Health and Wellness: POSTURE CHECK

SAMANTHA JAFF (MArch I, ‘16), MADELYNN RINGO (MArch I, ‘16), and ALICIA POZNIAK (MArch II, ’16)

On an average day, most students at YSOA sit for eight to ten hours. That’s almost three full days every week, 11 full days every month, and 130 full days/year of sitting. With such sedentary lifestyles, it is important to pay attention to posture and ergonomic position at our desks. Various studies have warned against the dangers of sitting for such long periods of time, not to mention sitting poorly. Dr. James Levine, the man behind the invention of the treadmill desk, has even claimed that “Sitting is the new Smoking,” with chronic back pain, curved spines, and shortened muscles comprising only a few of the long term health issues students might face. To combat this, it is important to periodically stand up and walk around. Even if you manage to make it to the gym a few times, you may actually end up healing the micro-tears created while exercising into harmful positions if you come back to studio and resume hunched posture. Instead, try five minutes of standing for every thirty minutes of sitting.

Bad posture can deepen depression, decrease circulation, cause career problems–no slouches at my firm!–and increase stress. If you can’t go it alone, look to some of the Second Years, who have teamed up with their desk-mates to “Posture Check” each other! As architects, we are asked to be conscious of the body and its relationship to space, but when it comes to our own work spaces, we forget the importance of these measurements. We are all provided identical work spaces and furniture, but have radically different bodies! It may be necessary to adjust your desk, chair, or computer monitor, so check out our posture guide below.

Stay tuned for a Health and Wellness survey coming your way! We want to see where YSOA stands in our Physical, Spiritual, Mental, and Sexual Health!

PROPER RUDOLPH POSTURE (images)

Number of Altered Workspaces in Rudolph Hall:

Advanced Studios: 11 adjusted tables with 1 standing desk and 6 balls

2nd years: 4 adjusted tables

1st years: 1 medicine ball chair

PHD: 1 adjusted table