Manspreading Might Be Good For You
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I’m not sure who first told me that ladies always sit with their legs together. It could be that I just picked it up from the herd, since I’m not sure I saw a single woman sit with her legs open until I left my tiny Southern hometown for college. But now sitting like a lady is so deeply ingrained that my legs automatically lock together at the knee every time I take a seat. According to at least one doctor, the odd shooting pain I sometimes feel in my hips for seemingly no reason is a direct result of three decades of sitting politely.
Orthopedic surgeon Barbara Bergin realized her bursitis symptoms—hip pains caused by an inflammation of the fluid-filled sacs cushioning joints and soft tissue—eased when she opened her legs while seated. As a result, she began recommending “sit like a man” or S.L.A.M. to her patients. She says that no matter what your granny tells you about real ladies keeping their legs closed, women’s bodies weren’t made to be constantly crossed at the knee or the ankle: