Adjusting your workspace for optimal comfort and efficiency is the key to a successful business — and it all starts with the work chair. Working in an office often means sitting in a chair for the majority of your day. Studies have shown that the seated position can have major effects on your overall health. To avoid irreparable damage to your spine and back, it is crucial to find an office chair that supports good health.
As Goldilocks once taught us: Not too big, not too small, but just right. Choosing the right office chair can be tough when sorting through the plethora of options.
Here is how to find your “just right” chair.
Lumbar Support
The lower back is the most impacted area of the body from the seated position. The lumbar spine has a natural inward curve. Sitting with minimal support can cause slouching, thus flattening the natural curve. This causes major stress on the lower spine.
Your office chair should have adjustable back support — firmness, height and depth — as to customize the chair to the structure of your back.
Seat Height
Feet should be flat on the floor, with your thighs parallel to the ground. Forearms should be parallel to the work surface. Positioning your chair too high can cause unwanted pressure behind the knees. Positioning your chair too low can cause unwanted pressure on your sitting bones. You need to find… just right.
A numbered adjustment lever is the easiest way to do this. According to Spine-Health, a medical group dedicated to spine education, seat height should ranges from about 16 to 21 inches off the floor.
Recline-Ability
This feature has a lot to do with the length of your arms. A reclinable chair allows you to reach the keyboard without straining your shoulders and arms.
Armrests
The proper work chair will support your elbows while working or resting. The armrests should allow you to get closer or further away from your workstation, pivot, and provide height options. Mostly, you want to avoid any position that hunches your shoulders.
Proper positioning is when the forearms are parallel to the floor when typing.