The Ultimate Guide to Setting Up an Ergonomic Home Office
Working from home can save money and time, while also being beneficial to your body if done right. But making sure your workspace is more ergonomic-friendly doesn’t need to cost a fortune; here’s how.
Simply ensuring your desk is set at an ideal height and installing a monitor arm or stand can reduce wrist and eyestrain significantly.
1. Get the Right Chair
Home office chairs are more than mere convenience; they’re essential to good ergonomics. Working on a sofa all day may feel comfortable, but sitting too long could lead to back problems and other health concerns. An ergonomic chair can help ensure that you’re sitting comfortably, supporting your spine properly, and avoiding back pain altogether.
An ergonomic chair should fit you comfortably. Anything too small could suffocate you, while something too large could lead to forward leaning posture and strain on your neck.
Ergonomic chairs provide excellent support at various price points, with chairs under $500 providing both comfort and style. Other ergonomic accessories that may help reduce stress include an adjustable desk that allows users to alternate between sitting and standing positions, footrests for when you sit, ergonomic keyboard and mouse setups to ease wrist strain, as well as local office suppliers offering further advice regarding which furniture or equipment may best suit a hybrid office setup.
2. Get the Right Desk
When creating the ideal home office environment, desk and chair play an equal role. An optimal setup can help prevent discomfort while remaining focused and productive.
Home office desks that offer both standing and sitting options should also provide the ideal height for optimal posture when sitting down. In particular, your elbows should bend at about 90-degree angles when typing; to achieve this ideal, measure from floor to where your elbows bend before subtracting one or two inches and adjust monitor and keyboard height so they are at eye level when sitting down.
Other ergonomic adjustments might include footrests for relieving pressure on legs and feet, document holders to reduce neck strain when reading physical documents, wrist rests to ease hand stress and adjustable lighting to eliminate screen glare. Even without enough funds for an entirely new desk setup, these small changes can have an enormous effect.
3. Get the Right Monitor
No matter your experience level or starting point in remote work, an ergonomic home office setup is key to your wellbeing and can reduce risks like sprains and backaches.
Adjustable monitors offer greater comfort for eyestrain relief. A larger screen size may also prove useful for people who spend most of their time participating in video conferencing calls so they can see all parties clearly during calls.
Choose a monitor with an anti-glare screen to reduce distractions caused by glare and reflections, and ensure your display has matte rather than glossy appearance if your workspace faces windows or bright lighting that could reflect onto it. This feature may be especially important if your workspace faces windows which might cast shadows onto the monitor’s surface and reflect off into its screen.
Choose a monitor with high resolution to achieve optimal image quality and sharpness, and consider its refresh rate (how often the screen updates per second) carefully if you are a graphic designer or video editor; an ideal monitor would have at least 75Hz refresh rate.
4. Get the Right Accessories
Office ergonomics that promote comfort while you work can also serve to elevate your workspace. A decorative waste basket, pretty mugs for pencil holders and trendy notepads will keep your desk organized while lifting your mood and lifting spirits at work.
Ergonomic accessories can help to ease discomfort and avoid future issues. A monitor stand or arm allows you to position the screen at an appropriate height and distance for your eyes, relieving neck strain. Ergonomic keyboards and mice support neutral typing posture and wrist strain reduction. And footstools like Roost or Humanscale FR500 raise feet up so as to relieve lower back and knee stress.
As with any ergonomic home office solution, an ergonomic home office does not fit all. Regular assessments and adjustments should be conducted for optimal comfort, productivity and health benefits. Implementing healthy practices through ergonomic choices will lead to long-term comfort, productivity and health advantages.
5. Get the Right Lighting
People tend to focus more on expensive desks and chairs when setting up an ergonomic home office, neglecting lighting as an afterthought – this is unfortunate, given that good workplace lighting can help alleviate eye strain, headaches and fatigue while simultaneously improving mood and productivity.
Layering lighting in your home office is key, with task lamps strategically placed to illuminate your work area and reduce monitor glare. Opting for LED bulbs helps conserve energy while still offering optimal color temperature levels for your workspace.
Accent lighting can add a stylish touch to any home office while drawing attention to special items, like artwork or awards. A ceiling light with soft lighting behind the monitor helps create bias lighting which minimizes contrast between its bright display and dark background for minimal shadowing effects.
An ergonomic home office isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution, so be sure to evaluate and make adjustments as necessary for comfort and productivity. Incorporating healthy work habits such as frequent stretching breaks will keep you feeling productive throughout your day.
