People who spend the maximum time of the day sitting down in a chair are likely to develop more health problems than others. If your job requires you to sit straight for 7 to 8 hours in a chair, the least you can do is use an ergonomic chair to take care of your health and sit comfortably. Not only do ergonomic chairs ensure a proper sitting posture, giving you more comfort, but enhances your productivity as well.
While a lot of people nowadays work in offices, sitting in a chair all day, they are unaware of how to sit in a proper posture.
If you are lately experiencing backaches, neck pains and other health problems, you must pay attention to the way you sit in your chair. This guide explains in detail how to maintain the right chair seat angle.
Experts advise people to sit with one’s back straight, feet firmly placed on the ground, knees bent at 90 degree angle. While this is a proper position that people must remember, they must also make time to walk around and stretch after regular time intervals. It’s important to change your posture after regular intervals.
Let’s now get back to the guide for maintaining a straight posture while sitting in a chair to ensure good health.
How To Adjust Office Chair?
Here’s a step by step guide on how to get the appropriate chair seat angle for a comfortable seating posture.
Establish the height of your workstation
Make sure the height of the workstation is neither more nor less. Usually workstations cannot be adjusted but if you can, make sure you don’t have to look above or below to see the workstation. Your workstation must be at a height where your elbows can be at a 90 degree angle when you rest your hands on the desk.
Adjust the chair height
Now it’s time to adjust the height of the chair as per your convenience. Usually, all ergonomic chairs come with the height adjustment feature, among others. You have to either lift the chair or lower it, to get your comfortable seating posture.
The height adjustment is done by a pneumatic cylinder that’s located beneath the seat in an ergonomic chair. It controls the drop and lift action, which is made possible by a lever, present on either side of the seat in most chair models. The level comes with up/ down arrows, denoting lift and drop, respectively.
Adjust the height of the chair so that your elbows are at a 90 degree angle when you rest them on the desk.
Adjust the tilt tension of the chair
To make your office chair lean back, when you want to relax, find the seat tilt adjustment knob, underneath the seat.
To adjust tilt on office chair, turn the knob in a clockwise or anticlockwise direction, as required.
Tilting forward ensures blood flow to your lower body while working intently on your computer, while tilting back allows you to lean back and take a break.
While adjusting the office chair seat angle, keep it in a slightly reclining position but make sure that you feet touch the ground. This position transfers some weight to the backrest, allowing the user to relax.
Check your foot support
While you are working to get the appropriate seat angle, it’s important to consider whether or not your foot is rightly placed on the ground. The height of the chair must allow you to place your feet flat on the ground.
While sitting on the chair, measure the distance between the thighs and the edge of the chair and see if there’s roughly a finger’s width of space between them.
To ensure lower back comfort and to maintain the correct seating posture, firm support of the feet is needed.
If you have a short height, place a foot rest beneath to improve your posture. Always remember that your knees must form a 90 degree angle while you sit.
For people who are taller, raise the height of the chair further if you haven’t found the proper seating angle yet.
Don’t miss:
How Do You Fix a Chair That Keeps Sinking
How to Fix a Wobbly Chair
How To Fix An Office Chair That Leans Back
Adjust the depth of the chair
The next step is determining the depth of the chair seat. For that, you must measure the distance between your calves and your office chair. Maintain at least 5 cm or 2 inches gap between the two.
If the distance is too small, it means the seat is too deep and you need to bring the backrest forward. This is possible in most ergonomic chairs. You simply have to pull the depth adjustment lever, and push the seat forward. If your chair has the knob mechanism then turn the knob in the clockwise direction to adjust the backrest.
If the space is too much, you must move the backrest backwards. For that, pull the depth adjustment lever and push the seat backward or turn the knob in an anticlockwise direction.
Wondering why is it important to check the depth of your chair seat ? It’s important to avoid slouching or slumping while working for long hours. Proper back support is needed so that your back doesn’t hurt and therefore prevents low back injuries in the long run.
Adjust the height of the backrest
Now, adjusting the height of the chair and adjusting the height of the backrest are two different things. By now you have already adjusted the height of the chair in accordance to the height of your workstation.
Now, it’s time to adjust the backrest for a comfortable seating position. Make sure the protruding part of the well cushioned office chair accommodates your lower back region, especially the waist.
In some office chair models, the backrest height can also be adjusted! To adjust it properly, sit with your feet on the ground, and elbows at a 90 degree angle on the armrest. Now adjust the backrest up or down, based on the kind of support you want to provide to your back.
Ensure that the lumbar curve of your lower back portion gets plenty of firm support from the backrest.
Adjusting the backrest height is pretty simple. Simply turn the knob to move the backrest up and down.
If you are looking forward to buying a new office chair, make sure it comes with all these features. Not only do these features give you comfort while sitting but also ensure good health in the long run. Needless to mention, it also improves your productivity!
Adjust the lumbar support
Does your chair have a small plastic piece attached to the backrest? Not every chair has it. If your chair has one, you can adjust that piece by sliding it up or down so that it gives support to the lower part of your spine.
Keep adjusting the lumbar support by sliding its position until you have found a comfortable position.
Adjust the armrests
Adjusting the height of the armrest is also needed. Keep your arms at a 90 degree angle and make sure it’s at your elbow height when you keep your shoulders relaxed.
In some of the latest chairs, the armrests can be slided in or out. That allows the user to use the armrest according to one’s comfort. For instance, if you have to write, slide the armrests in. Similarly, if you have to play games with the mouse, slide them out.
This means, as your tasks keep changing, you can use the armrests likewise for your support and comfort. Do not keep the armrests too high as they force you to slouch or shrug, while working.
Don’t miss:
How to Fix a Squeaky Desk Chair
What is tilt tension on a chair
Why Does My Chair Squeak When I Lean Back
The Bottom Line
By now you know why people need to know about adjusting the right seat angle. It’s the key to maintaining an appropriate seating position and therefore, good health.
But that’s not all. Besides maintaining this ideal seating position, you must walk around daily and stretch your body, to prevent stiffness and muscle pain. Experts advise against maintaining one strict position all day.
Before you proceed to buy any kind of chair, be it a new gaming chair or office chair, you must conduct thorough research.
This will help you know the best models of ergonomic chairs available in the market. Not all chairs come with all features. Therefore, before making a decision, compare the chairs and the features they come with. Choose the one that provides you with all the latest features needed to maintain a perfect posture.