A favourite subject of ours because it fuses two other interests: design and health. To us, ergonomic products often feel like gadgets which is a boon since we love our toys!
We spent most of our youth desk-bound so it made sense that we’d upgrade the equipment we used most often. Our office chair was the focus of many revisions.
In the beginning, our families outfitted us with budget foldout chairs. Seat and back rest, that’s as no frills as it gets. Moving up from there it was swivel chair on wheels with lumbar support. Next was budget executive chair with high back rest, thicker cushions and arm rests.
In a traditional seat we tended to slouch a lot, so to rectify that we gave kneeling chairs an attempt. Those were very harsh on the knees despite the padding. Furthermore, they had the same major shortcoming as using an exercise (gym) ball. Without a backrest they put significant strain on the core to stabilise the body. Without a strong core, fatigue set in fast and disrupted our concentration. Sitting sessions became limited to 20 minutes which was too short a window to make inroads on any activity.
Eventually, we decided to get it right and simply googled “best office chair”. Ultimately, we went with the Herman Miller Aeron Chair. It costs a fair bit but since we sit a great deal it may as well be on a good chair that lasts, is configurable and protects our bodies through ergonomic design.
The Aeron has swivelling, gas lift, reclining, forward tilt, adjustable arm rests, mesh seat and back rest, adjustable lumbar support, and comes in three sizes.
Swivel and gas lift are ubiquitous features that allow us to set the right height. What was more important to us were the other features. The reclining allows us to stretch out while remaining supported, eliminating our tendency to slouch. The forward tilting mitigates the pressure on our hamstrings when we lean forward into our desk to type, the mesh seat and backrest prevents heat build up. Lastly, the option to choose a size means the seat closely matches our height and build. Having this sizing option increases the efficacy of adjustments to the armrest and lumbar support, tuning the chair to further cradle our body. Giving the chair a highly customised touch.
Aside from the Aeron, we’ve also given the Humanscale Freedom Headrest chair some attention. The design of the Freedom chair is interesting in that they’ve tried to do away with levers, buttons and knobs for adjustment. In fact, there are only two adjustments, one for the backrest height and another to move the seat-pan forward or back. The headrest slides up and down and the armrests can be lifted up and down freely and “catch” into position. The chair reclines such that the headrest keeps our head facing the screen (or desk) instead of tilting back as we recline to face the ceiling.
While the Freedom chair provided comfortable seating, we found it more suitable for lounging. As a task chair it didn’t support our bodies with as much precision as the Aeron.
Incidentally, the Aeron is a very popular product that we’ve spotted in many television shows and movies. On the Big Bang Theory, Sheldon Cooper owns a blue one in his apartment. It is also very common in corporate offices and meeting rooms the world over. However, while corporations furnish their meeting rooms with generically sized chairs, personal users have the option to choose a size to suit.
Since the Aeron, we haven’t given chair ergonomics a second thought.
Computer Nerds
Internet surfing, computer gaming, desk-bound childhood. You guessed it, we’re computer nerds!
Growing up poor and ignorant, we focused solely on function. Keyboards and mice were our tools. So our priorities ran strictly to: more buttons, more features, more speed. When ergonomic gear entered the picture, they took the form of strange keyboard layouts and trackball mice designed to maintain neutral wrist posture and provide relief for carpal tunnel sufferers. Without such affliction, we sought and found no performance benefit so we dismissed them as gimmicks.
In the workforce, occupational health initiatives brought repetitive strain injury to our attention. Despite ergonomic design functioning well as preventative measures, it still seemed to us like an exercise indulging in minor comforts. However, as our bodies aged they stiffened and ached. We noticed that our chairs provided inadequate support, launching the exhaustive search that ended with the Aeron. Ultimately, we configured the chair to our satisfaction, only to discover that the desk and monitor weren’t the right height.
For the longest time, we assumed that manufacturers set desks at a standard fixed height. So we never considered such adjustment an option. We made a similar assumption about the adjustment range of monitors, believing the limits extended no further than the as-provided monitor stand allowed.
Setting the monitor at the right height improves the posture of the neck, while correcting the desk height, together with proper placement of the mouse and keyboard minimises strain on the shoulders and arms. For a quick once-off session, no harm comes of bad posture. On the other hand, regular, daily sessions an hour or more sporting bad posture takes a toll.
Bad posture is pernicious as we discovered much later on. On the surface, our bodies experienced no pain or impairment. However, efforts to start weight training revealed postural imbalances and strength deficits that impaired our advancement. These impairments also made us prone to training injury.
Though it doesn’t seem it, working at a desk is (sort of) a physical activity. Albeit one with a resting heart rate and next to no mobility. Kind of like a mild but long term isometric exercise. In which case, bad posture is effectively improper exercise execution. Damaging us slowly a day at a time without noticeable pain. Pain is what triggers our awareness and prompts corrective action. Without the pain, we don’t notice the growing injury until it crosses the severity threshold. At which point the damage is irreversible.
Did we mention how much we like ergonomics?