The Seat of the Problem
I consult with many companies about ergonomics. Ergonomics is the practice of getting the workstation to fit the worker comfortable. Paying attention to how you are positioned at work is extremely important.
More and more people are working at home and may not have access to a trained ergonomist. Here are a few tips to remember. (My book, Life Beyond the Carpal Tunnel , reviews ergonomics issues in more depth.)
For those of us who spend a long time in sedentary occupations, a chair is a very important investment. Many chairs do not support the curve of the lumbar spine for those who like to sit upright and those who slouch back. Slouching can produce a C-shape in the lower back that is not healthy for the spine. Another key area is the thoracic spine (the part of the spine between the shoulder blades). The muscles in this region can easily get overstretched if the shoulders are rounded forward. Often chair backs curve inwards and force shoulders into this position. A better idea is to have support of the spine through the thoracic region and allow the shoulders to fall backwards from there. It should almost feel as though you are resting on a big exercise ball.
The chair is a key component to workstation comfort. People sit differently. The chair manufacturer, Keilhauer, noticed this principle and a recent study by the University of Waterloo kinesiology department has confirmed that more women prefer to sit forward in front of their sitbones and a higher percentage of men like to sit behind their sit bones.3 (The sit bones are part of the pelvic bones and they are at the base of you buttocks, close to the seat when you sit.)
The chair which was designed based on these principles is called SGUIG by Keilhauer. Both men and women find it comfortable to sit in because it will support the lumbar curve when you sit upright or when you slouch.
Another advantage of this chair is the way it supports your upper back. If you lean back in the chair in the reclining position, there is support between the shoulder blades and a stretch for the front of your shoulders. This helps to discourage rounding the shoulders forward into a slouched position.
