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Ergonomics for designers
Adam Ladd
Posts: 250
There are other threads on here (mainly around mouse choice), but wondering how others have setup their workstations and drawing tools for ergonomics and reduction of repetitive strain issues or tension.
I tend to find most effects in my shoulder/neck area and through my arm/hand. I'm trying to adapt to a vertical mouse (Logitech Lift) for a more natural position and less rotation, and helps some, but not as easy to draw with as the standard mouse I've used for years. (Trackball helped a little too for breaks, but not fully, and not ideal drawing.)
I try to pay attention more to my posture, taking breaks, stretching, etc. but am wondering if some changes to my desk and/or chair might also be in play.
What's your experience, solutions, setup?
I tend to find most effects in my shoulder/neck area and through my arm/hand. I'm trying to adapt to a vertical mouse (Logitech Lift) for a more natural position and less rotation, and helps some, but not as easy to draw with as the standard mouse I've used for years. (Trackball helped a little too for breaks, but not fully, and not ideal drawing.)
I try to pay attention more to my posture, taking breaks, stretching, etc. but am wondering if some changes to my desk and/or chair might also be in play.
What's your experience, solutions, setup?
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The 20/20/20 rule for eyesight is an important one too (every 20 minutes look 20 feet away for 20 seconds). There's a Mac app called Time Out that can help one build the habit. I do worry about my eyes more than anything else
Forgot to say I tried a pen tablet for a while too and had potential, but just couldn't get comfortable with it.
For those using the trackpad primarily... I assume you're doing most of your daily routine and type drawing tasks with it, and it's the larger, detached one you're referring to for a desktop machine (or syncing to a laptop)?
I try to keep tracking speed high and my movements minimal with the mice (or whatever tool) to reduce the repetitive strain. It's been fairly sudden and tends to feel like a pinched nerve with unnatural rotation and pressure of shoulder and hand. But I've done it the same way for many years, so it kind of surprised me and hence the search/tests.
I tried a vertical mouse but went back to my Microsoft flat mouse for portable.
The stock Apple Magic Mouse has worked well for me, although it caused problems when it was first introduced (2009). It gave me sharp pain in my hand when I used it, so I switched to an older Mighty Mouse (corded, pill-shaped). At some point I tried it again and it no longer caused problems. No idea what changed.
I found a long time ago ('90s) that chair height relative to desk height can make a big difference. I was getting pain in my arm and shoulder until I figured this out. What works best for me is to have the desk about the same height as my elbows, and the chair adjusted so that my feet can rest flat on the floor.
The thing that causes me the most strain is dragging with the mouse—that is, holding the mouse button down while moving it. (I discovered this back in the '80s thanks to a solitaire game.) If I need to do something that requires a lot of dragging, it starts to get painful before long. Because of that, I've gotten into a habit of using alternate methods to dragging whenever I need to do it a lot.
One thing I haven't quite figured out is how to avoid neck pain when drawing on an iPad for an extended period. Tilting up or raising the iPad seems to help, though, since it seems to be from leaning over and looking down, especially if it's on my lap.
I've also discovered that my fingers start to get numb if I draw or write for more than 20-30 minutes. When I was younger, I don't remember this happening at all. I guess it's something to do with age, or maybe the fact that I don't do it as often as I used to thanks to computers.
Plus its kind of fun being able to pick up 400 lb.
(I guessed wrong in my previous post regarding how long I've had it.)
Also note that they come in three sizes: A (small), B (medium), C (large). And also varying levels of adjustability. It used to be that you got massively adjustable or not, but now they offer the darn things with two or three levels of adjustability on each of back support, arms and tilt, and they offer an optional different rolling caster for carpet.
I second Jeremy and Matthijs: Last year I decided after ~12 years of not paying any attention to health really, to get back into it, what with hitting 40: I eliminated (as much as possible in the USA, ha) sugar, eating out, and any food that came with any processing at all (ie, nothing with any packaging, especially paper) and reduced carbs and increased protein macros, for about 3 months; also I skipped breakfast, and had a protein-only lunch, Meanwhile did two 1-hour exercise sessions. No warm up, no cardio, body and dumbbell free weights, fasted (so starting around 10-11am). I do basic stuff, very slow, very heavy: 1 or 2 sets of about 8-12 reps with whatever weight got me to momentary muscle failure, and then increased the weight a bit every week or so. After the 3 months I was at a very good BMI so relaxed the diet aspect and kept the exercise the same. I figured I could always spare 2 hours a week and the payoff long term will be compounding.
I got into resistance exercise back in college in my late 20s when I started to get back problems after a car accident, and long hours at a computer. Never had any since. No sign of wrist/hand issues either, despite using stock ibm/apple laptop keyboards for ~15 years, and trackpads.
I can adapt to drawing on a laptop trackpad (though have preferred a mouse), but the detached, larger trackpad is intriguing.
I like that it could be moved around to find a more comfortable position, and in particular, the "tap to click" gesture is nice. I tend to try to move my "click" finger around on mice buttons to reduce occasional fatigue/subtle pain in it.
My button assignments are as follows:
It's taking some time to get used to the movements and speed settings compared to how a mouse tracks, but I like that I'm having to move my arm and shoulder less (where most of the pain has been).
Though, I find my wrist and hand have been more strained by tilting my wrist back a little and trying to slightly 'hover' my fingers above the pad or keeping weight off them from resting on it when in between movements/actions (pretty often through the day).
For those using it, have you found you adapt or other tips? Practicing keeping my shoulder relaxed seems to be helping some.
Looking for high-grade office equipment cheap? As so many offices closed during the pandemic, never to reopen, there’s glut of unwanted office furniture in every large city in the U.S., and I suspect elsewhere, too. Here’s an article about the situation in NYC, published in yesterday’s New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/10/nyregion/office-furniture-nyc.html?searchResultPosition=1
Two wonderings:
The Aeron chair mentioned helps with back pain, how about backside/leg pain from sitting and pressure?
Any experience with adjustable height standing/telescoping desks to get out of the chair for a good while but still be able to work relatively comfortably?
Mostly because it is height adjustable AND tilt adjustable—tilt in terms of both the default position and how far it tilts back from that. And then the mesh offers both support and a little give on the thighs.
Not all Aerons are as fully adjustable as this, so be careful because you can get them without these features as well!
I expect other chairs exist that are equally adjustable, but they are not the most common office chair features, that’s for sure.