Live Well, Work Well: 5 Easy, Affordable Ways to Create An Ergonomic Work Space
Work has changed. Today, homes and offices all across the globe are striving to create spaces that adapt to people’s needs. We have long since realized that working back-breaking hours six days a week or speeding towards sleepless nights finishing impossible deadlines is no longer worth it. We now have taken to heart the age old adage: “Health is wealth.”
Effective workplaces realize this and are investing in creating both fun and functional office interiors – all aligned to people’s needs and activities. Gone are the days of the traditional desk-chair-cubicle setup. You can see more workplaces evolve to choosing healthy furnishing options such as using an adjustable standing desk as opposed to a traditional desk.
And this isn’t just limited to offices. Thanks to the internet and to today’s technology in general, more people are able to bring their work home – people can start e-businesses right from their own living rooms, while some people employed by companies, large or small, can download everything they need on their laptops and they can work from the comfort of their own home offices. Luckily, plenty of our favorite furniture providers offer several ergonomic furniture options and solutions to make working at home easier.
But hey, we can tell you that you don’t need to limit yourself to changing your furniture when creating your own ergonomic space. It’s not just all about getting a standing desk. Nope. We can tell you that there are several (and cheap) ways that you can add ergonomic elements to your own space.
Before we get to that, however, let’s do a quick rundown of why it’s important for you to consider ergonomic products and solutions for your work space:
The most important reason is your health. An adaptable standing desk, for example, can do wonders for anyone who works in front of a desk all day. Medical professionals recommend mixing a healthy dose of standing in between sitting all throughout your work day and getting a standing desk that can be customized to fit your preferences is a great way to have healthier work day.
The second thing is increased productivity. We rely on our computers and laptops for everything. If our tools are not aligned to our needs, it lessens our productivity. Therefore, it’s only natural that all our work essentials must be in sync with our daily work routine. This way, we are able to do more and be more because everything we need is attuned to our body’s needs – the monitor is tilted just the right way, cables and wires hidden, everything is organized in just the right way to make sure that you work well every single day.
We can honestly go on and on about the importance for all this but we think that with those two reasons alone, you get the picture here.
So, let’s get to it.
1. Get a freestanding workstation
What’s great about a freestanding workstation is that you get all the perks of an ergonomic work space for the price of one. And because it’s freestanding, you can basically put it on any surface. You don’t need to change anything; you can keep your favorite desk and basically convert it into an adjustable standing desk within minutes.
Our favorite is the Jestik Air Freestanding Sit-Stand Workstation. You can choose from single, dual, triple or quad. That refers to the number of monitors the workstation can support. It comes with a really spacious work surface that can carry all your essentials. The monitor arms are so versatile that it’s so easy to configure your monitors: you can remove, adjust or replace monitors with ease. You can also tilt, swivel or rotate your monitors depending on your preferences. The column comes with a locking mechanism so that when you feel like it’s time for you to stand, you can do so by smoothly sliding up the work surface. Simply lock it into place when you achieve your desired height. It’s simply a durable stand up workstation that answers all your body’s needs.
It truly offers you multiple benefits. By just using one product, you can minimize all types of health issues – back pain, eye strain, neck pain and it offers the most perfect way start getting more active all throughout your work day.
2. Invest in your hands
Whether you’re working or gaming, your hands get the brunt of all your hard work. Literally, you will spend thousands of hours using your hands. That’s why it’s just common sense to invest in a good mouse and keyboard combo. TopRateTen.com gives us the most recent reviews of the 10 best mouse and keyboard combos for August 2016. We suggest you take a look at it, check out what works best for you and go for it. You and your hands will thank us later.
3. Invest in your eyes
The experts at AllAboutVision.com tells us that “computer eye strain has become a major job-related complaint” and goes on to suggest simple ways to for fast relief from eye strain. To be honest - we’re not really surprised that people working in front of a monitor complain about eye strain. Looking at that brightly-lit screen can take a toll on your vision. Lifehacker.com also has two solutions that anyone can easily do.
Your eyes are your windows to the world, so they say. It’s worth taking the time to take care of them.
4. Stay active all throughout your day
As tempting as it is to just sit there until it’s time for you to leave work, that’s not really healthy. Also, if you think that hitting the gym after a long day of sitting in front of your desk will make up for all that time sitting, you’re wrong too. The Smithsonian lists down every single important reason why you should mix a healthy dose of activity all throughout your work day. So we’re saying - it’s just not us. Experts and health professionals discourage anyone from prolonged sitting.
The team here at Jestik, we sit around all day, too; just like everyone else. Insider tip from us here: stand/stretch/walk around outside (preferably) for 5 to 10 minutes for every 2 hours that you sit. It will work wonders.
5. Sleep better, work better
Lifehacker unlocks a few tips and advice about how to sleep better by improving your sleep posture. Sleep is how our body makes up for all that energy we’ve spent during the day – that much we know. But we also need to remind you that getting a good night’s sleep greatly contributes to a good day’s work. Jane Porter from the helpscout.net discusses everything you need to know about why a rough night equals a rough day at work, too. She also includes practical tips on how you can sleep and nap better.
How does sleeping create an ergonomic environment? Well, we decided to include this particular advice to let you know that no matter how sophisticated your work tools might be, things just simply won’t work as well as they should without getting the right amount of sleep. We thought it would be great to remind you of that.
There you have it - five simple easy ways to get you all set for a work or gaming space that adapts to your needs. Maybe you’ve got a few ideas of your own now and that’s great, too. The important thing is we want to let you know that life is more than work. That’s why surrounding yourself with the right work tools allows you to get more out of each and every work day and therefore, make you get more out of life.
