The Importance of Ergonomics

Got Pain?

Back pain affects nearly 80 percent of Americans at some point in their lives, and for a variety of reasons. Some spinal discomfort can be the result of genetics and a person’s natural body makeup, or the product of his or her lifestyle, or from a chance injury. The key to a healthy back is preventative care through proper posture, and post-injury care through strengthening the posture as well.

One of the foremost reasons working Americans suffer from back pain is the poor design of their workplace, especially those working at a computer. To tackle this problem we must become aware of what correct posture feels like, and redesign our environments according to ergonomic principles that best fit our body’s natural support system. Stress may also cause back pain in many people. When we are overwhelmed, we may cope by tensing the muscles in the back which leads to tightness and muscle spasms. So even after you physically alter your environment, remember to breathe and pay attention to the way your back muscles react to palpable stress.

What's the Point of Ergonomics?

Ergonomics is the study of designing a work environment to fit its user so as to prevent injury from repetitive strain. When we sit in awkward postures for prolonged periods of time, such as at a desk with a computer, it strains the back muscles and puts pressure on spinal disks and can cause trouble later on. Adopting an ergonomic set-up in the workplace can save the back from agitation later on, increase the ability to concentrate, ease strain all over the body and enable us to work for longer periods of time without doing damage to the most important parts of our body.

Desk Jobs: The Enemy

Sitting all day at a desk often locks us into long periods of unsafe and unstable posture. It may not feel awkward because many of us have been working in seated positions since the day we were dropped into a primary school desk, but without attention the body usually develops a chair posture that can lead to a musculoskeletal disorders later in life and tendencies towards poor posture that weaken the core, destabilize the neck muscles and strain the natural curvature of the back.

Below are the steps to redesign your work set-up to preserve back strength and lessen the chances of back troubles later in life.

See this diagram for a clearer picture of what your posture should look like.

Head and torso should be in line with each other, head only slightly bent forward facing the front.
Shoulders at east with upper arms hanging naturally at sides of your body
Elbows close to your body and bent between 90° and 110°.
Feet should rest comfortably on the floor or on a foot rest.
Back should be supported fully in the lumbar area.
Knees and hips should be the same height.

*CAUTION: knees should never be higher than hips*

Remember to keep changing your position, stretch periodically, and try some of these yoga poses you can do at your own desk.

Even if you fix your office posture and your environment, it is important to stand up and change your body position and stretch every once and a while, at least a few times an hour.