Guidance recommends brief movement breaks every 20 to 30 minutes
Australian desk-based workers spend an average of 76% of the workday sitting, according to BeUpstanding, a workplace program developed at The University of Queensland. Across a standard eight-hour day, that adds up to more than six hours in a chair.
That figure sits well above ergonomics advice cited by Sihoo Australia. Cornell University researchers recommend workers stand and move for one to two minutes after every 20 to 30 minutes of seated work. The aim is to break up long stretches of sitting, not to replace normal meal or rest breaks.
Sihoo Australia said many office workers have never been told that guidance. The company is urging workers to think less about holding one rigid position and more about changing position regularly during the day.
Its research institute identified eight different sitting postures that office workers shift between over the course of a workday. To examine those changes, it used a physiological feedback system that gathered spinal and muscle pressure data, along with a motion feedback system that tracked posture paths through dynamic balance measures.
Lacson said the company found workers move between postures many times in a normal day. In its view, the goal is not to hold one fixed pose but to support the body across the positions it naturally adopts.
Three free workstation adjustments
Before buying new equipment, Sihoo Australia recommends three no-cost changes. Workers should set seat height so their feet rest flat on the floor, use the backrest to support the lower back, and add short movement breaks before discomfort begins.
The company said the 20 to 30 minute rule works best as a routine rather than a strict physiological cut-off. As a result, a simple prompt to stand, stretch or shift position can be a practical workplace measure that costs nothing and aligns with published ergonomics research.
Sihoo Australia issued the advice from South Granville, NSW, on 17 September 2026.
