Five Office Ergonomic Tips

One of the key advantages to using our Monumental Mounts monitor mounts to add a second screen to your workstation is that it gives you the unmatched ability to make adjustments to your monitors’ height and angle. This can help you to set up an ergonomic workstation. Ergonomics is important for many of reasons, injury prevention, increased production and happier employees. In fact ergonomics is actually all about production and the theory that increasing the ergonomic value of the workspace will benefit. Here are five more tips to help you maximize the ergonomics of your workspace:

Screen height

The placement of your computer’s monitor has a major effect on how comfortable your workstation is. Too low, and you will likely begin to slouch to compensate. Too high, and your neck will be killing you by the end of the day. Here is how to get it right: Your monitor (or monitors, hopefully), should be about one arm’s length away. The top of the monitor should be just slightly below eye level. Follow these tips and you’ll lay a solid foundation for an ergonomically-friendly workstation.

Chair height

As you are adjusting your monitor height, you should also be making sure that your chair is the appropriate height. The relationships between your chair height, desk height (which we will touch on next), and monitor height are all dependent on one another. Your chair should be high enough that your feet are able to comfortably rest flat on the floor.

Desk height

With your feet resting flat on the floor, your desk should be nearly parallel to your arms as they are stretched out towards your keyboard. It should be high enough that your arms are able to rest comfortably as you type. If it is too low, your shoulder muscles will be worn out by the end of the day. If your desk is not adjustable, be sure to make the necessary adjustments with your chair, using a footrest if needed.

Arm support

As we mentioned above, your arms should be supported as you are typing. You may also want to consider a specially designed ergonomic keyboard, for extra forearm support and wrist comfort. These types of keyboards are curved, not flat, and allow your arms to rest at a more natural angle. They also usually have a built-in wrist support that helps to keep your arms elevated, but rested.

Sitting posture

Finally, pay special attention to your posture throughout the day. If you are working at your desk for long periods, it can be easy to begin to slouch. Slouching is very bad for your back, neck, and shoulders. It throws off all of the considerations you have made to ensure that your workstation is as comfortable as possible. If you know that you are prone to slouching, set a timer to remind yourself to sit up straight. You should also consider adding some core-strengthening exercises to your daily routine. Many people slouch simply because sitting up straight is hard for them. With a strong core, sitting up straight should not be an issue.