sitting for heavy-weight office workers.
• The kneeling posture may restrict blood circulation in some cases. 

The Autonomous Employee Purchase Program

We know that going through our article has helped you have a clear outlook of which alternatives you should think of if you wish to have a dynamic work routine. However, one thing left now is where you will find the ergonomic office furniture to have the best experience at reasonable rates. The good news for you is that we have launched the Autonomous Employee Purchase Program.

The employee purchase program is designed to offer you multiple discount offers on office accessories and furniture. The procedure for availing of the discounts is quite simple. All you have to do is sign up for the employee purchase program using your corporate email id. The interesting part is that the discount percentage increases with the number of purchases that you make. We also have bulk order sale options for office workers who wish to order products for their entire team. We have a user-friendly interface that will make purchasing office accessories a piece of cake. So, let's begin today! 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are the answers to the most frequently asked questions regarding squatting and kneeling. 

Is kneeling bad for you?

Kneeling is generally considered good for your back as it prevents slouching, which is known for putting a lot of pressure on your spine. In addition, kneeling is also considered an important resting position, so it won't be bad to adopt it at intervals. 

How to sit squat?

You need a bench for sitting squats which you have to place horizontally behind you. Next, place both your feet at hip-width apart. Look straight and inhale while you bend your knee to sit on the bench. Throughout the squat, your back and hips should remain at an angle between 45 – 90 degrees.

You only have to sit slightly, and then you have to push your heels to get back into the initial position as you exhale. This exercise should be repeated a fixed number of times daily for effective results. 

What is a chair squat?

The chair squats are very much similar to sit squats. The only difference is that you are using a chair instead of a bench for sitting slightly. 

Is kneeling better than sitting?

Yes, kneeling is better than the traditional sedentary behavior, which results in several health disorders and complications such as diabetes, heart problems, etc. Kneeling helps you strengthen your core and have a better posture.