How to Make an Office Chair More Comfortable

1/14/2019

When sitting at your desk all day, your office chair can quickly become the most uncomfortable place to sit. You could have the best office chair on the market, but if you don’t have it adjusted properly, you’re likely to end up with headaches, poor posture, and less productivity. To help combat this, here is a list of ways to make your office chair more comfortable.

Start with Proper Posture

When sitting in your chair, you’ll want to be sure you’re always using proper posture. Push your hips as far back as they go in the chair, have your feet flat on the floor, and your knees equal to, or slightly lower than your hips. If you can’t achieve the proper posture, keep reading for some accessories you can buy to achieve the proper posture.

Have Your Chair Properly Adjusted to the Right Height

Use our free ergonomic desk height calculator to quickly calculate your ideal ergonomic desk height and chair height. This will help to ensure optimal comfort every time you do sit down at your desk.

The proper height is going to depend on the height of the individual who is sitting down in that chair, so its best to use a calculator to figure out the ideal height for your chair, desk, and monitor to avoid strain.

Try Our Office Workstation Ergonomic Calculator

If you don’t want to break out the measuring tape to figure out how to properly set up your office chair, the Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety suggests that you can find the right height by standing in front of the chair and adjusting its height so that the highest point of the seat is just below your knee cap.

Consider Adding a Lumbar Support Pillow

A lumbar support pillow supports your lumbar and lower back while reducing the pressure to your spine and shoulders. This is a great addition for your chair if you don’t have approximately a 2-3 inch gap between the back of your legs and the front of your chair. The lumbar support pillow will help to take the weight and pressure off the lower back and redistributes it evenly.

If your chair lacks lumbar support or the ability to adjust the lumbar support that it has, consider adding one of these, as research has proven that lumbar support has benefits if you're suffering from lower back pain, and even if you are completely healthy.

When I had to use an old office chair in my office I used this lumbar support pillow and highly recommend it.

Get a Footrest (if needed)

This tip is especially useful for folks who have short legs and need to have their chair higher to comfortably work at their office desk. A foot rest will help keep your feet from hanging, when they should actually be flat on the floor. Not only will the foot rest keep your feet from hanging, it will also help with keeping your back aligned and maintaining circulation. If you're suffering from lower back pain at the office it might not be your chair that's the problem.

Adjust the Arms on Your Chair

Adjust the Arms on Your Office Chair to Prevent Shoulder Tension & Strain

Most people never think about adjusting the arms on their office chair. Check yours to see if you can adjust the arms in and out or up and down. If it can't, consider asking your company to buy you one of the best ergonomic chairs like these ones from Herman Miller.

Having adjustable arms on an office chair will help you to maintain a proper ergonomic position by keeping your shoulder muscles from tightening or straining to hold your arms in the same position for hours at a time. When you have the arm rests properly adjusted, they’ll provide the proper support, so your entire body can be more relaxed.

Start Using an Adjustable Monitor Mount

Not all desks are suitable for creating the right height for your monitor relative to where you sit and type. An adjustable monitor mount can help prevent neck and eye strain. Not only that, with the right monitor mount you can also have more than one monitor mounted, which can reduce your movements and effort throughout the work day by giving you more screen real estate to work on.

Using a multi monitor setup with the best monitor mounts will also keep your head moving from side to side instead of staring at one position for too long. If you are already using more than one monitor at work, consider upgrading to a new monitor desk mount to get your setup dialed in ergonomically, and if you are still just using a single monitor, it might be time to upgrade. Multiple displays can increase productivity by 42%, according to Jon Peddie Research.

Either way, consult our in-depth guide on the subject to find the best setup for your needs.

Don't Underestimate The Importance of Taking Regular Breaks

Take Breaks to Stand, Stretch and Stretch Regularly

No matter how comfortable your chair has now become with these tips, be sure to take a 1-2 minute break to stretch every 20-30 minutes. This will help relieve the tension that has built up in your muscles while sitting at your desk, can help reduce static postures, and will break up any repetitive movements you’ve been doing. To be the most productive, you really should be taking a 5 minute break every 25 minutes anyways. This is a time management method called the Pomodoro Technique.

Even with these tips, some people may still struggle with lower back pain from sitting too much. If that sounds like you, you may benefit from switching to a standing desk or standing desk riser (here's a review of my favorite).

If you do decide to make the switch to a more active workstation, check out our standing desk posture tips & best practices article so you can have a happy, healthy, and successful transition and avoid the common mistakes people make when transitioning to a standing desk at work.

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