5 Tips for Avoiding RSI
Human beings evolved to run around on a plain picking berries and looking for small animals they can catch, not to sit on a chair all day while mashing their fingertips into a keyboard. Is it any wonder so many people experience physical problems caused by the office lifestyle?
Avoiding RSI doesn't require you to do something crazy like work at a stand-up desk or sit on a giant inflatable ball. There are a lot of simple, common sense precautions you can take now to prevent serious, painful, and expensive treatment later. Recently, WebWorkerDaily listed 11 of these. Here are 5 of my favorites -- the low hanging fruit of RSI prevention, if you will.
Take short breaks hourly. Even if you're "in the zone," don't work uninterrupted for hours at a sitting. It's a good idea to take a short break every hour. You might even want to use a program like Exercise Minder that alarms you when it's time to stop.
Exercise. I'm not talking about your weekly dog walk. A few times a day, you should perform some simple exercises to limber up your joints and keep your body healthy.
Set up our desk, chair and keyboard properly. Your keyboard should be low and your chair should be high. Specifically, your elbows should be set at a 90 degree angle when you type. Your forearms should be essentially horizontal.
Don't sit on a lump. Remember George Costanza's wallet? Don't put stress on your back by keeping your wallet or other bulky items in your back pocket. This can help prevent sciatica and other similar conditions. Personally, I remove my wallet and keys from my pants pockets the moment I get to work. I put them in a desk drawer and enjoy the extra mobility that gives me.
Put your laptop on a stand. A laptop is just about the most non-ergonomic device invented since the park bench. Get a stand that can put the keyboard at a more comfortable angle.
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