Chairs that Won't Wreck Your Back?

texatut asks: "I'm sure many of you are familiar with this secenario. You spend 10-12 hours a day in a crappy chair, and your back pays the price. I know there are chairs there that cost in excess of $1000 that alleviate the problem, but that's a lot of money to pay for a chair. I wanted to ask you all to give recommendations and opinions on chairs that are in a slightly lower price range, say, below $600. My back thanks you in advance."

Comments

Herman Miller Aeron

[wdr1]

Get an Aeron. and you back will love you forever for it. You can get new ones for just over $600 and probably less if you can find one used (try craigslist).

I have one at work and at home. They're terrific. Once you use them, you'll never want to go back.

HTH,
-Bill

Change often

[hoggoth]

Don't always sit on a chair.
Sit on an excercise ball for a while.
Sit on a kneeling chair for a while.
Shift positions a lot.
Get a headset so you don't have to hold a phone to your head.

Do back exercises every morning and every night. Sit ups, "superman"s (extensions).

And of course, get up and walk around every hour.

Test them out

[xanderwilson]

Get to OfficeMax or wherever and sit in the chairs. I know people who have loved those expensive Aeron chairs and people who have hated them and you won't know until you try. Check their website and find a dealer near you.

Also pay attention to posture and computer/monitor/keyboard position, and take regular breaks (with and without stretching) from the chair.

I walked into a Discovery Channel store not too long ago while traveling. They had a removeable lumbar support that you can attach to any chair. Didn't try it and YMMV, but it was about $60.

Oh and you might be able to find a $1000 chair on Ebay or Craig's List, or a local used furniture place for $600 or less. Businesses that go belly-up can have many expensive chairs on the cheap.

Alex.

Just a simple tip..

[hookedup]

Take your wallet out of your back pocket when working. it makes quite the difference..

From experience

[Anna Merikin]

I was born with a (minor) case of scoliosis, so my back is VERY sensitive. Here's what I found --

1. Back problems (aches) due to fatigue are helped most by strengthening the abdominal muscles, which are what keeps the back aligned.

2. A straight back chair is best, but only if you put your feet FLAT on the floor. Otherwise, they are a pain (literally.)

3. Soft padding is a no-no. Maybe gel is good, I haven't tried it.

4. The backrest and seat should be adjustable for angle and height/reach. Change positions often.

5. I made my own perfect-for-me seat from a wrecked Thunderbird with the inflatable seatback option. I took the passenger seat (it was less worn) to a welding shop and had some straight pieces added for legs. It is adjustable, inflatable, durable, comfortable and cheap.

6. But most of the time, I compute on a yoga mat on the floor with the keyboard in my lap. Half Lotus works for me.

a great chair

[kevinbajan]

Try the Sum chair from All Steel Office http://www.allsteeloffice.com/sum/launch.html/ (flash warning). I have one myself. Very comfortable and adjustable, and comes with a lifetime warranty to boot.

Steelcase Leap

[SteveOU]

I've got a Steelcase Leap chair. First the office bought one for me, and then I would up buying one for home. Cost me $700, which may be more than you were looking to spend. Comes with a lifetime warranty on the mechanics (pneumatic cylinder, etc) and the cushions are user-replaceable.
It is very adjustable...arm height, arm width, arm angle, chair height, seat depth, and seat edge. Plan on spending at least a week (took me 2) to get it set right for you. And then don't let other people muck with your settings.
The best part is how the back of the seat is connected. Most chairs are kinda like a capital 'L' in profile, where the chair pivots on the lower left corner of the 'L.' On the Leap, the angle between the back and the seat increases as you recline. And the coolest part is that the seat - while remaining parallel to the floor - moves forward slightly while you recline. That lets me continue typing with an ergonomically correct arm position (and your elbows still on the armrests) as you change your degree of recline.

Re:Ahem, 10-12 hours?

[pbox]

All these ergonomics stuff is available in my IKEA chair. It is their higher end, cost me like $250. I have not had any backproblem since...

Get the VERKSAM or NOMINELL models.

Re:justify the cost

[Parsec]

I've tried the Aeron and found the front edge of the seat (the hard plastic surround) pushed into the back of my leg too much to be comfortable. Find somewhere to try this chair out, it might not be for everyone. (Of course it is possible I just didn't fiddle with the settings long enough.)

Re:Regardless of chair I use...

[Eideewt]

I'd recommend that you just take a break now and then, uncurl whenever you notice you're doing it, and make an effort to curl in slighty different ways each time you curl. Curl to the left one time, and the right next time. As long as you don't stay scrunched up for a long time, I'd say that the frequent movement will do you good. I do this occasionally as well, but not often enough for me to worry about it.

Best chair I've ever owned

[Lord Bitman]

I have a cheap $30 chair I bought at one of those office liquidation (or whatever) places. Was a nice chair, for the price. Unfortunatly, the arms were just a bit too high to fit more than a bit under the desk. Eventually I decided to just take the arms off in order to get that extra inch closer to everything (I'm the type who uses every corner of the desk and needs to be able to reach it all without moving)
Of course, within the month the back had fallen off. It wasnt designed for use without arms. I figured I'd use it through the week and buy another one during the weekend. (I'd just drill through the arms to reposition them lower).
Turns out the place I bought the chair from is closed on weekends. It kept slipping my mind during the week, eventually a month had passed and I realized that I now found every other chair horribly uncomfortable. Chairs with backs just invite you to lean in them, and it just didnt feel right anymore. Within two months I didnt like chairs with arms, either. It has become much more comfortable to sit with my legs crossed.
Several years have passed now, and the chair seems almost ready to seperate itself into its component peices (moreso than merely back, arms, and base)
For a chair which wont wreck your back, I reccomend one which doesnt do anything to your back at all- let your back hold itself up, the way the human body was meant to work. Sitting without relying on leaning all the time will build up atrophied muscles and make your back feel better in non-sitting related situations as well.
But then, I also sleep directly on the floor, so I assume that disqualifies me from any comfort-related discussions.
Still, if anyone knows where I can buy a comfortable backless chair, please let me know. I havent seen any, and it was a bit of a hassle to remove the arms, the remainder of the back, and the painful metal spikes of death which the arms were attached to.

My back feels great, and I have no self esteem! Yay me!

THe chair is unimportant....

[jotaeleemeese]

.... if you do nothing to take care of your back.

-Do some pilates or yoga. I know, rubish new ageism, but try to do a couple of exercises for begineers and then tell me if youa re on shape or not.

-Exercise. Any exercise will do.

-Don't sit that many hours in front of a computer. Takes brakes often and regularly.

Ultimately any chair that is adjustable will work, even cheap crappy ones.

Re:THe chair is unimportant....

[arnie_apesacrappin]

Do some pilates or yoga.

The place I worked before my current employer had Aeron chairs. My back would occasionally get sore, but nothing horrible. My current job has generic office chairs that are in bad shape. After about a month, I was seeing a massage therapist every other week.

That's a bit expensive, so I decided to make some changes. I found the best chair I could at the office, which helped a little. I also started doing yoga. This helped a great deal.

Some exercises that really helped my back are:

• http://www.santosha.com/asanas/chakra.html The wheel and bridge positions. The bridge is easier than the wheel but still really helps the lower back. I use one of those large exercise balls to do a modified wheel pose. I'm still not strong enough to do the wheel for more than 30 seconds or so, but I can get mostly the same effect using the exercise ball. One good routine for back stretching is to alternate the bridge with pulling your knees to your chest. Works wonders.
• http://www.santosha.com/asanas/naga.html The cobra position. I think it's also called the upward facing dog. This is a good one for the lower back as well.
• http://www.santosha.com/asanas/bala.html The child position. It's a groovy, chill out kind of pose. Very relaxing and a nice stretch.

If you're interested in yoga but don't want to buy a video, there is a show on Oxygen every morning at 6:00 a.m. (at least in my market). It's fairly intense, but you can at least watch it to get an idea of the various poses and positions.