Evaluation of upright posture effects and user experience of the Swedish Posture Flexi harness

Rapport, 2018

An upright posture positively affect body language and well-being. A body support that reminds how to sit, stand or walk upright could be a valuable tool for posture correction. The purpose of this study was to evaluate upright posture effects and user experience of the Flexi supportive posture harness with eight test subjects (3 males & 5 females, age 25-57 years) during six weeks. Questionnaires and interviews were used as data collection methods. The results showed that the harness was a useful tool for supporting an upright posture and providing awareness of how to position the body when sitting, standing or walking. It gradually every week improved an upright posture by strengthen the back and core muscles. The harness provided symmetrical loadings on the shoulders and upper back, improved shoulder alignment and contributed to increased satisfaction of body language. Comfort and acceptance of the harness increased over time. A recommendation is that if you want to learn how to position your body correctly in an upright posture by activating the back, core and shoulder muscles an elastic support harness is a useful tool for this. It is important to state in the instruction manual that the harness should be used a number of times each week for 1-2 hours for at least one month to achieve posture learning effects.