Sitting Gets Complicated

I have been meditating somewhat regularly for a couple years now (and sporadically before that). I say "somewhat" because I always take some periods of time off and then get back into it.

One of the things I am experimenting with right now is how to sit during meditation. For more than a year I'd been sitting cross-legged (sometimes half lotus), which has precipitated a recent meditation break. My hips and back were not loving the rotation.

Now that I've reclaimed my meditation practice, I am trying out different sitting styles. During my morning meditation I am sitting in rock pose with my legs under me, sitting on my heels. I am sitting on a stack of blocks to reduce the stress on my knees. I do find this pose lets my back relax since it tips my pelvis slightly.

During my mid day meditation I am sitting in cobbler's pose with the soles of my feet together. Instead of keeping them close to my body, I leave them out further. While this is still rotation of the hips, it is much gentler than cross legged. And I keep my spine up for the first half and then bend down over my feet for the last half.

During my evening meditation I am sitting with my back somewhat supported on the wall and my legs straight out, knees bent over a bolster. This is great for my back but I find the wall uncomfortable so I'm going to try a small pillow between my back and the wall.

I find it is a fine balance between wanting to challenge my body to sit during meditation but still providing it enough comfort that it doesn't become a distraction.