KEITH CHITTENDEN, MS, CSCS, TSAC-F
ALTERED SPINAL MUSCULAR RESTING LENGTH
CORRELATED WITH POOR SITTING POSTURE FOR
POLICE OFFICERS
Police officers in various agencies and departments share many
responsibilities, a trend which is common throughout departments
across the country. Whether an officer works in a state, county,
city, or rural department, a large part of an officer’s job is centered
around being on vehicle patrol. Most officers will spend up to 10
hr a day driving in a car. Prolonged exposure to a sitting posture
in a car can create altered resting positions of the back muscles.
As a result, weakness in the resting length of muscles such
as the erector spinae, multifidus, and rotators may occur. The
ligaments of the back such as the posterior longitudal ligament
become increasingly weakened from prolonged lumbar flexion
(i.e., posterior pelvic tilt from sitting in a car seat), predisposing
the officer to posterior pelvic tilt, and possibly decreasing spinal
stabilization, and increasing the risk of low back pain (1).
Over a prolonged period, the muscles of the lumbar spine, thoracic
spine, and cervical spine can become adapted to this awkward,
seated position and may develop alterations in static lengthtension tissue relations. One common postural deviation to poor
sitting posture is known as forward head posture (3). Forward
head posture is formed by the flattening of the lower cervical
spine (C3-C7) with the skull in a position of extension (2). This
altered structural position can cause changes in the length-tension
relationship of the muscles of the spine such as a weakening of
the multifidus muscle, the lower trapezium, and the erector spinae
(2,4). The upper trapezium, the deep cervical neck flexors, and
the scalene muscles are often tight muscles (2). These muscle
alterations can cause headaches and a decrease in local muscle
function of spinal stability resulting in cervical and lumber disk
derangements (including intervertebral disc posterior directed
bulge and possibly herniations) (2,4). Forward posture can also
affect the upper extremity, which may lead to rounded shoulders,
tight pectorals, and lengthened and weakened back muscles
such as the latissimus dorsi and F