Height varies according to which way round you put the bench (each leg is asymmetrical), with the curved legs offering variation of the angle. The padding is great and it’s sturdy yet incredibly lightweight.

I’m 5’4″ and ordered the medium-large, which works fine for me – I could probably have sized down one too, but it’s so adjustable that the size isn’t too important. It feels good to be off my chair and onto the floor, and without the nagging mid-back ache I always used to experience!

I paid for shipping to the UK but it’s free within the US. Worth it for me, as the adjustability meant it would hopefully be a no-brainer for mail order as there’s nowhere near to me to go and actually try benches out first.

I’ll stick to my stool, and I’ll check out the pages suggested for a travel bench. That seems like an excellent idea.

thanks for this useful information, and I’m going to spend some time exploring your site.

I sit on a stool: a two-legged “seiza bench” that allows me to kneel comfortably. I’ve been stiff since I was a young child, and even when I had a period of doing yoga daily for years, I never got to the point where I could sit comfortably cross-legged. I don’t actually see any good reason, at this point, to pursue sitting cross-legged. I have better things to do with my time and energy. The same may be true for yourself.

I use cushions when I have to, and I can do so comfortably, but I prefer my trusty stool since it’s very reliable (always at the same height and angle). It’s handy to be able to use cushions when my stool isn’t at hand; probably you’re uncomfortable because you’re sitting too low, and need to have more cushions. I’m just guessing, of course, since I haven’t seen you sitting.

For travel purposes, you might want to make or buy a seiza bench — especially one that folds for easier carrying. In our own store we have a very lightweight but comfortable two-part meditation bench. It only has one leg, but your own legs provide ample stability. We also have some two-legged versions as well. They’re a bit heavier, but they do feel very stable indeed. Of course ours isn’t the only store around, and there are plenty of other places where you can get hold of a meditation bench.

I love your site, glad I found it.
I have been meditating for about 5 weeks and really “enjoying” it, if such word can be used – it’s hard work, after all.
I have been using a stool that my husband got made by a sculptor in Senegal, according to his specs, from a single block of wood. It’s a great design, sort of mushroom-like, with a single foot (the base slightly at an angle for right posture), and a little seat-base, just enough for the “cheeks” to fit. I love it, it allows me to sit kneeling with feet each side of the stool foot. I could stay like that for ever.
But I decided to give the cushion a try, as I thought it would be easier to travel with a zafu than that wood stool. My experience after 2 times has been hard, legs falling asleep, my mind just gasping and grasping, tough 30 minutes.
So I wonder if there is any true benefit to using a cushion vs. a stool like mine. I feel that it’s going to take me a long time to get used to the crossed-legged posture, when all the while I could be progressing better in my meditation with that stool. For traveling, I’d have to use a chair: I read above that it’s not the best, but what’s my choice? I don’t want to carry that stool in a suitcase, it weighs, and I could lose it.
Just wondering about comments: I just saw a documentary on buddhist monks, and they all sit cross-legged, but probably have been doing so since… age 5 or 10!
Thank you!

You’re very welcome. When I set up this site I had people like you in mind.

I’d encourage you not to let fear of “doing it wrong” prevent you from practicing. If your intension is to “cease to do evil, learn to do good, purify the heart” (this is “Buddhism in a nutshell” — a verse from the Dhammapada) just plunge in! There’s no “Buddhist God” who is watching in order to punish your transgressions. Let go of fear, and practice with sincerity and kindness. Things will sort themselves out if you practice in this way.