Ergonomics for professional academic writers

If you're like me, you spend way too much time at the computer. How do you avoid back and neck problems? Any special chair or desk setup? I;m looking for a new workstation, and hoping for recommendations.

I keep a heating pad rubber-banded to the back of my desk chair.

I throw about 5 ants onto my back and they occasionally bite me; that way, i learn to keep my torso straight and alert as i slave for students for mere $2 pp.

That explains some of your comments, Queen Sheba.

Spend less time by computer.

I wouldn't be able to support all this bling-bling and all these ladies if I did that, Stu.

I keep an egg timer right next to my screen. if I have a lot of projects, I set it for 30 minutes. then, when it goes off, I go do something-- get coffee, exercise, whatever-- for 5-10 minutes. just sitting like a sack for hours is what takes its toll; you need to get up and move. also, you need a good chair.

oh, one other thing... keeping your screen at eye level is good for your neck. good luck!

How you do it with laptop?

That's pretty much the problem with laptops. There's no ergonomic position unless you run a separate keyboard, and possibly a monitor, too.

I've read about three-dimensional holographic displays that detect human hand and finger positions* so that users can "type" on projected QWERTY keyboards or use speech-recognition software that will do away with hardware once and for all. I hope I live to see it, but even if I do, after 40 years, I'll probably still have to sit at my desk to use it. I've tried using a laptop in front of the TV and working during commercials, but it just takes too much time to get back up to speed so I gave this up. The egg timer is a good idea.

*You might want to turn this feature off when not in use. No one wants to start their day by having their computer say, "Bill, about last night..."

i got into bikram yoga a few years back which i've noticed has helped a lot

professor verb and other experienced writers, i'm really interested to hear about your approach to the workday. i'm sort of tv addict so i work and watch television at the same time. admittedly this probably hurts my productivity. do you guys work in solitude? how does your day sort of unfold. thanks for all responses.

+1

the external monitor is more important than the separate keyboard.

I am excited about the possiblity of better voice recognition software, too.

I keep the tube on in the next room when I work, with the volume low, so that I can swivel my head to look at it through the door once in a while. it helps my eyes to focus on something far away.

editor75 do you use the voice software?

If I run separate keybord and monitor its desktop computer.

How I do it with laptop computer?

I don't use voice software, because I don't think it's accurate enough yet, but I sometimes daydream about how much easier it would make things.

I have a wireless keyboard and a big monitor both attached to my laptop-- take out the monitor cord and USB, and then it's portable again.

yeah i agree

After 40 years, it's just routine for me but I've learned some things that might interest you.

1. The wolf at the door is the most powerful motivator.

2. Deadlines are the second most.

3. Apply the one-bite-at-a-time approach ("You can eat an elephant...") -- take frequent breaks on big assignments (I keep Age of Empires running and ALT-Tab between work and play every so often).

4. Go to work as soon as you get up. Work until it hurts and then stop for awhile.

5. Keep pictures of the people you love and who are counting on you on your desk.

I've read where lawyers train themselves to go to the bathroom on schedule to increase their billable hours, but screw that.

professor verb,

i really appreciate your response, i'm definitely going to start incorporating these into my routine

Three from me:

1. Stay hydrated.
2. Walk around once per hour.
3. Stretch (particularly your hip flexors!). Sitting in the same position causes those muscles to shorten which can cause pain in the lower back.

Most def stretch out the hip flexors. Look up the yoga poses "dragon" and "warrior I" for this. Also there's a big danger of getting a hunched back on shoulders from crouching over the keyboard all day. You need to counteract that with a back-bend, like "sphinx". Sorry...I'm a bit of a yoga fanatic.

Looking for recommendations on a good ergonomic chair

I'm on the market for a new office chair. I figure, if anyone will know a good, sturdy, comfy and durable chair, it will be some of you guys. So feel free to recommend something that you've used, seen or heard of. I need something with excellent lumbar support and able to withstand heavy use.

Thanks

A sitting ball? :)

har har, you're as corny as PV it seems :)

The Indians call it "maize."

I recently purchased a convertible standing work station. Every time I feel a kink developing in my lower back, I convert the desk to a standing position. I work from this standing position until I feel the lower back pain subside. Then I take a walk around the house before getting back to work. If the standing work table doesn't change the feeling I have, if I do not get any relief from it, I go lie down on my memory foam mattress. I take a power nap in a fetal, hugging my knees sleeping position to release the spinal discs before I go into the straight lying position. The mattress offers great support for the lumbar region so I wake up feeling refreshed and ready to get back to the grind. I also do not forget to do stretches before sitting back down. It is important to alleviate the pressure on the spinal discs every so often since one can also gain a Slipped Disc even while sitting.

Find as many different workstations as possible and move from one to another before you spend enough time working to become uncomfortable in any one of them.

I do not think that there are any guaranteed ergonomic set ups in the market today that actually work. Rather than wasting money on those high priced ergonomic stuff, I just have a proper computer table and chair to work on. I stand up and stretch every chance I get, normally after every hour of sitting at the computer. I also lie down as often as I can and close my eyes to help with dryness and eye strain. While the computer table, chair, stretching exercises and workouts can only go so far in helping to keep me in a good shape to do the job, I also employ a regular masseuse who comes around twice a week to give me a full body massage. That works far better than any ergonomic set up I have ever used both at the office and at home.

I have a good chair and my monitor (large) it set at eye level, but I still have shoulder and neck pain. I only use my laptop if I just have to work remotely (I hate laptops). For those who've sat all day working, you know what a numb-butt is, too! I tend to pull my legs up to sit Indian-style, so there's that. Legs go to sleep, shifting, re-shifting. Other than us getting up and moving around every so often versus sitting for countless hours on end, there's nothing that's going to solve our aches and pains.

I've had friends and family who work outside the home complain about their feet being tired and swollen and tell me "at least you don't have to stand all day." No, I don't, but I'm sure many of you can relate to swollen feet from sitting all day. At the end of the day, most any job we do will bring aches. It's up to us to find out what will help alleviate the pain so we can keep on keeping on.

I find that walking around and stretching really helps. Because the amount of research that's constantly being done is quite troublesome, I ensure that I keep myself at bay by walking around from time to time. It also helps when I move around with my laptop. Having a generally relaxing atmosphere also helps me increase my general productiveness.

Get used to using a standing desk, too. I got one something like this about 10 years ago, but larger, sturdier, and less formal; then I had some work done to it to convert it into a standing desk with shelves and ports for pc equipment power cords and cables and a slide-out keyboard.

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  Home Bar/Standing Desk
  

This is helpful advice! Before I started, I thought I could just use the previous setup I had. Now that I'm truly delving into the work from home lifestyle, I realized how important it is to maintain a rather healthy approach towards all the hefty work.

I recently purchased an exercise work table so that I could fully utilize my work time and also save on gym memberships. My system allows me to walk on a treadmill while I work at the computer. I find that it helps to boost my creativity. Somehow, my creative juices get kicked into high gear, making the work more enjoyable and faster to accomplish. After I finish working, I make sure to get into my massage chair for a full body massage. I normally do this before bed, after my shower. It gets all of muscle aches and pains out and also relaxes my mind enough so that I can fall asleep faster. I normally wake up fully refreshed and ready to tackle another work day.

Back when essay companies were still the main source of my projects, I built a full gym in my apartment so that I wouldn't have to go out for 3 or 4 hours most days of the week just to get my workouts in. There was always intense competition to grab the best projects as soon as they got posted on the assignment board, so being away from my computer for several hours at a time almost every day was costing me a lot of money. I don't actually write (projects) during my workout, but I do answer emails in between my sets.