How to set up your office chair

Posture is vitally important as people can spend up to 8 hours a day sitting at their desk. Although users may not suffer from back pain and other musculoskeletal disorders, sitting incorrectly can cause them in later life. So, how should you set your chair up?

1) Your chair needs to be set to the correct height. Assuming the desk is a fixed height, with shoulders relaxed and elbows at right angles, the palms of your hands should be level with the top of the desk. Your feet should rest flat on the floor in front of you. If they don’t you will need something to rest them on.

2) If the desk is height adjustable, first set the chair to the correct height so that your feet are flat on the floor. Then set the desk height so that the palms of the hands are level with the desk top whilst shoulders are relaxed and elbows are at right angles.

3) Set the seat up. If the chair has a tilt facility, adjust it so there is a forward tilt on the seat making the knees lower than the hips. This relieves pressure on the lumbar region and improves posture. Now, ensure you are sitting back in the chair, there should be the width of two to three fingers between the back of the knees and the front of the seat. If the depth of the seat is incorrect, check if it has a seat slide to allow depth adjustment?

4) Set the height of the back, so that the lumbar support fits into the small of your back and supports the lumbar region. Check to see whether the chair has an adjustable lumbar support. If so, try adjusting it until you feel there is good support for your lower back.

5) Set the back rake. Ideally, the back angle should be approximately 100-110 degrees from the base of the seat, which would equate to 10-20 degrees from vertical. Once the back rake is set, it may be necessary to readjust the back height.

6) Does your chair have arms and if so, are they adjustable? If they are adjustable, set them to a height where you can get close enough to the desk to avoid the need to sit forwards on the chair. If they are not adjustable, do they allow you to pull yourself close to the desk? If not, it may be worth removing them.

Now your chair is set up correctly, remember to take regular breaks, move around and stretch.

This covers the basic set up of your office chair. If you have any questions or would like advice on seating and workstation set up, please call us or visit our showroom. Your comfort is our priority.