Chicken Obsession!

[Ain't Nobody Here 4]

I've been having problems with my lower back for a few years. After 4 days in Athens where I walked for hours and hardly sat down at all (except to eat and drink!) my back was feeling great. I'm now home and spending time sitting at my laptop and I'm getting the same old aches and even some new ones. I do see a chiropractor fairly often but that's treating the symptoms rather than the cause.

 

I've wondered for a while about getting a posture or kneeling chair but they're really expensive so want to research whether they're worth it.

 

The Wave Seat looks simple and seems to be effective from the reviews. Has anyone tried it? Or got recommendations for another type? I'm not sure about the ones you kneel on, reviews talk about getting sore knees after a while.

[Cat tails 928]

I have taken to working at my computer standing.

My classroom isn't really equiped for it, but I just prop up my laptop on a stack of schoolbooks.

For me too, this solved almost all my back problems. They only surface again after a weekend hanging around on the couch.

 

I would get a standing desk. Probably easier, cheaper and more effective than those chairs.

[Ain't Nobody Here 4]

I hadn't even realised those existed . I've found one that looks perfect and have already rearranged my furniture so it has somewhere to go! Thanks for the suggestion .

[The Dogmother 581]

I agree Vicki, standing and moving around is much better for your posture, and thought processes too

 

I have had a kneeling chair, which I found uncomfortable, and now have a wobble cushion at my home desk. To be honest, they are all only as 'good as they are used' - it is like walking; if you do it with bad posture and lazily, then it doesn't do you as much good as if you use correct posture and stride. It is perfectly possible to sit on any of these with bad posture, and to make no positive gains; you need to be mindful of your body and core muscles.

 

If you are plagued by back pain, then you would be better off learning how to engage and use your core muscles, and perhaps studying the Alexander Technique, which promotes good posture, or PIlates. I trained as a personal trainer in my 20s, and should know better, but when i was pregnant, carrying a heavy (for me) baby, my back and posture suffered and I was too tired to correct it. I had really bad lumbar problems for a couple of years after giving birth, until a friend reminded me of what I used to teach! now i try to engage my core and be aware of how I walk/my posture.

 

I hope that you get it sorted.

[Ain't Nobody Here 4]

Well, I've saved myself £££££ by moving my computer to where I do my colouring . If my back really does improve, I may consider getting a desk but I don't really have room for it so hopefully this will do the trick .

 

[Cat tails 928]

Smart thinking!

Instead of a full sized desk, you could also opt for a wide, sturdy shelve. If it's only your laptop you are using, you don't need that much space.

[Blackrocksrock 40]

Had kneeling stool at work when my bad was bad - also a wobble cushion - nowadays I have bad knees and cannot use the kneeling stool and forget about the wobble cushion most of the time as knees worse than back!! You seem to have a good idea there with standing at the computer.

[Snowy 0]

If I work from home I use the ironing board, then I can raise or lower it. I stay awake better if I work standing.

[Ain't Nobody Here 4]

That's a good idea . I'm certainly finding I'm spending less time on my laptop which can only be good for my back and posture.

[The Dogmother 581]

When you are checking your posture at whatever work station you have; bear in mind that the top of your screen should be in line with the top of your head, and your keyboard should be positioned so that you can type with your elbows by your side and your arms bent at 90deg.

 

That's why laptops on their own are so bad for your posture (I do work station assessments as part of my job) where possible, use a screen lift for your laptop, and separate keyboard and mouse. At work, I have a docking station for my lappy, and a screen on a riser, wireless keyboard and mouse - works well for me, and I unplug the laptop when I go to meetings and use it conventionally then. I have the same set-up at home.

[Ain't Nobody Here 4]

I do have a laptop riser and I have a separate keyboard which now sits on top of the laptop keyboard so my elbows are at right angles. The screen is nowhere near eye level though, is that a problem if the keyboard is at the right height?

[The Dogmother 581]

Yes (sorry) as bending your head down to look at the screen puts strain further down your back. If you think that your head weighs roughly 4-5lbs, then you get an idea of the strain caused if that weight is hanging rather than being supported by your neck.

[Cat tails 928]

If the screen isn't high enough, you will tilt your head foward and strain your neck muscles.

I have no option for a laptop riser, so I make sure I'm not using it for long periods. Since I'm teaching most of the time, it's not a real problem.

[Ain't Nobody Here 4]

I was going to come on and say that it's only my eyes that are having to look downwards as I can tilt the laptop screen back but on moving my head to see how it all works, you're right, my head is having to tilt downwards a little .

[Cat tails 928]

I think it depends a lot on the amount of time you will spend behind the laptop.

When I'm doing my crochetting I'm not holding my work up to eye level either.

[Ain't Nobody Here 4]

They say necessity is the mother of invention so I've spent the last hour creating my own standing desk .

 

I took the bottom drawer out of an old chest of drawers which I only use for odds and ends (and sits in a cupboard so isn't on view), taken off the front and then sawed the ends off (bit messy as it's MDF which split and shredded a bit ) but I think it's going to work rather well . The drawer front sits on a wooden box which slides underneath when I'm not using it. It's a bit rough round the edges but I'm rubbish at DIY and don't have any decent equipment.

 

My elbows and eyes are now at the right height .

[Cat tails 928]

You smart cookie!

Hope it works!

[The Dogmother 581]

WoW, I am dead impressed at your creativity and upcycling skills!

[Luvachicken 516]

In the little café at Carding Mill Valley in Shropshire, a bit of a way from Scotland I know, but they had beautiful wooden seats all carved to the opposite shape of a bottom.

I had my doubts about how comfy they would be but I think they were one of the best things I've ever sat on.

If I could find one to buy I would.

 

Love your upcycling though ANH