Correctly adjust office chairs and desks

The right attitude: if you work many hours sitting down, you would do well to adapt your office chair rather than adapt to a chair in order to maintain your health.

Adjusting office chairs and desks ergonomically.

The right adjustment: if you work many hours in a seated position, you would do well to adjust your office chair rather than adapt to a chair in order to maintain your health. When work ergonomics are not optimal, muscle tension, fatigue and back problems follow. Modern office chairs offer many ways to properly adjust the backrest, seat depth, headrest and armrest. It's a good idea to have room for an additional ergonomic stool, such as the Wilkhahn Stitz, or an exercise ball, so that the working position can be changed in between. Modern height-adjustable sit-stand desks such as the Vitra Hack, the Vitra Tyde and the USM Haller Kitos M also offer the option of adjusting the height to suit their owner, both sitting and standing.

Adjusting office chairs correctly
Even a good office chair needs to be adjusted properly. Good office chairs are designed with the human anatomy in mind. The ergonomic office chair protects health, especially during continuous desk activity. The office chair must stand securely, so in addition to ergonomic adjustability, quality workmanship is also a quality feature. The office chair should preserve the natural curvature of the back. The spine is individually curved in the neck and lumbar region, these curvatures provide the necessary elasticity and mobility of the back. The backrest supports the middle and lower back. A springy backrest does not really support the back. Sitting for long periods of time and an incorrect sitting posture can lead to disc wear, herniated discs or shooting-in low back pain (lumbago).

The optimal sitting position for the body

The office chair should be slightly concave so you don't sink in, and wide enough for you to sit comfortably. The correct seat depth occurs when most of your thighs fit on the seat. If the distance to the knee is greater than the width of four fingers, the seat is too small; in turn, however, the seat should not reach the back of the knee so that blood circulation is not disturbed. The seat height should be adjusted according to the lengths of the lower legs, taking into account the heels of the shoes, so that there is good contact with the floor. Modern office chairs can be optimally adjusted to your individual size. In the optimum setting, the hip is positioned in relation to the knee so that the upper and lower legs form an angle of more than 90 degrees. The seat height adjustment feature makes it easy to set this position on modern office chairs.

The backrest

The backrest can also be adjusted individually, the lumbar support serves to stabilize the lumbar spine and should be located in the area of the so-called belt line. The backrest should support the spine in the lower and middle areas, as well as be adjustable forward, backward, upward and downward, so that you can frequently vary your working position and remain mobile.

The headrest of the office chair

Have you chosen an office chair with a headrest? A headrest or neckrest must be precisely adjusted to the cervical spine - nothing feels more uncomfortable than a misalignment in this area. The neck support should be located in the transition between the back of the head and the upper cervical spine or act as a support directly on the head.

The armrests

The correct position of the armrests provides relaxation in the shoulder and neck area. To keep you relaxed, the height of the armrests should be based on the length of the upper arms. The arms should form an angle of at least 90 degrees. If the weight of the arms pulls on the shoulder joints, the armrests are too low; if the shoulders are pushed up, they are too high.

The desk

The height and depth of the desk are important. Height-adjustable office desks also allow you to work while sitting or standing. When considering the depth of the desk, keep in mind that the fingers should be on the keyboard and the forearms should rest completely on the desk to avoid shoulder pain. With conventional desks, the height can not be adjusted, here you can only influence the ergonomics through the office chair. If you are taller than average, you can raise the height of the office desk with furniture raisers or furniture feet or by using furniture castors.

Working while sitting

Working in a seated position is one-sided - even the best office chair and the best work desk cannot hide this fact. To prevent fatigue, swelling and congestion, it is advisable to stand up occasionally. Going to the printer or the coffee kitchen also maintains the ability to concentrate. Light gymnastic exercises are not noticeable at all, move your fingers perhaps with a hedgehog ball while talking on the phone and your feet by tightening and stretching your toes. Shrug your shoulders or move your shoulders back and forth, stretching and straightening. If you are unobserved, they perform some hip circles, this brings new momentum.


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