Painless Chairs?

Tarrek asks: "Eight or more hours of sitting and slouching with my feet propped up in an uncomfortable, half broken computer chair every single day for years has begun to take it's toll on my back, and I'm still quite young. I was wondering if the slashdot community might have any ideas with regards to a new chair, or just types and designs of chairs, that might be a little kinder to my back, as well as being comfortable enough to sit properly in for an extended period of time?" This is a revisit to a question from two years ago. That was then, what does the picture look like, now?

Comments

Still the Best: Herman Miller Aeron

[wdr1]

If you want pure comfort and support, you still can't beat Herman Miller's Aeron's.

Some complain about the cost, but for me, not having pain in my back and shoulders are well worth it. (I'm 6'6" so finding comfortable furniture is often a challenge for me too.) They last forever, allow you to customize just about every aspect you care about (height/tilt/recline/arm height/optional lumbar), and fade transparently into the background, like a good working enviroment should. The only time you'll even notice the chair is if it's missing, or someone tried to replace it with something lesser (i.e. just about any other chair).

If it's coming out of your pocket look around for a good price. With the dot com bust, I was able to pick up a used one for home use for about $200.

-Bill

Ditto - I Had The Same

[Steve Cox]

I did my back in on one of those normal office chairs. I changed to a posture chair for a few months and my back sorted itself out.

Technically, my company could have been in a bit of trouble because they are responsible for my health and saftey at work.

The posture chairs are quite good - the look funny and need a bit of getting used to (mine looked a bit like this). Additionally, you also have a minor problem with the fact that you slowley lose the hairs on your shins!

However, what works for me might not work for you. Your best bet is to consult a specialist, otherwise you might damage your back further. Remember - your health and saftey at work should be your companies responsibility. Ask them to sort it out.

Steve.

Re:Ditto - I Had The Same

[MadAhab]

Nah, bullshit. Don't consult specialists, no one really knows a whole lot about back pain. I've sat in an office chair so uncomfortable that I actually picked it up and threw it in the trash and then asked my manager for a chair since mine was gone; during that time, I had no back pain. You can blame the chair some, but not completely.

Like many things, back pain is caused by a number of factors, most of which are poorly understood, yet there are a few good solutions that are routinely ignored.

1. Sit with comfortable monitor height and keyboard height. Forearms level, not leaning or craning the neck.
2. Get up and stretch periodically. Consider a massage.
3. Find a chair that is comfortable.
4. Get excercise. You can sit longer if your back muscles are stronger. Try yoga. Read that again: YOU CAN SIT LONGER IF YOUR BACK MUSCLES ARE STRONGER. Try yoga, and look for classes/studios with a lot of people in your age group.
5. Acknowledge that it might be psychological. This does not mean "it's in your head": it means that stress will make you hurt, especially if you don't take care of yourself otherwise.

Not exactly rocket science, but it got me back from a back injury and keeps me pain free (as long as I follow my own rules ;-)

This guys problem is obvious

[duffbeer703]

"Eight or more hours of sitting and slouching with my feet propped up in an uncomfortable, half broken computer chair every single day for years has begun to take it's toll on my back, and I'm still quite young"

Sit up straight and put your feet down. The human body can handle sitting just fine. Slouching puts up to 60% more pressure on your back, and even more if you put your feet up.

Your mother yelled at you to sit up straight for a reason when you were 5.

Happened to me a few months ago.

[Sandman1971]

Bad backs are a combination of the chair, position of keyboard/monitor and taking breaks. I had a similar problem a few months back. It got so bad that I was flat out on my back for a couple of days. Went to a chiropractor and got some help and some good advice.

Get a chair with a high back that also has lumbar support and adjustable arm rests. Make sure the middle of your monitor is directly at eye level. When you type, rest your arms on the arm rests. Get something to prop up your feet about 2 inches.

And very importantly, never stay sitting down for longer than an hour if you can help it. But just don't get up. Stretch when you get up.

Exercise

[dnight]

Not a troll, real life experience here.

I had back problems from sitting in chairs for 8-12 hours as well. My doc told me "just get off my ass" and get some exercise, and that a comfy chair was just exacerbating the problem.

I took his advice, and bought a snowboard and kayak instead of a chair. I still have the same chair, and the back problems are gone.

Freedom Chair

[pjcreath]

Our bodies definitely weren't designed to sit for 8 hours. But perhaps more importantly, they weren't designed to sit still for 8 hours (that's just awful for circulation). That's the design philosophy behind Humanscale's Freedom Chair. It encourages you to move around and change your position. I've had this chair for a year now, and I'm very sad when I have to sit in anything else.

I tried the Aeron, but didn't really like it. Yes, the mesh was nice in terms of support and ventilation, but it took endless tweaking to adjust, and I never could quite get it to fit me properly. (On second thought, the endless tweaking just might endear it to most /. readers...)

I also tried out the Leap (by Steelcase). The flexible back was interesting, but still too hard to adjust.

In contrast, the Freedom is incredibly simple. There are three settings to make it fit your size: seat height, seat depth, and back height. These controls are intuitively placed and easy to reach without looking while seated.

The only other two adjustable bits (back tilt and armrest height) don't have 'controls' per se. They just move with you. Push back a little bit, and the seat back tilts back until you stop pushing. When you stop pushing, it supports you. It's really uncanny. (They did some very clever counterweight thing so that this provides the proper support and control regardless of your weight.) The left and right armrests always adjust to the same height, no thought or effort required. You just pull either armrest (or both) up or down, they both move, and then they stay in position. (They also drop lower than your lap, if you want to get rid of them effectively.)

The ease of adjustability is what makes this chair encourage you to move. You don't have to think at all to change your sitting position. You just move.

I have no affiliation with Humanscale other than being very happy with my chair.

Not just the chair - fix the desk, too!

[markwelch]

You can buy the greatest super-supportive super-adjustable chair, but it's worthless if you end up positioning it inappropriately because you must fit into a narrow slot at your computer table, desk, or credenza.

I have a really nice chair, but like an idiot I have a lousy desk with a slide-out computer drawer that is TOO LOW for me. Thus, I have to lower the chair so my legs are not comfortable, and this causes my back to curl, and the armrests on the chair are just a smidge too low so my arms and shoulders aren't aligned right....

I know better (I researched and prepared a 150-page annotated bibliography and a 70-page thesis on the subject of "legal liability for health effects of computer use" back in 1989), but I keep telling myself that this setup is just temporary, I will change things Really Soon Now, and now it's been 3 years in this configuration.

[Sound of head banging against wall.]

Steelcase and HON

[Miller]

I have had back surgery and I am often in pain. I got a Steelcase Leap for my office in January. It is the best chair I've had. There are lots of very well thought out adjustments.

We also have several HON chairs (Model #6542) around the office. They are very different from the Leap, and not nearly as adjustable, but they are very comfortable.

I have found that many chairs don't fit my back very well, but these do. Of course, YMMV.