❌ Mouth breathing ❌ Long-duration cardio training to “lose weight” ❌ Being sore from training “is a good thing” ❌ An ergonomic computer workstation “is expensive”
Welcome to my Computer Posture Propaganda Series (that I’m not falling for). This is Part 4. Image by Andrey Popov via Megapixl.
I sat at a computer with poor posture for a decade.
What actually matters to me now is:
✅ Computer posture correction ✅ Intentional ergonomics ✅ Sleeping 8 hours consistently ✅ Heat therapy (sauna) ✅ Cold therapy (plunge) ✅ Chiropractic / Soft tissue work ✅ Clean water with amino acids added ✅ Grass-fed, pasture-raised meat ✅ Organic fruits and vegetables ✅ Cooking in healthy animal fats
If you want to learn the steps on how I improve my computer posture without buying a new desk or chair, then follow these steps!
Here’s how I improve my computer posture without buying a new desk or chair.
Step 1: Adjust my chair height until my elbow level is a couple inches higher than desk level. This decreased my shoulder pain.
Notice how these 3 rules apply, regardless if we’re working in a sitting or standing position (elbow level, eye level, and feet flat). Image by Reneshia via Megapixl.
Step 2: Adjust my monitor height until the top of the screen is at my eye level. This decreased my neck pain and headaches.
Ever wonder why you have chronic pain after a day at the computer?
Back, neck, shoulder pain…
🤕 I did too…
Until I dug into what 20,000+ hours hunched over a keyboard was doing to me.
Computer-Related Injuries and Healthy Ergonomic Habits. Image by ChatGPT.
This article will talk about different computer-related injuries. Then, it’ll talk about how to decrease those injuries with healthy computer ergonomic habits.
I’m not a doctor, physical therapist, or personal trainer.
I’ve learned some valuable habits from those people.
But some of them have also steered me in the wrong direction.
Image by @austinkleon via Instagram. I screenshotted this image off Austin Kleon’s Instagram many years ago. And it’s helped me through heavy moments of imposter syndrome.
Computer Posture Guinea Pig
Who I am…I write about my personal experience.
It combines: → My athletic background → My IT / Ergonomics background → How I sat at a computer with poor posture for 10 years → How I fixed my computer posture in 2011 → How I share what I’ve learned with others → Finally, I enjoy writing (I wasn’t good at taking tests)
Back pain is a common issue for those of us who spend long periods of time at a computer.
❓But why does our back hurt from sitting?
We aren’t taking any hard impact, like running, or falling on the ground.
We aren’t lifting anything heavy, which is another obvious cause of back pain.
How to Maintain a Neutral Spine at a Computer. Image by ChatGPT.
“Sit up straight” isn’t good enough advice anymore. We need to really understand what we’re doing wrong, before we can correct our sitting posture.
I’ve learned that 3 mistakes contributed the most to my (computer-related) back pain. This article will describe those posture mistakes, as well as 3 different solutions to help us maintain a neutral spine while sitting at a computer.
Sleep isn’t just for rest. It’s one of the most overlooked variables of computer ergonomics. 💻
If we’re not sleeping well, our body doesn’t recover properly. That means we wake up tight, tired, and already behind on muscle recovery from yesterday. 😴
Optimize Your Sleep Environment for Better Computer Ergonomics. Image by ChatGPT.
Before we even open our laptop in the morning, poor sleep quality can lead to stiff joints, inflamed muscles, and the same slouched computer posture we’ve been trying to fix for years. 😫
This article talks about my 5 favorite ways to optimize my sleep environment for better computer ergonomics. 💤
Nobody talks about this. And it always surprises me.
Sitting up too straight is a computer posture mistake I used to make. It caused repetitive strain injuries, as well as spinal disc degeneration. Image by ChatGPT.
Instead, I say:
👍 “Sit with an upright torso. While maintaining a neutral, balanced spine, with its natural curves intact.”