Office Life Got Your Back Hurt? Maybe You’re Not Sitting Correctly

Whether you’re working from home or from a proper office, many modern-day jobs require sitting in front of a computer for a long portion of your day. (And social media has us covered as far as our non-work potion of the day goes.) In fact, we spend so much of our day sitting down, it often hurts our physical health. Symptoms like poor posture, back pains, and sore muscles can all indicate you need to change your sitting habits. It’s a little funny, thinking you may not know how to sit. After all, it’s an action you learned how to do when you were several months old. But long periods of time spent sitting down are not like sitting on a colorful playmat reaching for your toys.

So, how do you sit properly and make sure you don’t hurt yourself while staring at a screen all day?

Adjust Your Chair

Sit up straight in your chair with your entire back against the back of the chair and start adjusting. Most office chairs have two pedals right under the seat. The more famous pedal will help you change the height of the chair. Use it to adjust the seat so your feet are fully flat on the ground and your knees are the same height as your hips. The other, less-famous pedal is for the back support. Use that one to recline the back a little more than 90 degrees (but no more than 110).

90 Degrees Everywhere

There should be a 90-degree angle between your back and your thighs, another 90-degree angle between your thighs and your calves, and a third 90-degree angle between your calves and your feet. If your table is too high and your feet don’t reach the ground, get a small ottoman or a box to help even things out. You should be able to rest your elbows on your desk at — you guessed it — a 90-degree angle.

Adjust Your Computer

Your computer screen should be placed at least within an arm’s length (about 20 inches) from you. It should also be set at your eye level or a couple of inches above it. This can be easily adjusted with a few books or a small box placed under the monitor. This will help you protect your neck from cramps and sore muscles. Also, lots of keyboards have little foldable plastic pieces that can slightly elevate the keyboard from the desk. NEVER USE THEM. You want your keyboard to be as close to the desk surface as possible. Typing on a high-set keyboard for a long time can trigger some nasty elbow injuries.