Sitting at a desk right now? Take note of your body position. (Freeze! We see you adjusting your posture!)
Before the adjustment, we’re willing to bet you were hunched over, leaning on one arm rest or sitting with a leg propped underneath you.
You may be comfortable, but the truth is, many of our habits when it comes to sitting at our desks can actually have long-term health implications (not to mention cause energy slumps and back pain right now).
Ergonomics — or the science of designing the workplace — has become a popular buzzword over the past few years, as standing desks become increasingly trendy and more and more of your co-workers are replacing standard chairs with medicine balls.
According to the US Department of Labor, “ergonomics is the science of designing the job to fit the worker, rather than physically forcing the worker’s body to fit the job.”
"The rise in popularity of ergonomics among office workers is stemming mainly from increased musculoskeletal symptoms associated with longer work durations and poor workstation design," says Jonathan Puleio, MS CPE, Managing Director at Humanscale. "Computer users are simply responding to the pain and discomfort they are experiencing while they are at work. A renewed focus on promoting health and well-being in the workplace has also spurred interest in ergonomics and proper workstation setup."