When saddle-sitting riding-style, spinal posture is automatically correct and there is usually no need for a backrest. The pelvis is in an ideal upright position, which makes keeping your back straight as easy as if you were standing or walking. We do not need any backrest when we are standing either.
In a conventional chair with a backrest, the thighs and upper body form a tight 90-degree angle, which rotates the pelvis backwards. This is what rounds the back and causes it to slump, leading to muscle fatigue and back strain. Traditional “ergonomic” chairs attempt to counteract the slumping by pushing into your lumbar curve with a backrest. This support strategy frequently fails.
We generally discourage the use of backrests on saddle seats, both because they can restrict normal body movement, and because they can distort the balanced perch posture on a saddle. However, a backrest can be helpful in cases where the sitter has impaired balance, motor control, or weakness (e.g., cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, stroke, muscular atrophy, etc.), or in cases where the task is static, precise, and prolonged (e.g., microsurgery or dental procedures lasting hours).
Take care not to position the backrest so far forward that it pushes you onto the front pommel of the seat. That hurts. In a saddle Seat there should be no pressure from a backrest pushing into your back.
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