Ergonomic Office Chair for Tall People

[thraxil]

I'm 6'1 and pretty thin, so not *too* far off from you build-wise. I have a Humanscale Freedom chair. Paid a good amount of money for it, but I've had it for more than five years and I work from home as a software developer, so that's a lot of hours with ass in chair. It's held up pretty well and is pretty comfortable. I've used Aeron and Steelcase in offices before. Hated Aerons (if you have long legs, it digs into the back of your thighs) but Steelcase are nice. I really hate all the "gamer" type chairs as well.

As far as ergonomics, there really isn't one "right" way to sit in a chair (though there are certainly "wrong" postures). What's more important is that you can change your position at least a bit every fifteen minutes or so. No matter what position you are in, if you hold it for hours at a time, it's going to mess you up. So when you're trying chairs, prioritize ones that let you move around a bit and be comfortable in a range of different positions.

 

[chopeth]

Also interested, I am 6,6 and 200lbs and after so many years of hard work my back is in a miserable condition. There is no chair I'm comfortable with although I still keep some faith. I also have hipolordosis, and a couple of hernies so a guitar over 7 lbs can kill me.

 

[spudmunkey]

Yeah, I'm 6'4" and 165 pounds, so basically a tall noodle. It is a rough life.

If you don't mind me picking your brain a bit more, is it true that it is not ergonomoic to sit perfectly upright and is actually preferable to lean back a bit? I see this all around the internet when researching ergo posture.

Yes. The goal is to keep your body supported, and in a position that doesn't cause uneeded stress...but not everyone works the same. Some folks actually prefer to lean forward, and there are some chairs that offer a seat and/or back that actually tilts FORWARD. Then, instead of just clouching in mid-air, they can actually still lean forward, but can plan their feet and push back against a chair back that holds their back rather than letting everything just slouch/compress.

This is one of those things where an employer would set up a review by an ergonomist. Most have a deck of chairs that they've reviewed to fit certain needs. There's more to it than just having a slightly angled thigh, feet flat on the floor, elbows at 90 degrees, and having your monitor's top edge at eye level. And unfortunately, that's where it goes beyond what I know and gets in to what physical therapists and ergonomists specialize in.

 

[sezna]

Yes. The goal is to keep your body supported, and in a position that doesn't cause uneeded stress...but not everyone works the same. Some folks actually prefer to lean forward, and there are some chairs that offer a seat and/or back that actually tilts FORWARD. Then, instead of just clouching in mid-air, they can actually still lean forward, but can plan their feet and push back against a chair back that holds their back rather than letting everything just slouch/compress.

This is one of those things where an employer would set up a review by an ergonomist. Most have a deck of chairs that they've reviewed to fit certain needs. There's more to it than just having a slightly angled thigh, feet flat on the floor, elbows at 90 degrees, and having your monitor's top edge at eye level. And unfortunately, that's where it goes beyond what I know and gets in to what physical therapists and ergonomists specialize in.

Ok. Really, thank you for all your intel, I'm taking it all into consideration. My company is large, it might offer ergo consultations. I'll look into it.

I guess my dilemma is: for personal comfort, I enjoy sitting up very straight, sometimes even a bit forward, with back support and neck support. That tall gaming chair gives me what I would consider ideal comfort, where I don't slouch and keep everything aligned to what I would consider comfortable and relatively straight. Whether or not that is the healthiest way is something I just don't know. When I lean back at all, I start to feel it in the base of my neck where it bends to compensate and look at the monitor. I didn't get a chance to check out those chairs today so I'll have to go tomorrow, hopefully sitting in those gives me some better perspective.

 

[sezna]

Wow. I found a hidden document deep within the bowels of our site that tells me:

The chair I currently use at work is a Steelcase Leap. FWIW, I am shopping for a home chair. I like this office chair well enough but wouldn't mind a higher back, longer bottom, and stronger lumbar.

I also have the option to choose an Aeron or Neutral Posture for work! Wow!

 

[spudmunkey]

Well, if nothing else you can look up the dimensions/measurements of the Leap chair, and use that to cross-shop other chairs' published dimensions.

For the Aeron, you'll be getting a size C, most likely. Hopefully you can try one out. Neutral Posture has a whole product line of chairs, including a couple lines that have sort of interchangeable parts to make a customized combination for a more tailored fit. So there will be dozens of different Neutral Posture chairs out there, and they aren't all the same.

None of those are "cheap", though, for home use, unless you get one used.

 

[spudmunkey]

Don't forget to get a sit-to-stand desk so that you can move around. It doesn't matter if you're standing or sitting, as long as you can change positions. If your office will pay for it, ask for this one. Ha!
https://www.xdesk.com/store/dalton

 

[SpaceDock]

Check out noble chairs. I have one and they are great.

 

[spudmunkey]

If you find something that works, lemme know what it is (or even a photo (especially of the back), if you don't know the name)!

 

[sezna]

If you find something that works, lemme know what it is (or even a photo (especially of the back), if you don't know the name)!

Life got really busy (as it does...), will probably visit that store this weekend. I'll let you know when I do!

 

[sezna]

If you find something that works, lemme know what it is (or even a photo (especially of the back), if you don't know the name)!

Update! I tried a Steelcase Leap, a Herman Miller Aeron, a Herman Miller Sayl, and a few others (I think a human factors or something like that?). I am a big person, and surprisingly, the Herman Miller Sayl was a winner for me for a few reasons. First, in the Aeron and other chairs, the top of the chair tends to compress my shoulder blades and push them forwards (as the chair assumes my body is not that tall). The Sayl is quite a bit shorter and the back is contoured such that it fits me without pushing my shoulder blades or exerting other unpleasant forces on my back. Additionally, in the Sayl, the lumbar feels like it is in the right spot. This wasn't the case with most of the other chairs. Also, adjustable lumbars barely make a difference. They change a tiny bit of the emphasis of the lumbar, but not the location of it.

Tl;dr the Sayl provided a surprisingly strong amount of lumbar in just the right place and didn't get in the way of the rest of my posture. I am now saving up for one.



addendum: the others weren't bad per se, but the Sayl was a lot better. It is not worth buying the adjustable lumbar though, it barely does anything.

 

[spudmunkey]

Huh...the Sayl. I would not have expected that. Again, it's a competitor's chair so I dont have too much experience with it, but I see it used a not in training rooms. Macys.com has them around huge 40'x10' conference table in San Francisco. It's also a popular task chair for startups.

Glad you found something that works!

 

[Maria Hardy]

Because my father tall so I buy my his BERLMAN ergonomic high back mesh, I can recommend that chair for you. I see the quality of this chair very good, the chair is designed with suitable lumbar to support for customer’s waist and against spinal disease.I like the headrest in this chair because it's wide and thick, can protect the neck. I read review in theworkbuzz when I choose chair,. I see other chair that also for tall people. if you interested you can go there.