I’ve been working at home for about a year. I spend long hours at the computer and on the phone. My arms hurt, my butt’s sore and I think my posture is getting worse. Help me.
What should I look for in a good chair? Are those funky-looking “ergonomic” chairs really any better than conventional “task chairs”? Am I going to feel better sitting on a $200 chair than I would on a $50 chair?
We got one of those funky chairs that has no back support but does have a knee rest. It’s good, but we figured out that the best thing for reducing sore joints and stuff is to alternate chairs. We’d have that chair at the computer for a week and then put a different chair there for a week. The aches and pains that come from computer use are from repetitive strain, so it makes sense that changing chairs would help the problem.
I use what was described on the box as a high-backed executive chair. It swivels, rolls and has armrests. Quite comfy, and identical to the one I have at work. It cost ~$130, IIRC.
Beats the heck out of the $29 “typist’s chair” that gradually crumbled beneath me.
I took the same approach as Ringo. I liked mine so much that I bought an identical one for my office, and got rid of the one that my firm supplied. I have been using them both, very comfortably, for about seven years.