How To Adjust a Computer Chair
The Problem
Sitting with a 90° angle (or less) between your trunk and thighs is not good for your back. In that
position, your pelvis will rotate backwards - a ‘posterior tilt’. This flattens the natural curve of your
lower back increasing the load on your vertebrae and discs. Sitting like that, you are more likely to
hunch your shoulders forward while you work. That puts the muscles in your upper back and neck
in constant tension leading to fatigue, soreness and possibly headaches.
Pelvic Tilt
To sit properly, the pan of the seat should tilt your pelvis forward
- an ‘anterior tilt’. This will maintain the proper curve in your lumbar
spine which is then supported by the chair’s backrest.
Check List
When sitting properly your feet will be flat on the floor, your knees
will clear the front of the seat, your pelvis will have an anterior tilt
and your lower back will be properly supported as indicated in the
diagram. Now, adjust your desk and equipment to a comfortable
height. (Tip: the top of a computer monitor should be at, or slightly
below eye level).
A Fair Trial
Your body needs a little time to adapt to something unfamiliar.
Persevere for a day or so and, to your great benefit, you’ll happily
abandon your old sitting posture.
Someone Else's Chair
Sitting in someone else’s chair and not adjusting it properly is a sure way to return to poor posture.
Choosing Your Chair
Look for a chair that has a 5-star base and separate adjustments for the seat height, seat tilt and
the backrest position.
Remember, you must be able to tilt the pan of the seat forward and then adjust the backrest independently. Not all computer chairs can do this and price is no guide.
Backrest Adjustment:
Good Too high Too low
Seat is tilted forward.
Hips slightly higher than knees.
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Read About ...
Stretching
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Each day, the world does awful things to our posture. Whatever we do for a living, we bend our bodies to suit our work environment and the demands of the machines we use, often for many long hours.
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Computers, and particularly laptops, are implicated in the widespread condition called Forward Head Posture where the head is held well forward of the body and the shoulders are hunched. It is the source of many sore necks and backs. Sadly, it is now evident even amongst our school children. Because our posture is attacked this way each day, we need to do something to defend it each day. And that something is stretching.
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Sidebends for the lumbar, a quad stretch for the hips & pelvis and pec stretches for the shoulders & neck are the 'Basic 3' stretches we need to do each day. These stretches might be a bit uncomfortable at first - but the hardest part of stretching is usually just remembering to do them.
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Ask your massage therapist to demonstrate these stretches for you and recommend any others that would benefit you particularly.
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