What are floor pillows for anyway? Are they comfy? When Covid shifted people from working in an office to working at home, more and more people opted for floor pillows. We've researched everything you need to know about floor pillows, including why keeping one handy can help your body to stay as fit as a fiddle.
Floor pillows add tasteful touches to any room. They help establish a cozy atmosphere. They are extremely comfortable, and most importantly, improve your overall well-being.
You’ve probably seen pictures of floor pillows in your favorite magazine or heard your coworker talking about how great theirs is. Maybe you think floor pillows are a cozy trend that would be fun to get in on. And while all this is true, converting from chairs to floor pillows could also be quite advantageous to your health. Please keep reading to find out what we've unearthed about the versatile floor pillow!
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Floor Pillows - Tasteful & Comfort Enhancing Decor
There are cultures around the world that chose to sit on pillows rather than chairs. Floor pillows are popular in Morocco, India, and Turkey, among other worldwide locations. For instance, Japan has a very intricate formal etiquette around floor pillows. Perhaps this has something to do with why they are tasteful. They add an elegant, wordily aesthetic to a room. Because so many cultures use them, you can find floor pillows in a variety of styles.
Click to see a Turkish style floor pillow on Amazon.
Click to see an Indian style floor pillow on Amazon.
establish a cozy atmosphere
Floor pillows are also known to help establish a cozy atmosphere in a room. Pillows are often associated with relaxation, warmth, and comfort. Having friends over for a game night? They will be impressed by your comfy decor that helps them feel right at home.
provide ample comfort
Because of the pandemic, a lot of people have been finding themselves working from home. It just so happens that most people are extremely okay with being comfortable and productive in their work-from-home lives. Floor pillows are the next step to making your day that much more comfortable. They not only provide the perfect squish for your bum, but they also give you room to adjust your position and alleviate the pressure that typically falls on the same joints while sitting in a chair. This is part of why floor pillows do wonders for your health.
cultural appeal
In Japan, sitting etiquette is called seiza, and a floor pillow is called a zabuton. They’ve been used for thousands of years, initially by emperors and monks. Today, they are utilized throughout the culture to improve posture and absorb a person's body heat while sitting on the floor. The proper way to sit on a zabuton is to approach it at a 45-degree angle, kneeling onto it, arranging your knees so they face the front of the pillow, and then comfortably resting weight on your heels with both feet tucked under you.
Zabutons are commonly used instead of chairs but are also used during meditation and yoga. It is popular to use them as a baby napping pad as well.
Click to see a Japnese style floor pillow on Amazon.
Floor Pillows Promote a Healthy Body
It is shocking, but Harvard Health published an article about the extreme hazards of sitting. Yes, sitting! When people sit, the body uses less glucose, which causes a higher risk for type two diabetes. But sitting can also give rise to pain by causing muscles to tighten and joints to stiffen.
This is where the floor pillow becomes extremely useful. By sitting on a large pillow, you can sit in healthier positions and switch your positions at your leisure. Even the tiniest adjustments can stretch different muscles and loosen different joints.
Sitting in a chair reduces the number of positions you can adjust your body into. It also puts a lot of pressure on hip flexors and hamstrings. This increases the chance of experiencing things like lower back pain and knee pain. Sitting in chairs can also encourage improper posture, which for many results in week abdominal muscles. Taking different positions on floor pillows can engage different parts of the muscular-skeletal system and distributes pressure throughout the body.
Sitting to Standing from the Floor Can increase your life expectancy
A well-reviewed study published by the European Society of Cardiology proved that a person’s ability to lift themselves off the floor without assistance was directly correlated to their likelihood of dying. The simple act of lowering the body to the floor and raising it back up a few times a day helps strengthen the muscular-skeletal system profoundly. You might as well maintain your strength by using floor pillows every day!
Yoga poses on your floor pillow
One simple pose that people can take on floor pillows is the yogic easy pose. This pose is essentially sitting crisscross apple sauce. The yogic pose calms the mind, strengthens the core, opens your chest for deeper breathing, improves back alignment, increases awareness, and stretches joints such as knees, ankles, and hips.
Another pose that people sitting on the floor can take advantage of is the staff pose. This is where you sit with your legs out in front of you, your toes pointed up, and your back straight. Staff pose is known to engage the quads, core, and back muscles.
Dangers of Using Floor Pillows
All of this being said, there have also been studies that have shown that sitting on the floor with poor posture and not changing positions can cause health issues to arise. Expert work-from-homers advise pulling your pillow up to a coffee table to encourage proper posture and back alignment. Setting an alarm for standing to move every so often is another great strategy to avoid muscle atrophy and pain.
How big should a floor pillow be?
How big should a floor pillow be?There is no right answer here, as obviously, pillows vary in size. The width and length of a pillow are a personal preference. Japanese floor pillows are consistently 20 to 30 inches with varying thicknesses. Other pillows can be anywhere from 20 to 55 inches wide and any length.
Some people prefer longer pillows to use as a dual-purpose day bed. Be conscientious of the material used for the floor pillow filling or stuffing. Certain pillows may flatten after several sit, resulting in less support. When buying a floor pillow, make sure to choose one that is durable and is stuffed with filling that will not compress too quickly.
Where do you store floor pillows when not in use?
You might not want your pillows to be in the way so you can easily walk through a room. But you want them within reach and easy to access. A pillow basket is recommended. Stylish baskets filled with pillows add a cozy, chic aesthetic to every room.
Click here to see an extra-large rope woven basket on Amazon.
An elegant, accessible cedar chest would also be a great way to store floor pillows. The cedar’s aromatic oils are a natural moth and insect repellent.
Click here to see this cedar chest on Amazon.
If you are putting your pillows away for long-term storage, it is best to wrap them in plastic and put them into either a plastic bin or cedar chest before tucking them away.
What's the difference between a floor pillow and a pouf?
Poufs differ from floor pillows in a variety of ways. Poufs are cylindrical. They are about a foot to a foot and a half tall. They are known for acting as an ottoman, extra chair, or stand-in side table. Poufs are meant to be versatile pieces of furniture that can satisfy many needs.
Click here to see a knit pouf on Amazon.
Floor pillows, in comparison, are meant to be used more intentionally for a healthy, cozy sit.
In Closing
Floor pillows are extremely useful. They add a tasteful, worldly touch to any room, make a room feel extra cozy, and are extremely comfortable. And most importantly, they improve your overall well-being by providing space to stretch your muscles, loses joints, and engage the muscular-skeletal system.
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