Discover an ergonomic office chair designed for long work hours

If you have a job that keeps you at your desk all day, you're likely familiar with the pain and strain associated with sitting for long hours.

If you have a job that ties you to your desk, you might experience tension in your back, neck, shoulders, and eyes as you focus on your screen. According to the NHS, most adults in the United Kingdom spend around nine hours each day sitting⁽¹⁾. This includes doing desk work, sitting in the car, or watching television.

Sitting can lead to a slower metabolism, weaker muscles and bones, increase the chance of type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer, and early death.With this in mind, we now know that it is crucial to minimise the amount of time spent sitting. If you have a desk-based job, this can look like incorporating exercise into your daily routine, using a standing desk, and taking breaks from your office chair.

Research published in the National Library of Medicine proves that desk workers greatly benefit from a proper ergonomic office chair. An ergonomic chair, backed by science, is adjustable and designed to offer the healthiest seating solution for interacting with a task. It's about adjustability, shape, and movement.

Chairs that alleviate strain on the neuromuscular system can help prevent pain and discomfort⁽²⁾. The best type of office chair has an adjustable seat height and seat pan depth so that users can match the chair's dimensions to their anthropometric measurements. Ergohuman office chairs go far beyond that.

If a chair is improperly adjusted or not ergonomic, its dimensions will not allow each user to practice healthy posture. This lack of support can quickly lead to abnormal strain, pain and discomfort.

For businesses, investing in ergonomic office chairs, like the Ergohuman Elite, has many long-term benefits. In fact, musculoskeletal issues are responsible for about one-third of the injuries that lead to absenteeism. Ensuring that each employee has access to a supportive and comfortable office chair can reduce absenteeism in the workplace and cut costs.

The importance of an ergonomic office chair

While it's important to incorporate movement into your daily routine, many jobs are primarily done from a desk. To reduce the concerns about the negative impacts of prolonged sitting, Comfort has engineered ergonomic office chairs that deliver a healthy seating experience.

A properly adjusted chair will fit your anthropometric needs perfectly, minimising strain, protecting your joints, and ensuring comfort while you work⁽³⁾.

With a genuinely ergonomic chair, such as the Elite range of mesh office chairs, each user is able to customise the adjustments to suit their specific body, height, and weight requirements. These changes will promote healthy posture, improve comfort, and enhance well-being while at work. In turn, they will reduce neck strain, back pain, muscular issues, and eye strain. You may also find that without the distraction of discomfort,  employees are less tired, happier, and more productive.

Whether in a corporate environment or working from home, an ergonomic office chair is essential for working long hours.

Features of the Ergohuman office chair that help with WORKING long hours

When you spend prolonged hours seated, your health and well-being should be a priority. The Elite range of mesh office chairs boasts many features that help users maintain physical comfort.

Adjustable seat height

Research from Sjan-Mari van Nieker, professor of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences, found that adjustable seat height is one of the most important features of a desk chair for those who sit all day. Making this basic adjustment allows users of varying heights to find the most comfortable position.

Once the seat height is adjusted correctly so that the user's feet are comfortably flat on the ground, users can practice proper posture, ensure their hips and pelvis are aligned, improve circulation, and reduce fatigue over extended periods of time. The seat height on the Elite office chairs is adjustable from 500 to 600 mm.

HEIGHT ADJUSTABLE BACKREST WITH BUILT-IN LUMBAR SUPPORT

Comfort's ergonomic office chairs feature an adjustable lumbar system which supports the natural curve of the lower back, preventing slouching and reducing strain on the spine. You can adjust the back height of the chair to align the lumbar  curvature perfectly with your spine's natural shape.

The chairs also feature adjustable lumbar tension so you can fine-tune the amount of support provided to the lumbar region. Good lumbar support is necessary for those who spend a lot of time in their office chairs, as it helps maintain the natural spinal curvature, reduces lower back pain, and encourages dynamic sitting.

Adjustable seat depth

A chair with adjustable seat depth ensures even weight distribution and healthy blood flow for different thigh lengths. The seat depth range on the Elite office chairs is 490 mm with a 50 mm adjustment option.

Each seat has four unique autoflex zones, including a thigh soft zone, a thigh support zone, and two pressure release zones to prevent leg numbness. Adjusting the seat depth ensures that everyone can prevent pressure from the backrest on the coccyx area, reduce compression of the gluteus maximi, and align the different pressure zones with the correct part of their legs.

Forward seat tilt

Forward seat tilt supports the user in adopting an optimal, neutral posture. When seated with feet flat on the floor, the pelvis slightly tilted forward, and thighs angling gently downward from the hips to the knees, the spine aligns directly over the pelvis. This posture reduces strain on the lower back joints and keeps the spinal discs in their natural, centred position, promoting back health and minimising the risk of injury.

Reclining backrest with tilt tension

The reclining high back on the Ergohuman Elite allows you to lean back, reducing pressure on your spine while keeping proper posture. Our mesh office chairs all feature free-float recline mode so you can experience the best ergonomic comfort. The more you move, the less stiff you feel at the end of the day. The chair's supportive backrest mitigates spinal pressure usually associated with reclining on a chair without proper support.

However, you can lock the chair in any of the four positions if you have a preferred position. The chairs also feature tilt tension, so you can calibrate the resistance of the backrest recline to your weight. When set up correctly, you should feel your back is supported in an neutral upright position without the chair pushing your forward, and require a little pressure as you lean back to trigger the recline motion.   

Adjustable armrests

Adjustable armrests reduce strain on the shoulders and neck by supporting your arms in a comfortable position. Our armrests go beyond the standard adjustments. With five adjustable options, you can control the armrest height, and armpad angle, depth, width, and tilt. This multi-dimensional flexibility ensures adequate wrist and arm support whether you're typing, writing, reading, gaming, or holding a handheld device.

Mesh upholstery

Our ergonomic office chairs are upholstered in a unique, eco-friendly mesh designed to adapt to any body type. With elastomeric and breathable qualities, the chair features ten mesh autoflex zones for strategic weight distribution to reduce or remove pressure on the thighs, pelvis, coccyx, lower back, upper back, shoulders and neck.

This innovative feature delivers a comfortable, supportive, and secure seating experience, which is essential for reducing pressure on your back and posterior.

Optional headrest and legrest

Finally, the office chairs all come with the option of an integrated headrest and legrest. These offer additional comfort to the neck, head, and leg regions. They're especially useful if you spend a lot of time reclined in your office chair as they provide full-body support and help maintain a neutral spine in any position.

How to stay healthy while working a desk job

If you work a desk job, the health implications associated can be overwhelming, but there are many things you can do to stay healthy. One thing you can do is counteract the amount of time seated with exercise. Dr. Edward Laskowski reports that 60 to 75 minutes per day of moderate to intense physical activity can counter the effects of prolonged periods of sitting⁽⁴⁾. For instance, you could head to the gym before work and take a 30-minute walk on your lunch break.

Our chairs are so comfortable that you forget you're sitting. However, we, alongside PhysioMed, do recommend taking a break from your chair every 20 to 30 minutes⁽⁵⁾. Go on a five-minute stroll or do some stretches, whether you're in the office or working from home. Other things to try include:

• Standing while talking on the phone.
• Utilising a sit-stand desk.
• Walking through the office with colleagues rather than meeting at a conference table.
• Using a walking pad beneath your standing desk.
• Practicing good posture.
• Taking a break from screen for 20 seconds every 20 minutes by looking at something 20 feet away.
• Adjusting your desk and office chair to fit your measurements.
• Taking the stairs instead of a lift or escalator.
  

How long should you sit in an ergonomic office chair?

There's an art to healthy sitting. The optimal sitting position requires a neutral spine with feet flat on the floor, knees hip-width apart, and proper arm posture. While seated in your office chair, adjust the seat height while your feet are flat on the floor and find your leg's 90-degree angle.

You should also adjust the seat depth. Slide the seat forward and backward until there is a 2 cm gap between the back of your knees and the front of the seat.

Next, set up the lumbar support. Sitting on the chair, put your hands on your hips and rotate them as far forward as possible. Then, rotate the pelvis as far backwards as possible. The middle point is your neutral position, and it's best to be slightly more forward than in the neutral spot. Holding this slightly forward position, adjust the lumbar support to align with your lower back.

It has often been claimed that an upright 90-degree sitting position is best⁽⁶⁾. However, when you sit upright and your work is in front of you, you inevitably end up leaning forward into what is coined by Dr. Alan Hedge — an ergonomics professor at Cornell University – the 'turtle position'. When leaning forward, you double the compressive forces on your lower back and increase neck strain. Instead, you should be in the most relaxed position while you are working. This usually means sitting back in the chair, even by 10 or 20 degrees. Instantly, this reduces pressure on your lower back and minimises muscle activity in the torso, as the chair is responsible for holding your weight. The position you should sit in your office chair is not dissimilar to how you sit when driving a car.

Overall, this allows you to work comfortably at your desk for a longer period of time as long as you adjust the position of your computer, keyboard, and mouse accordingly.

If you work a desk job, then it is imperative to choose an ergonomic and adjustable chair that supports your body, promotes healthy posture, aids blood circulation, and minimises the risk of pain. Comfort's Elite range of office chairs is crafted for your comfort, so you can work without the distraction of pain. Explore the full range of ergonomic office chairs and please contact us for questions and order inquiries.