If you have an office job, sooner or later your back is bound to get sore. It could be because of bad posture, not taking the right breaks and exercises, the wrong chair... or all of them at the same time. The truth is that there are no miracles, but choosing a good chair and following the recommendations of professionals can help you to avoid this situation or minimise it. And if you spend long hours in stress and often play, more of the same. In this guide to buying chairs for work and play, you'll find out what to consider when choosing a model and a variety of chairs of different types and budgets.
The ergonomics vs. comfort dilemma
Good and bad computer posture
Hands up anyone who hasn't heard the saying "sit well" from a teacher or from our parents. Everyone knows that it is important to have a straight back, which in theory should be achieved by positioning it close to the back of the chair. In the same way, it is also advisable to work with your legs bent, forming a right angle at the knees, and with your eyes at the same level as the screen. From this it is clear that an ergonomic chair would be the one that allows us to fulfil these premises, regardless of how we are.
However, ergonomics is somewhat at odds with comfort. Some time ago we asked a number of physiotherapists what the ideal chair should be like. They surprised us by explaining that a comfortable chair is going to stop us from moving. In the long run, that means pain. Moreover, comfort does not minimise back pain.
One of the experts interviewed stressed that we have to "get up and stretch (neck, back, arms and legs) at least every two hours to avoid numbness in the legs due to lack of blood circulation and overloading of the muscles".
So we insist: you have to move. If we achieve this goal, we can opt for models that offer us comfort so that, while we are sitting, we can do so in comfort but without neglecting our posture.
Design: the most important thing is for it to be adjustable
Apart from the flashy finishes, shapes and colours that we are going to find in many gaming chairs and whose main purpose is aesthetic, we will proceed to outline what a chair should be like to spend many hours in it.
As everyone is different and has different characteristics - not only height or weight, but also spinal curvature or even ailments - it is essential that the chair you choose is as adjustable as possible. It is essential that it has castors, as this helps us to move around the desk and avoid awkward positions.
The adjustable parameter par excellence present in most office and gaming chairs is the height. Here the aim is for the feet to rest on the floor with the hips slightly above the knees, forming a right angle so that the posture of the pelvis is neutral. Also - although we can play with the height of the monitor - it is desirable to have the screen in front of the eyes, so that the neck is not strained.
Being able to tilt backwards opens the door to greater "comfort", although it must be able to distribute our weight adequately and support it comfortably. In any case, rather than tilting, the important thing is that it can tilt to support changes in posture, inclination...
It is advisable that our work chair has armrests, which allow us to rest our elbows and help us get up, but also that these can be removed. And if we have to get close to the screen - whether it is to look in detail at what is in a box or to look at Excel cells - it is better to remove them so that they do not hit against the table and restrict us. And a very desirable plus: they should also be adjustable.
In our buying guide according to the experts, one "controversial" issue was the presence of a lumbar cushion. And while a slight prominence is useful for supporting this part of the spine, we must bear in mind that not all of us have the same spine, so it is better to opt for a neutral chair and, if it is included, the lumbar cushion should be adjustable.
Something completely optional that we usually find in tilting chairs is the footrest. In this regard, it is sufficient to adjust the height accordingly. In addition, the wheels and legs also allow us to lean on it.
Materials: looking for resistance and comfort
In a chair in which we are going to spend many hours, it is desirable for it to be robust and resistant, both in its mechanical elements - such as wheels and levers - and structural, with materials such as steel or nylon among the most interesting. And without forgetting that the textile part is the one that is in contact with us.
Iconic series such as Mad Men bring to mind leather chairs, but beyond that aspirational feeling of luxury, there are materials that aesthetically look great, with high resistance and that also favour transpiration. Because with leather in summer, you're going to get a bit of a hot summer. In the more affordable ranges we find PVC, polyurethane and variants that emulate leather with varying degrees of success.
So it's worth spending a little time checking that the fabric - or textile combination - is breathable, hypoallergenic and non-slip.
It is also important to pay attention to the padding: it should be neither too rigid nor too soft, so that it "cushions" the structure for comfort but maintains its shape. In this sense, it is best to try the chair out if you have the opportunity before you buy it.