It’s nice to rest on a recliner after a long hard working day. This furniture is also very popular among seniors and disabled people.
But are recliners bad for leg circulation?
In this post, I’ll efficiently answer this question with facts.
Are Recliners Bad For Leg Circulation?– You Should Know
Is sitting in a recliner bad for your legs?
The answer is YES if you use it for a LONG TIME and in an IMPROPER way.
Recliners have adjustable backrests that you can recline back into several comfortable positions. It also comes equipped with an extendable footrest that pushes out and up in several positions.
The manual recliner features a lever to get the job done where at the touch of a button on the remote control, a power recliner raises your leg.
Many people have trouble standing or walking for long periods. Physical therapists and doctors often recommend them resting on recliners with their feet up as a way to increase blood circulation in the lower body.
Reclining with your feet up is beneficial for blood circulation of the legs and lower body. On the other hand, prolonged sitting or sleeping in a recliner chair in an improper way may cause circulatory issues and your legs to swell.
When you’re sitting on a chair or recliner for hours with bent knees, your blood circulation is restricted. It causes poor oxygenation in blood and your lower body parts to get stuck that causes a “heavy leg” sensation.
So, how to use a recliner for better circulation?
To promote blood circulation in the leg, you have to use the recliner in a proper way maintaining the right balance. Research shows that resting on the chair elevating your leg up for 20 minutes is perfect for good blood circulation.
First, sit on your riser recliner or recliner chair in a comfortable position. Make sure there is no gap between the lumbar support of the chair and your lower back.
Adjust the footrest to a position so that your legs are slightly above the level of your heart position. This position helps the heart maintaining good circulation as your heart doesn’t have to pump blood against gravity as much as when you’re standing.
Are Recliners Bad For Leg Circulation?- Related FAQs
Reveal more askings about sitting in a recliner.
Can recliners cause knee pain?
Recliner and knee pain depends on many factors including your activity level, your age, injury, and severity of your knee pain.
Sitting in a recliner maintaining the proper sitting posture won’t cause knee pain.
What are the benefits of a recliner chair?
Sitting in a recliner elevating your legs for a certain period offers many health benefits.
Some of the health benefits of recliner chairs are:
- If you spend many hours standing up, resting for a while elevating your leg helps your body to circulate blood. Thus, it reduces swelling, relieves sore and tires leg muscles.
- Sitting in this way helps the body to reduce any inflammation naturally as blood can flow more through the body.
- Calm the nervous system, reduce stress and provide relaxation.
Is it better to sit with feet up or down?
Putting your feet up is associated with a relaxing day. While resting, elevating your feet at a certain angle, often, is good. Putting your legs up at a 90-degree angle against a wall, allows your footrest, body to recoup and recover.
When we sit upright, gravity pulls blood towards our feet. If we put our legs at a position where our hips are at 90 degrees against a wall, gravity assists the blood returning into circulation.
In short, it promotes lymphatic fluid circulation and brings blood back towards your heart as well.
Should your feet hang off a recliner?
Yes, when you reclined back, your feet should slightly hang over the edge of the foot extensions. And it’s the recommended position that your heel should extend past the footrest of the recliner. Feet hanging off the recliner helps to distribute the weight of your leg evenly. So, you can rest comfortably for a long time.
If your heels don’t hang over the end of the footrest, it’ll put pressure on your leg muscles and heels. Consequently, you’ll suffer muscle fatigue and leg cramps and feel very uncomfortable after a short time.
Can sleeping in a chair cause blood clots?
Yes, sleeping on a recliner for long times and improperly may cause blood clots. Because, when you lay on your back, the blood flow gets restricted to the lower parts of the body. This may lead to several health issues.
Is sitting in a recliner bad for your back?
If your recliner provides proper lumbar support, sitting in it is good for your back. But sitting too long may cause your back to hurt.
Are recliners bad for your hips?
If you adjust the reclining properly, it won’t hurt your hips. Improper reclining may put unnatural weight on your hip.
Why do my legs ache when I sit in a recliner?
If you sit in a recliner for too long, your lower body part won’t get enough blood circulation. Poor circulation causes discomfort and pain.
Is a recliner better than a chair?
Researches have shown that sitting in a reclined position is good for your back than sitting on a chair upright. Sitting upright for a long time in a chair cuts off circulation to the legs.
A recliner allows the user to sit in a reclined and ergonomic position. It is proven that sitting at a 135-degree reclining positing puts the least pressure on the spine which is helpful to reduce the risk of back pain.
However, an office chair with leg support helps to distribute the bodyweight equally. Leg support imposes no excess pressure on your legs and helps good blood circulation.
Are recliners good for sciatica and scoliosis?
Yes, a good recliner is better than a regular office chair for people with sciatica or scoliosis. A recliner helps alleviate sciatica symptoms, supports the back, and provides comfort.