Why Is Ergonomic Furniture Important For My Workspace?
If you frequently spend much of your day working at a desk from home or in a shared office space, it’s highly likely you’ve experienced some back pain, tension headaches, or chronic aches and strains over the years. The World Health Organisation identifies majority sedentary lifestyles – which are defined, in part, by those who spend long periods seated due to office working – as one of the primary causes of many common ailments, alongside more serious and chronic health concerns such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, increased risk of colon cancer, high blood pressure, osteoporosis, lipid disorders, depression, and anxiety. Given the very real threat to our physical and mental health, finding solutions to introduce more movement and physical support into our daily lives is essential.
The main culprit to exacerbate the ailments of a sedentary lifestyle for office workers is poor quality, unsupportive office furniture. Whilst we may have overlooked our office furniture in years past, we now know that ergonomic support office furniture with greater consideration for our posture and musculature is essential for long term body health, and greater productivity and focus at work.
At Flexispot, we know customers can feel overwhelmed and nervous when looking into their first ergonomic office setup – but don’t worry! Finding furniture that works for you and your health doesn’t have to be as daunting as it first appears, and we’re here to help. Let’s take a look at the basics to consider in an ergonomic office setup, such a correct chair height, neck and back alignment, equipment spacing, good desk posture, and workplace flexibility, and the products that can help you achieve this with minimal effort.
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Desktops
As the centrepiece of any office space, your desk needs to be fit for purpose, and suited to you. Ample desktop space, the right height, and plenty of drawers for storage may be the first things that come to mind as important things to consider. However, there’s a little more to it.
Alongside ample desktop space for your paperwork, phone, monitor, and keyboard, you need to ensure they are positioned at the correct angle and height to avoid neck or eye strain, or over-reaching. While these may feel like inconsequential actions in your workday, if items are positioned incorrectly, more serious complaints and ailments can develop overtime.
It’s recommended to place your monitor approximately an arm’s length away, with the top of the screen slightly below eye level. Your monitor should be directly behind the keyboard, with the brightest light source in your office placed just to the side of your monitor. Whilst typing, your wrists should lie flat across your desktop, with upper arms close to your body and hands slightly below the level of your elbows. When it comes to storage, keep things orderly and close to hand with storage solutions that work for you, making the most of desktop layout.
Hybrid and Standing Desks
As we explored above, introducing more activity to your working day is also highly important. Alongside a well-positioned desktop space, a hybrid height adjustable or standing desk can allow you to switch between working a seated position to working in a standing position, whilst maintaining a suitable posture and level working space. Many standing desks, such as the Flexispot Active standing desk EQ5, also include sit-stand reminders and height presets to ensure increased workplace activity remains consistent with minimal fuss.
Ergonomic Office Chair
An ergonomic office chair with the right support for you is essential to remaining comfortable, supported, and focused throughout your day. There are plenty of options available on the market – from wobble stools that ensure full use of your abdominal muscles throughout the day which leads to greater activity, stronger muscle health, and better focus – to full support chairs with full height adjustment adaptation, adaptable arm and headrests, and complex back and posture support.
For newcomers to ergonomic office chairs, we’d recommend something with full back support the supports your spinal curves whilst helping you maintain a comfortable and healthy posture to work from. Our FlexiChair Back Support BS1 office chair offers integrated lumbar support, a fully adjustable seat and headrest, and a breadth of height and seat angle adjustments between 44 and 53cm in the seat height, and 115cm and 124cm in the headrest.
When adjusting your ergonomic office chair, ensure that your height setting allows you to rest your feet flat on the floor, with thighs remaining parallel to the floor. Your armrest height should allow your arms to rest gently with shoulders relaxed, with the headrest supporting your neck gently at the base of your skull.
Standing Pad
When incorporating periods of standing in your workday, it’s important to maintain good standing support. An anti-fatigue mat can offer extra cushioned support when standing, taking the strain off your legs and minimising pain and fatigue in the feet.
