Observing my pets, I see that they rest on a variety of thier own body surfacres including, in the heat, their backs. Although we humans don’t spend as much time at rest as cats & dogs, a large percentage of us spend a large percentage of our time with our upper bodyweight supported by our buttocks. Some questions:
Is this what the buttocks are intended for, or is it even a secondary function which we’ve overdone?
Is there really such thing as “secretary spread,” where the butt widens to meet the dimensions of its container?
Do people really develop what German academics called “Sitzfleish,” where rock-hard hindquarters are developed through endless hours of sitting (IIRC, much of the post-WWII Soviet Union’s success was due to Andrei Gromyko’s ability to out-last opposing diplomats at the table)?
As a gesture of dynamics, Kaiser Wilhelm II sat astride a riding saddle instead of an office chair. Provided we don’t use it to invade Belgium, would this be a better arrangement for us at or workstations?
Buttocks were not evolved for chairs. The thinking is, from what I understand (and I am a layman) is that the glutes developed in humans to facilitate locomotion while standing upright.
I personally think “secretary spread” is actually caused by overeating and lack of exercise as opposed to pressure from the seat. After all, most people who have jobs that require sitting manage it without getting a big butt.
My searches indicates that Sitzfleish is not a physical attribute of the physical ass but rather the psychological ability to sit a long time patiently. If Yogi were here he would say the ass is 90% mental, the other half is physical.
I cannot see your link but the Balans kneeling chair postures the back similarly to a saddle and is thought by some to be better for your back. This has nothing to do with the butt, however.
That’s correct: the German word Sitzfleisch almost invariably refers metaphorically to endurance in meetings etc., not literally to the actual buttocks (there is apparently a specialist usage in glider piloting though, referring to the buttocks as sensory organ).
