What makes a good office chair?
If you’re like most people, when you think of buying new office furniture, like office desks and filing cabinets, you are probably thinking of cost and style. You will want a sleek design that doesn’t cost you an arm and a leg, and you want something that will be efficient and save office space if it can. Many people, however, do not consider what the most important thing in office furniture is arguably: ergonomics. Ergonomics is how a product, in this case your office chair, office desks, filing cabinets, etc, conforms to your body’s natural resting positions. An example of ergonomics in the workplace is the keyboard wrist rest, a thin strip of cushion or gel that you put in front of your computer’s keyboard so that your wrists may rest on it while you type. This allows your hands to be in a natural and healthy position while doing a work activity that takes up a large amount of your day. Without it, you may be putting your wrist out of alignment with your hand, which can lead to a kind of carpel tunnel syndrome from the unhealthy repetitive movements.
The start of ergonomics in the office is undoubtedly the office chair. The office chair determines many of the crucial factors in your posture, including the position of your head, neck, shoulders, back, and legs. If you’ve been working in the office for even a short amount of time, you’ve probably experienced a fair bit of neck and shoulder pain. Pay attention to how you sit and examine the chair you usually use.
When it’s time for your office to update its new office furniture or to buy new furniture as the company expands, consider the most ergonomic office chair within your budget. You will want to spend more money per office chair than on conference or lunch room chairs, which will not be sat in nearly as much as the employee desk chairs. A good office chair will encourage your head, neck, and back to be in a natural, non-stressful, and relaxing position. If you sit in your office chair, do your feet touch the ground? If not, you will need to lower it, as not having the support of your feet on the ground will place stress on your lower back to compensate. If your office chair cannot lower enough, you need a new one. Do your office chairs have adjustable backs and seats? These are essential components of an office chair. In short, a good office chair can be adjusted to fit your body shape and size.
After the office chair, office desks are the next important item. The desk must also accommodate your body. If the size of your desk makes you strain upwards or downwards in order to read a computer screen or a book, its height needs to be adjusted to prevent muscle strain in the neck, shoulders, and back. When buying new office furniture, opt for office desks that have adjustable heights. If you cannot afford to buy new office desks or simply need to make your existing furniture more ergonomic, either place wooden blocks or saw off the legs of the desk to accommodate the height of its user. A desk’s height should be such that when the person sits at it; his or her elbows are at a 90 degree angle when hands are rested on the keyboard or desk.