Reasons to Buy an Ergonomic Office Chair

If you’ve ever experienced the constant pain of a bad back, you’ll know the importance of finding a supportive and comfortable seat. Backache is just one of the reasons why we think you need an ergonomic office chair.

If you’re an office worker, you probably spend more time sitting at your desk than you do walking, stretching or moving about. In fact, statistics suggest that we spend between four and nine hours a day sitting at a desk. Worryingly, since the huge increase in home working over the last two years, nearly 49% of workers don’t have a proper workstation in their home to work from – which includes a lack of a proper chair.

Ergonomic chairs are fully adjustable

Sitting down for prolonged periods can have a serious impact on your health. Very few of us can sit at a desk for a long time without a tendency to slouch, which leads to poor posture and negative impacts on our bodies.

The best posture for prolonged sitting is to have both feet flat on the floor with your hips parallel to your knees and as little pressure as possible on your thighs. You should be close enough to your desk to be able to work without leaning forward or straining your arms or eyesight.

An ergonomic chair is fully adjustable to suit your height, the length of your legs and the height of your desk. This means your ergonomic chair is personally fitted to your individual body, helping to support you to maintain the correct posture.

Physical health benefits of an ergonomic chair

So why does your posture matter? Poor posture means that you are straining different parts of your body – leading to back pain, neck and shoulder pains, poor circulation and so on. Having a fully supportive ergonomic chair can with many of these physical issues.

The backrest on your work chair can be adjusted to support the natural shape of your spine – reducing the amount of back pain you will feel. If your chair includes a headrest, you can also benefit from reduced neck pain.

Being able to adjust your chair to your correct height means that your feet are firmly placed flat on the floor, and your desk should be at the right height for you to reach a keyboard without leaning forward or raising your shoulders. This reduces the strain on your neck and shoulder muscles.

If you’re one of the many office workers who suffer from constant headaches, you may well find that tension in the shoulder and neck muscles is one of the causes. As your ergonomic chair supports and reduces pain in your neck and shoulders, you may also find a reduction in headaches. Of course, these can be caused by other issues such as eye strain or dehydration, so it’s important that your screen is the right height, and you drink plenty of water too.

Comfort is important, particularly when you are sitting in one place for a long time. Your ergonomic chair should be well padded. As well as being more comfortable, this will relieve pressure on your hips. And with your chair properly adjusted to a 90-degree angle, you’ll be in the best position for your blood to circulate freely – reducing cramping or pins and needles in your legs.

Ergonomic chairs improve productivity and morale in the workplace

So, we know that an ergonomic chair is great for you as a worker – but it has huge benefits for you as an employer too. Employees who are comfortable at work are better able to concentrate, leading to improved quality of work and productivity.

The negative impact of being in pain at work means that employees are less likely to engage in physical activity outside of work. In the worst cases, living with constant back pain can lead to poor mental health and issues such as depression or anxiety.

As a business owner, you have a responsibility to look out for employee health and wellbeing – and introducing an ergonomic chair and proper workstation is a simple way to begin. Giving your staff the right equipment will ensure they feel valued, improving morale and reducing stress and employee absence.

If you are working from home, or even if you’re in the office, and you don’t have the right ergonomic chair, we can help. We have a huge range of new and used office furniture and are experts in helping you find the best ergonomic chair to suit your needs and your budget. Give us a call today.