Question:
What Is Ergonomics?
(And Why Should You Think About It?)

Typical Answers:
Sit up Straight
Don’t Hurt Yourself
Work with Better Posture

Thinking about ergonomics as you approach your workstation is important in the same way that putting on shin guards before the soccer match (as opposed to after) is important.  Odds are, if your job is not in the field of ergonomics, once you start doing your actual work, the best of ergonomic intentions go right out the window, unless you have physically addressed them.  After all, how many things in addition to your work would like to keep in mind while trying to get things done?

Years ago, as a professional ballet dancer, my work was to pay strict and unrelenting attention to my posture, form, presence and presentation. As one who works in the industry of intense human/computer interaction, your job description will typically not entail postural standards or required work habits.  Unless otherwise educated or habitualized, the first way you began working on a computer became the way you worked on a computer.  If you slouched, you slouch.  If you perched, you perch.  If you crossed your legs, leaned backwards or hooked your feet on the catsters on the chair, that is the way you start your day…and it only gets worse from there.

Let’s rewind.

Ergonomics is about:
Geometry (Customizing the workstation to your body)
Physiology (What your body does while you work)
Psychology and Sociology (Why you do that.  How changes happen, and why some don’t)

If we combine all these sciences to you as an individual, we can emerge on the other side with ideal workstation measurements, better work (and rest) habits, and a pretty good idea how to set up the former and maintain the latter.

Geometry is the easy part.  Let’s get that out of the way right now.

Step One: Raise/lower your chair so your feet are planted firmly on the ground with your knees at or slightly below your hips.  Sitting too low (knees above hips) compromises your lumbar (lower inward curve) spine.

Sitting too high (knees significantly lower than hips or feet dangling) may pull your pelvis forward out of your chair (resulting in the very common “C” shaped spine we see in many computer users).

I could write for days about sitting, so for now, let’s just stick with the bare bones basics.

Make sure you are sitting on your sitting bones, not your tailbone.

Step Two:  Relax.  Let your shoulders drop.  Let your elbows fall to your sides.  If you are able, let your hands drop to your sides as well.  Notice your elbows are directly below your shoulders.  Bend your elbows up to 90 degrees.  Measure (Ask someone to measure for you) from the tip of your bent elbow to the floor.  We’ll refer to that number later as Elbow to Floor.

Step Three:  Hold a pen perpendicular to your face from the bridge of your nose.  Measure from the floor to the tip of the pen.  We’ll refer to that number later as Floor to Eye.

Now apply these numbers to find your ideal workstation geometry.

Your Elbow to Floor measurement gives you your ideal keying height.  Since a typical keyboard is about 1” thick, subtract 1” from the Elbow to Floor number to get your ideal worksurface height.  If your worksurface is a desk that is too high, consider adding a keyboard tray.  I recommend a low profile tray that adjusts in height and angle.  (Try www.humanscale.com or www.wrea.com)

Your Floor to Eye measurement gives you the ideal screen height for your monitor (the top of the screen, not the top of the actual monitor).  By setting the top of your screen at the same height as your straight-across gaze, you are able to scan from top to bottom of your screen without moving your head up or down.  Screen too low?  Use phone books or reams of paper to raise it.

Pay attention to the distance of your monitor from your eye.  The ideal distance is different for everyone, but your eyes will dictate if you need to get closer to or further away from your screen.  Try this:  Close your eyes and relax in your chair.  When you open your eyes and look at your work, observe if you have the urge to lean towards your screen (thereby pulling you out of your nice chair posture and creating the ever-popular Turtle Head).  If so, move your screen closer.

Had enough of The Ergo?  See how close to ideal you can get your workstation. 

Next time:  Why Do You Do That? (And Is It Bad?)

Now, off to save the world…one hand at a time.