Human health plays a crucial role in workplace productivity. For example, studies have proven over and again that ergonomic seating and desking solutions that offer specific types of support to the human body have a measurable impact on improved productivity and employee morale.
If your workplace continues the way it is, your body may eventually suffer the adverse effects of prolonged sitting or repetitive movements. One way to prevent pain and discomfort in your body while working is with an ergonomic workstation.
Designers create ergonomic products to maximize safety while in use. They are essential for all industries, but they're especially important in offices because of the potential risks of poor posture and physical environment.
In this post, we discuss how to achieve an ergonomic workplace with suggested wellness tips, how to correct your sitting posture, and how to upgrade your workstation with a selection of ergonomic products.
Workplace Wellness Tips
The awareness of mental and physical wellbeing has never been more important. Although we might take care of ourselves outside of the office, it's crucial that we keep ourselves healthy while at our workplace too. Just as we warm-up at the gym or stretch before yoga, movement is equally important in your office life as well.
A recent survey found that 74% of people with an office job have pain at least a few times a week, and 10% experience pain all day long. According to the study, none of them did exercises at their desk. This highlights the fact that exercise is one of the most beneficial things you can do to improve your strength, posture, mobility, and longevity of your career.
There are some exercises you can do from your desk that will allow you to gain the positive benefits of exercise still while also decreasing your pain or risk of pain that you experience in the workplace.
Desk Exercises
Five exercises you can do at your desk:
- Squats to your chair
- Push-ups
- Planks
- Desk dips
- Marching in your chair
Get Your Office Posture Right
We usually don't think about our posture, but there is evidence that sitting tends to reflect our mental and emotional state. In addition, some studies suggest that practicing a good posture does positively impact our confidence, energy levels, productivity, memory and even alleviating mild to moderate depression.
So, How Should You Sit Properly at Your Desk?
Before you start your workday, you should ask yourself the following questions:
- Are my eyes in line with my screen?
- Is my mouse, keyboard, and water bottle within arm's reach?
- Is my keyboard adjusted to assure maximum comfort for my wrists, shoulders, and neck?
If you can't answer those questions, you need to consider upgrading to an ergonomic workstation. We'll get to that later, but in the meantime, here's how you should align each of your body parts while sitting at your desk.
Back
We want to avoid spinal stress. Therefore you should try to sit upright, making sure that your upper back is straight and your lower back curves into the shape of the chair. You can use a cushion or backrest to provide proper spinal support.
Arms
When your arms are extended or stretched forward, you are potentially losing the strength in your upper back, which results in shoulder and upper back pain. To avoid this, keep your arms at a 90-degree angle and in a comfortable resting position. Your chair's armrest should be adjusted correctly to facilitate this position.
Legs and Feet
Our harmful sedentary lifestyle comes with numerous problems. However, you can make this even worse with the position of your legs. If you have your legs crossed while reading this, uncross them immediately. This position can seriously decrease the necessary amount of blood flow to run through your body.
Do you recognize that tingly feeling in your legs and toes? That's because you cross your legs. Try to position your upper legs at a 90-degree angle from your body. A footrest might help you obtain this position better.
What Ergonomic Products Should You Consider for Your Workplace?
Office environments have many opportunities for workers to strain the spine into an unnatural shape. For example, hunching at a computer desk all day can force the spine into a C and strain the neck muscles.
The arms and wrists are also at risk. With workstations designed for the worker and not just for aesthetics, workdays are much more enjoyable. Work-related injuries can be reduced as the spine, neck muscles, arms, and wrists are more natural. Here are six ergonomic products we highly suggest.
Standing Desk
Standing desks could just be the answer to our office aches and pains. However, just like sitting in one position for a prolonged amount of time, standing for a long time is also harmful. But it's certainly beneficial to mix up your workplace positions. Take a read of our FAQ post for treadmill and standing desks for more information.
Ergonomic Keyboard
A keyboard that locks in place will avoid you overstretching your arms to reach the keys. Do your wrists sometimes feel a slight burn at the end of the day? It could be that they've been resting on hardwood all day and haven't been protected. Having a wrist rest (bit of a tongue twister) will increase comfort and provide the ergonomic support they deserve.
Monitor Arms
Monitor arms are perfect for a smaller workplace or if you are sharing desks. They allow you to easily adjust your monitor for a personalized fit while maximizing space and comfort.
Footrest
As we mentioned earlier, a footrest is a great way to introduce more comfort to your workplace. It also allows you to sit back into your chair and remove any tension from your lower back and upper legs.
Backrest
If your chair doesn't have an ergonomic backrest, it's worth getting one. A backrest should be adjustable so you can position it to feel the most comfortable for specific tasks. Also, look for a locking mechanism that holds the backrest in place so that your back isn't leaning backward.
Laptop Stand
A laptop stand is incredibly useful if you are coming out of your office chair for the first time today and looking for a place to work while standing up. But, unfortunately, we all differ in height, and standing desks aren't one size fits all.
This is where a laptop stand will come in handy. You can adjust the stand so that it allows you to have your arms at a 90-degree angle and have your eyesight in line with the main part of the screen you focus on most.
Let Us Help You
Cubiture doesn't just sell ergonomic office furniture. We help you design and create an efficient, comfortable, beautiful, and ergonomic workspace. With creative, attractive, and organized workstations, your office can look as good as your workers feel.
Contact us today to look through our catalog of ergonomic office furniture and accessories.