The Four Best Ways to Sit at Your Computer
Posted on Feb 20th, 2007
by 
Jon
Jon
The reality of modern day information work is that most of us spend a good chunk of our time each day seated in front of a computer. I'm big on time maximization so my feeling is that if we're going to be on a computer all day why not make the best of it. The problem with poor posture is that eventually over time it leads to injury.
Part of my reason for writing this is personal. My Dad has been a computer programmer all his life and when he was in his early 40s he started having major back spasms which pretty much ended any athletic activity for him. And he is just one of many...did you know that there are over 200,000 hip replacement surgeries each year in the U.S. alone?
So if you're interested in not going down with a back/hip/whatever injury later I encourage you to continue reading...
#1 - Exercise ball - Apparently very popular with the folks at Google. It's pretty tough to slouch on an exercise ball (actually you will probably fall off). Plus it keeps you active throughout the day because you have to do a little "micro-balancing." The other thing that I like (yup, I'm a dork) is stretching while at the computer. You can actually do a pigeon pose that feels really good and loosens up your hips. The main consideration here is to make sure that your chair is the right height. There's a chart on this page that will help you choose the best ball based on your height.
#2 - Kneeling chair - I have a kneeling chair at the office and really dig it. It keeps your spine erect and is very comfortable to sit in. You definitely can slouch but if you sit on the chair properly you probably won't find yourself doing so very often. If you're going to get a kneeling chair I'd highly recommend springing the extra dough for the Tempurpedic version. Your knees will thank you for it!
#3 - Lotus position - This is a method I haven't experimented much with but would like to in the future given how good sitting cross-legged is for the hips. The major obstacle here is that you either need some sort of platform to sit on if you're going to use your regular desk or you need a desk with a lower height if you're going to sit on the floor. Having said that, I think this would be a great way to sit at your PC (especially when at home...probably not so practical for the office...).
#4 - Treadmill. OK, this isn't actually sitting...but I stumbled across a great page talking about "walking while working" and I find this kinda fascinating. We have this huge problem with obesity as a society which could largely be cured if people would walk for a half hour or hour each day. And we have all this time in front of computers reading e-mail and the like where technically we could be walking. Hmmm... I noticed that one of my favorite bloggers (Jason Calacanis) was recently talking about this and so maybe we can start a trend. Can you imagine if corporations created fitness rooms with treadmills and docking stations for peoples' laptops. That would be kinda sweet.
Anyway, I'd love to hear feedback on the ideas above as well as any other suggestions for healthy ways to sit at a computer. Feel free to post comments below or e-mail me at jon at learnoutloud dot com. Thanks!
Part of my reason for writing this is personal. My Dad has been a computer programmer all his life and when he was in his early 40s he started having major back spasms which pretty much ended any athletic activity for him. And he is just one of many...did you know that there are over 200,000 hip replacement surgeries each year in the U.S. alone?
So if you're interested in not going down with a back/hip/whatever injury later I encourage you to continue reading...
#1 - Exercise ball - Apparently very popular with the folks at Google. It's pretty tough to slouch on an exercise ball (actually you will probably fall off). Plus it keeps you active throughout the day because you have to do a little "micro-balancing." The other thing that I like (yup, I'm a dork) is stretching while at the computer. You can actually do a pigeon pose that feels really good and loosens up your hips. The main consideration here is to make sure that your chair is the right height. There's a chart on this page that will help you choose the best ball based on your height.
#2 - Kneeling chair - I have a kneeling chair at the office and really dig it. It keeps your spine erect and is very comfortable to sit in. You definitely can slouch but if you sit on the chair properly you probably won't find yourself doing so very often. If you're going to get a kneeling chair I'd highly recommend springing the extra dough for the Tempurpedic version. Your knees will thank you for it!
#3 - Lotus position - This is a method I haven't experimented much with but would like to in the future given how good sitting cross-legged is for the hips. The major obstacle here is that you either need some sort of platform to sit on if you're going to use your regular desk or you need a desk with a lower height if you're going to sit on the floor. Having said that, I think this would be a great way to sit at your PC (especially when at home...probably not so practical for the office...).
#4 - Treadmill. OK, this isn't actually sitting...but I stumbled across a great page talking about "walking while working" and I find this kinda fascinating. We have this huge problem with obesity as a society which could largely be cured if people would walk for a half hour or hour each day. And we have all this time in front of computers reading e-mail and the like where technically we could be walking. Hmmm... I noticed that one of my favorite bloggers (Jason Calacanis) was recently talking about this and so maybe we can start a trend. Can you imagine if corporations created fitness rooms with treadmills and docking stations for peoples' laptops. That would be kinda sweet.
Anyway, I'd love to hear feedback on the ideas above as well as any other suggestions for healthy ways to sit at a computer. Feel free to post comments below or e-mail me at jon at learnoutloud dot com. Thanks!
Access: Public
June 2008
Excellent post.
I have an Air Desk that I use to stand at my computer. It's great. It's still nice to have the option of sitting, and it's obviously necessary to do some moving in addition to this (otherwise checkout chashiers would all be healthy and happy ;), but on the whole it's a comfortable change from a chair. I also have a Swopper.
Egads… I just clicked through from Lifehacker (Google Reader, actually), only to find myself on Zaadz looking at familiar faces.
Anyway… I seem to have found a couple different ways to slouch while sitting on a balance ball. I guess I'm just talented in that respect. ;-) First, you can slouch backward if you slide (roll) your butt forward on the ball. You generally need a wall or something for your feet to push against, or you'll just roll off the ball. Or.. You can slouch forward if you kick you butt back a little and support your body weight with a straight arm rested on the ball between your thighs. Elbow on knee works, too. Yep. True talent.
That said, I'm a huge fan of the balance ball as a chair. In addition to making you more likely to sit up straight, you can shift about more keeping yourself active and flexible despite too many hours sitting.
Lastly, if your coworkers start to get to you, you can bounce! It's pretty tough to be in a bad mood when your bouncing. My last job required some pretty high bouncing, though. Plus, if people try to talk to you while you're bouncing, their heads nod up and down the whole time as they try to maintain eye contact. It can make a cubicle a hell of a lot more fun.
I would far sooner give up my $800 Herman Miller Aeron I bought back when I had crippling low back pain than give up my $25 bouncy ball.
Ryan combined an Airdesk with an “antigravity” massage chair. It sounds pretty good, but I don't think I'd get anything done.
Great Post!
I've been observing myself a lot latly and I noticed my postiure is very poor. I sit slouched on a chair, usually with my feet up. I'm going to start using the exercise ball from this point furter on.
Hummmm I wonder if one of those guys from google would donate some? :)
*Namaste'*
lol, thanks to you, David and Jon, you help set my record for most visits in a day:P seriously. A lot of people read your blog, Jon! Funny, out of all the posts I've ever written, it's the one about my wicked awesome chair that does it:P
hey, I get a lot done in my chair!:) Actually, I don't use the massager because it's loud as hell, and I put a pillow behind my back to keep it straight(er). But the key is the combo of zero gravity chair and air desk.
Siona, the Swopper looks sweeeet! But DAMN does it cost a lot!:P I'm going to add it to my dream list!
Amazing! We were just talking about this subject yesterday with some friends that came over to dinner. The best way to sit is something that is currently concerning me, so I just had to post about the subject, kind of in a response to your post (and lifehacker's take on it, 'cause I found your article through them). The post is called ”Not the best way to sit”. I will update on it.
Thanks!
Hi, Jon
I came across this following a yahoo link in the tech section. You can achieve #3 by finding a tallish square coffee table and adjusting the rest of the hight with cushions. You might also have to adjust the desk (trim the legs some).