Cross-legged Sitting For Hours Or Not?

[Purple Jay]

Is it worth it to train myself to be able to sit in some kind of cross-legged posture (like for example lotus position) for a longer period of time (as in several hours) or should I simply sit in a chair with my feet flat on the ground for the rest of my life?

I currently meditate more than 1 hour a day, and I plan to do much more in the future, and I find it impossible to do a non-stop strong determination sitting in any cross-legged position. The blood stops flowing and my legs inevitably fall asleep so that I can't sit for more than 30-40 minutes!  Is this something that will ever disappear or are you simply "not meant" to meditate cross-legged for more than 30-40 minutes?

And what if one meditates much more than me - say 4-8 hours in one day - is it even possible/healthy to sit cross-legged for that long? If it is possible, is it worth doing? Is it preferable to "feet-flat-on-the-ground" or is it worse. Should one switch between the two with a 50/50 split?

Any kind of experience, wisdom or medical knowledge would be much appreciated. Have a wonderful day!

Edited May 17, 2017 by Purple Jay

[Max_V]

Well, I have had this problem too. Legs falling asleep which was pretty uncomfortable.

I switched to burmese position. Made it more comfortable with a couple pillows and I was ready for some hardcore meditation!

It's a pretty easy posture, you should look into it

[Prabhaker]

@Purple Jay

The posture should be steady and should be very, very blissful, comfortable. So never try to distort your body, and never try to achieve postures which are uncomfortable.

   For the Westerners, sitting on the ground, sitting in padmasan, lotus posture, is difficult; their bodies have not been trained for it.

    If you can be steady and comfortable in a chair, it is perfectly okay – no need to try a lotus posture and force your body unnecessarily.

   A posture should be such that you can forget your body. What is comfort? When you forget your body, you are comfortable. When you are reminded continuously of the body, you are uncomfortable. So whether you sit in a chair or you sit on the ground, that’s not the point.

    Whenever a posture is comfortable it is bound to be steady. You fidget if the posture is uncomfortable.

[Seeker_of_truth]

@Purple Jay If you can sit in a chair comfortably without falling asleep then I think its ok.

If you are considering sitting on the ground, it seems you can make your legs not fall asleep. For example I sit in siddhasana (the accomplished pose) in which I find that if I sit properly, my legs won't fall asleep (without any cushioning), the only problem that I face with that is after I finish the meditation, if I stretch my legs my right knee will hurt for 20-30 seconds probably due to my lack of flexibility. I've found no problem during the meditation. I just started sitting in the posture for 3 weeks, I think with time my mastery over this posture will increase.

Padmasana (the lotus pose) and siddhasana (The accomplished pose) are considered ideal postures for meditation in hatha yoga as both of these postures keep your back straight so that you won't fall asleep. Padmasana is the best but if you can't do that then try siddhasana. With any yogasana you need time to master it. 

It seems there are some benefits in sitting in certain asanas. I don't know if its true but I've just decided to give it a try and see if it works. Here you can find more information about what yogasanas does to you according to sadhguru : 

 

[Seeker_of_truth]

If you are planning to train yourselves to sit in cross-legged postures then these exercises might help :

 

I suggest you to do these exercises before every cross-legged meditation session as this will serve like a warm-up and thus will help you to sit comfortably very easily.

Edited May 17, 2017 by Seeker_of_truth
Adding more information