Sitting cross-legged on a slender cushion, straight back, hands thusly placed on the knees - that is the image of what meditation is meant to be. You see it in apps, books, homepage and wellness content everywhere. This image quietly convinces many people that meditation isn’t for them if they can’t sit that way. That is a myth that should be traced down, beginning with clarifying the real purpose of posture in meditation. 
Seated meditation was designed for function, not ritual. Sitting erectly keeps you awake. Reclining makes you more likely to drift off. That’s essentially the main reason. The cultures of antique practitioners who invented these sitting positions were such that floor sitting was entirely a normal day practice. it was second nature to them. Today, most people sit in chairs for many hours a day. It is like asking those hips to go and immediately turn into a pretzel into full lotus pose when one has never even done a day of running in his life. Your body isn’t conditioned for that, and forcing it leads to pain, distraction, and frustration. Meditation is meant to reduce discomfort, not create it. When your knees are shrieking and your lower back is making a protest, it is not going to be focused on your breath, but rather, on your knees and lower back. The entire idea of a stable position is that the body becomes unnoticeable, so you can focus inward without physical distraction. Any position that allows this is valid. Any job that fails to, however conventional it appears to be is not in your favor. Sitting in a chair is completely fine. Keep your feet grounded, spine straight yet relaxed, hands resting comfortably. that is an acceptable and effective meditation pose, which has no special equipment or zero flexibility requirements. Whether you lean back and get sleepy with your chair depending whether it has a back or not. Other individuals even lay a folded blanket beneath their feet in case they are short and the floor seems too distant. These are not shortcuts. They are practical adjustments that support your practice. Some find kneeling more stable than cross-legged sitting. Using a cushion under the hips reduces pressure on joints, helping maintain an upright posture comfortably. Many traditions use this position effectively. It supports both comfort and awareness. It may be worth testing out, before ruling out alternatives. Resting becomes a problem. There are structured techniques based on lying down. For many, lying down leads to drowsiness. Sleep becomes the default outcome. Fatigue makes sleep almost inevitable. Still, if sitting is painful, lying down is better than skipping meditation. Do your best to remain conscious. Set an alarm where it is necessary. Walking meditation surprises many people. It is an ancient and natural practice, and it is much more appropriate to some temperaments than stillness. The practice focuses on the sensation of movement, lifting, moving, where the foot is. It is a concrete form of awareness. For people who struggle with sitting still, this is not a lesser practice. It leads to the same awareness in a different way. In any sitting in meditation, it all boils down to two; alertness and ease. You want to stay alert while remaining relaxed. Everything else—leg position, hand placement, or location—is secondary. Experiment honestly with different positions. Find what works and what doesn’t. Then employ the ones that are working. That’s the whole formula.
Seated meditation was designed for function, not ritual. Sitting erectly keeps you awake. Reclining makes you more likely to drift off. That’s essentially the main reason. The cultures of antique practitioners who invented these sitting positions were such that floor sitting was entirely a normal day practice. it was second nature to them. Today, most people sit in chairs for many hours a day. It is like asking those hips to go and immediately turn into a pretzel into full lotus pose when one has never even done a day of running in his life. Your body isn’t conditioned for that, and forcing it leads to pain, distraction, and frustration. Meditation is meant to reduce discomfort, not create it. When your knees are shrieking and your lower back is making a protest, it is not going to be focused on your breath, but rather, on your knees and lower back. The entire idea of a stable position is that the body becomes unnoticeable, so you can focus inward without physical distraction. Any position that allows this is valid. Any job that fails to, however conventional it appears to be is not in your favor. Sitting in a chair is completely fine. Keep your feet grounded, spine straight yet relaxed, hands resting comfortably. that is an acceptable and effective meditation pose, which has no special equipment or zero flexibility requirements. Whether you lean back and get sleepy with your chair depending whether it has a back or not. Other individuals even lay a folded blanket beneath their feet in case they are short and the floor seems too distant. These are not shortcuts. They are practical adjustments that support your practice. Some find kneeling more stable than cross-legged sitting. Using a cushion under the hips reduces pressure on joints, helping maintain an upright posture comfortably. Many traditions use this position effectively. It supports both comfort and awareness. It may be worth testing out, before ruling out alternatives. Resting becomes a problem. There are structured techniques based on lying down. For many, lying down leads to drowsiness. Sleep becomes the default outcome. Fatigue makes sleep almost inevitable. Still, if sitting is painful, lying down is better than skipping meditation. Do your best to remain conscious. Set an alarm where it is necessary. Walking meditation surprises many people. It is an ancient and natural practice, and it is much more appropriate to some temperaments than stillness. The practice focuses on the sensation of movement, lifting, moving, where the foot is. It is a concrete form of awareness. For people who struggle with sitting still, this is not a lesser practice. It leads to the same awareness in a different way. In any sitting in meditation, it all boils down to two; alertness and ease. You want to stay alert while remaining relaxed. Everything else—leg position, hand placement, or location—is secondary. Experiment honestly with different positions. Find what works and what doesn’t. Then employ the ones that are working. That’s the whole formula.