Dr. Brent Anderson, along with many others, has spoken about how “Sitting is the new Smoking”.
We’re a sedentary society, which has been heightened even more so over the last 2 years, as much of the world has been working and studying from home. Sitting for long periods of time doesn’t just affect our spines and joints. It also has large repercussions on breathing, our organs (increasing pressure on them and affecting their function), and digestion.
It also affects the vascular and cardiac systems, and increases the chances of obesity and diabetes. Prolonged sitting has even been shown to degenerate the part of the brain that is used to create new memories (in people who sit for longer than 5 hours per day).
Research on sitting clearly shows that the longer we sit still or statically, the worse it is for us. As a consequence, active or dynamic sitting has been put forward and researched as a solution.
The idea behind active or dynamic sitting is to create movement while sitting, either through advancements in chairs/devices or through exercise, to mitigate the detrimental effects of sitting.
Our idea was to come up with a solution for sitting, by creating an unstable device that would allow movement of the pelvis while sitting, that would help upregulate core activation and help train motor control. It also had to be easy to use, portable, affordable, and compatible with any chair, surface, or piece of equipment.
Now, after almost 2 years of product development, we’re very excited to be launching the Balansit with Balanced Body.
The Balansit is a unique patented device that has 2 curves in its base: one front to back and the other side to side. These curves allow the pelvis to move freely, both tilting front to back and rocking side to side — challenging the brain to find balance in these planes and finding a more efficient position or posture for sitting.
Using the Oov material means that the Balansit is always dynamic, as the material compresses and pushes back, creating small perturbations that continually challenge the nervous system to find control and stability.
Given the dynamic nature of the Balansit, it’s important to slowly build up when using it, allowing your deep postural muscles to adapt and build up endurance. You may find you have muscles in places you haven’t felt before, or feel them working in different ways.
We have used the Balansit with patients and in studios for over a year, and have had many of our peers testing the prototypes for feedback and ideas. This has led to many applications for the Balansit: it can be used while doing seated fitness exercises, working on Pilates Apparatus, doing seated mat Pilates exercises, seated Yoga asanas, kneeling exercises, and while sitting on the floor.
The Balansit has helped people with many different pathologies, including pelvic floor and post-natal rehabilitation, and makes sitting more fun and functional for everyone. Many people take a deep breath when they first sit on a Balansit, which says a lot.
We hope you get to try one soon and experience this unique device! For more information, click here.
