The Design of Ergonomic Chairs Does Make a Difference To Comfort-See How It Matters…
Ergonomic chairs are designed by engineers and designers who study how the body moves and what parts of the body are most affected when sitting in poorly designed chairs. When choosing your office chair, you’ll need to take several factors into consideration.
Finding an ergonomic chair that fits your needs is essential to your success. We’ve come up with a list of 4 important factors you’ll need to consider when choosing a chair that suits your needs for your home office.
Use this list to help you decide which chair is right for you:
Back Support:
One of the chief concerns in an office chair is the amount of support it gives to your back. A strong chair will support your back while being soft and firm at the same time. Get a chair with lower back support, adjusted so your back is firmly against this support.
Adjustable Back:
It isn’t enough to have a strong yet flexible back with good padding. Since everyone is different, you want your chair to have adjustable back support so you can change it to suit your needs. Some chairs have body conforming fabrics or padding that do this automatically, while others offer manual adjustment.
Either way, you’ll have to decide which is better for you. To have a productive day at the office you must be able to focus on work, not on alleviating pain from an ill-adjusted chair. With a good chair you don’t have this problem.
Movement:
You’ve probably had the uncomfortable experience of leaning back in a chair when all of a sudden it feels as if you are going to tip over backwards. A properly designed chair will have smooth, easy movements instead of quick, jerky ones. Your chair needs to feel as if its movements are effortless. A chair that moves too easily or not easily enough will cause many problems down the road.
Adjustable Height:
Sitting at the wrong height when typing is the leading cause of wrist strain or other similar office problems. A chair that can easily adjust its height so you can shift between workstation heights is key.
Adjust your chair first so that when you sit at your desk you’re not reaching up or down. By having your arms and wrists level it reduces strain and goes a long ways towards preventing symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome. It should also be adjusted to where your feet are firmly on the floor.
Being able to sit comfortably, with your hands on the desk and legs roughly parallel to the floor reduces physical strain. Sitting in an improperly adjusted chair for a half day can result in shoulder or arm strain, tired legs, an achy back, neck tension and headaches.
Look at the center of your monitor – you should be able to do this looking straight forward. Looking off to one side increases strain on your neck and difficulties in seeing the screen increases eye strain.
Once your chair is adjusted then adjust your keyboard tray in line with the monitor. Lower the keyboard tray nearly to your lap with arms and shoulders in a comfortable position, supported by the arm rests on your chair. If you need to adjust the tray so that the closest edge to you is slightly higher then the other side of the keyboard do so…making sure that your wrists are straight, not bent up or down.
Don’t overlook things like the armrests, size of chair, seat tilt, wheels and material. While cloth will take periodic cleaning if you live in a warm part of the country vinyl or other material might be very uncomfortable. A seat space that is not too large or small is ideal, with enough padding that is comfortable to sit in. Find one of a fabric that you like.
While the color is the last thing to look at, in view of health and comfort, some places allow for a variety of colors. Make sure your chair is ANSI/BIFMA compliant for safety. Get a good chair and a properly sized desk. Many things in your office you can make do with substitutes but this is one area to not compromise on.
Well the fact is, most people who work-at-home spend a lot longer sitting in a chair they don’t really like, and they do it day after day. Imagine if you could spend all day in a seat you love. I mean one you really love.
The range of ergonomic chairs out there is immense, and you need to be able to find one that is designed to not only be comfortable, but stylish, beautiful and tailored for your specific needs.
Choose the right office chair for you. Ergonomic chairs can make your home office a happier, healthier, more productive place to work.
If I’ve learned one thing in my years working at home, it’s this: your chair is your throne. The single most important decision you can make when you work at home is selecting a good office chair.
The right chair is your key to home office happiness and success.