By Eveline Erni, P.T.

My previous column dealt extensively in what to look for in an office chair and how to adjust that chair to properly support your body. All of that is very important, however, if you work extensively on a computer it is only half of the equation. Your positioning in relation to the keyboard and screen are equally crucial.

So what I’d like to address is a checklist of factors that will keep you comfortable while working those long, grueling hours at the keyboard. Get in the habit of using this list as the operators’ manual for the carbon-based life-form portion of the human-computer interaction.

1. Head: It should be directly over your shoulders without straining forward to peer at the computer screen or pulling backward in a pathetic attempt to avoid looking at it.
2. Neck: It should be relaxed. If you feel neck strain it is a pretty good sign that you are doing something wrong.
3. Back: By now you should know that the chair should support the natural contours of the back.
4. Elbows: Upper arms on your side (don’t reach forward), elbows at about a 90-degree angle and hopefully, supported by armrests.
5. Wrists: Think neutral! Neither flexed up nor down but more as an extension of the forearm.
6. Chair seat: Slightly sloped forward to relieve the pressure spot at the front of the chair on the underside of the thighs. Seat height adjusted so that your hips are at 90 degrees or slightly higher.
7. Feet: Firmly plant them on the floor (or a small foot rest if you need it) and make sure you maintain a right angle at the knees. Don’t cross your knees.
8. Computer screen: Center of screen slightly below eye level.
9. Computer keyboard: Should feel most comfortable positioned slightly below elbow level, so that elbow maintains 90-degree angle and the fingers can drop down to the keys.

To digress for a moment, I now have a child who is school age and as a consequence I find myself back in kindergarten (on occasion). It has been my experience that most classrooms have absolute no regard for the ergonomics of operating a computer. Children are developing enormously bad habits that will create serious neck, spine, back, shoulder and arm problems in the future. Think about it and if you have some children start looking around your school. You might be surprised what you find!

So apply what is listed above to your everyday work environment. After all, what do you have to lose but that annoying neck ache?