Many people spend a lot of their days on the road. And it’s not just the long-haul truck drivers, it may be commuting to a job more than an hour away. It may be covering several states in your sales territory, or it may be delivering goods for a living. Believe it or not, driving for extended periods of time can put a lot of wear and tear on your knees!
A common cause of knee pain while driving is maintaining a bent knee for long periods while pressing the pedals. This can cause strain on the muscles and tendons in the knee and results in pain when you eventually get up and walk around. It’s important to assess your driving position and make sure your knees are not excessively bent while driving. Also, changing positions during long drives can help as well.
If the driver is in a position where the knees are bent for prolonged periods of time or if the knees are not positioned correctly, preexisting conditions like chondromalacia patella (CMP) or osteoarthritis can be exacerbated and cause knee pain while driving.
Overuse or repetitive use of the knee joint in this way can put stress on the patellofemoral joint and perpetuate the wear and tear of the joint. It's important to maintain good posture and take breaks often while driving long distances to reduce the risk of leg pain and injury.
What can help relieve knee pain while driving?
Your posture!
Start with sitting all the way back in the seat to provide support to the pelvis for a neutral upright posture. Then move the seat to achieve an optimal positioning of the legs. The proper position of the legs when driving is to have them relaxed with the heels on the floor and the balls of the feet able to press the pedals.1, 2 The right foot should be able to move easily between the accelerator and brake pedals without lifting the heel off the floor.1
The legs should be bent at an angle of about 120 degrees to reduce strain on the muscles and tendons. Keeping a two to three-finger gap between the back of the knees and the front of the seat can also help maintain proper leg positioning while driving. Remember that adjusting the seat to optimize your leg position may mean that you have to adjust the steering wheel so that your arm position doesn’t compromise your posture.
While driving is a necessary part of many people’s lives, knee pain doesn’t have to be! We hope these tips help to relieve your knee pain while driving and get you thinking about the importance of posture in sitting.
So, if you’re looking to improve posture and comfort while sitting, look no further than Anthros.
Anthros is the only chair in the world that is guaranteed to improve posture or your money back. The science-backed, patented design is registered with the FDA as a posture-improving chair and is proven to have the lowest pressure (most comfortable) cushion on the planet (verified by university testing).
Take the next step to reducing pain, increasing comfort, and maximizing performance!
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