Problogger Darren Rowse asks his readers for office chair recommendations. This is a subject that is somewhat unfortunately near and dear to my heart as I grew up in a family business selling office chairs and furniture, and my dad is an ergonomics expert.
All jokes aside, it is an important subject as people are spending an unnatural amount of time sitting while working on computers.
Without question, the chair my dad recommends to the majority of people working on computers with or without back pain, isn’t even technically a chair, it’s the Swopper Stool. I use the Swopper at home at my computer, and I should probably get one for work as well.
The reason a Swopper is better than standard ergonomic office chairs:
- It forces you to sit with a proper posture instead of slumping in a chair with a back.
- It bounces up and down and side to side, it allows you to move around and “sit in motion”. This keeps your spine lubricated and muscles moving throughout the day. It provides for better blood circulation as well as helping to strengthen your core muslces while sitting (abdomen and lower back).
- It relieves back pain from sitting due to the posture and movement.
- Sitting on a Swopper keeps you energized and alert due to the ability to move and proper posture.
- It is a contemporary and stylish piece of furniture that is well made and looks good while being a conversation piece.
Many people try to substitute an exercise ball to achieve some of these benefits. While it does promote healthy posture, it lacks many of the features of the Swopper. It can’t allow you to rock from side to side or front to back because you’ll roll off. It doesn’t raise or lower like the Swopper, meaning it can’t be used by people who need their seating position at a certain height. And it doesn’t grip as well as the seating material of the Swopper. It definitely doesn’t look as cool, as the Swopper also comes in multiple interesting colors.
While the Swopper isn’t cheap, healthy sitting and avoiding back pain is worth a very high price in my book. My dad sells them at his site Workchairs.com, and he’d be happy to answer any questions people have about the Swopper.