Ischial Roll vs. Lumbar Roll

Ischial Roll vs. Lumbar Roll

Sitting posture starts with the pelvis.

If the pelvis is rotated posteriorly (back), this will induce more lumbar flexion (rounding of the lower back), which will in turn induce more thoracic flexion (rounding of the upper back) and forward head posture (head sticking forward).

Contrarily, if the pelvis is rotated slightly anteriorly (forward), this promotes a natural lumbar lordosis (normal lower back curve), which promotes a natural thoracic kyphosis (normal upper back curve), and cervical axial extension (head over the rest of the body with a normal neck curve).

Lumbar rolls are half-cylinder shaped cushions placed on the lower portion of the back rest of a chair to encourage lumbar lordosis (normal lower back curve), but these do not affect the rotation of the pelvis.

An alternative is an ischial roll, which is basically a rolled up towel which you sit on (on your “sits bones”) and subsequently let your pelvis roll/fall forward to encourage an anteriorly (forward) rotated pelvis. This in turn helps the posture of the rest of the spine in a seated position as described above.

Life hack: when sitting on public transit or in a waiting room, you can sit at the edge of the seat/chair to encourage an anterior (forward) rotation of your pelvis to promote proper sitting posture!