Guest post by Tracy Hartley, PT, DPT from A Doctor and a Nurse
For those of you that spend most of your day at a desk in front of a monitor, you have probably heard about and thought about ergonomics. Ergonomics sounds familiar to many people working in the office environment who sit in front of a computer for hours on end. But to most, ergonomics is also a mystery that will get more attention when ALL of our work is completed.
Literally, the term ergonomics means “work within natural laws.” For our purpose we will use the following updated version, “the applied science of equipment design, as for the workplace, intended to maximize productivity by reducing operator fatigue and discomfort.” The importance of ergonomics goes beyond productivity and fatigue as its role in preventing or reversing chronic and overuse injuries is well documented and established. Even though desk ergonomics may be mysterious with a lot of science and research thrown into the equation, the basics of desk ergonomics can be summed up in 3 easy steps.
- Seat height needs to be at a level that your feet rest flat on the floor while your thighs maintain a resting position with equal weight distributed along the entire backside.
- Desk height needs to be at a level to allow you to work with your elbows bent around 90 degrees while your trunk maintains a nice straight upright posture.
- Monitor height must allow you to maintain all of the postures above while positioning your head so your line of sight to the center of the monitor is just slightly downhill.
Start with chair height and then adjust desk height for optimal positioning. Finally, adjust the height of the monitor to allow that slightly downhill line of sight. See, desk ergonomics can be as easy as 1, 2, 3! What are you waiting for?
Get ergonomic and carry yourself well with these pro tips to posture in the office. Working will feel less achy in no time at all!
Read more from A Doctor and a Nurse.
Do you have proper posture and desk set-up at your work? Have you ever taken the time to learn about desk ergonomics? Let’s chat below!
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