Email ChrisBeckmanWilkinsSolutionscom Skype cbeckman1

HTTPwwwWilkinsSolutionscom

Nashville TN (615) 669-FIT1 (3481) ldquoTennessee based Sales Service and Accountabilityrdquo

Chris Beckman

The Benefits of Using a Stability Ball as a Chair

Recently available in a regular 55 or 65cm ball some are using as chairs to keep your core engaged throughout the day keeping your balance and stability in check

A very inexpensive way to start your Corporate Wellness Program When using a Stability Ball as a desk chair your core automatically starts to strengthen your back and core muscles to give you better posture

A start for Corporate Wellness

During breaks instead of hitting the X-Hour Energy Drink or Chocolate Barshellip Simple stretches will revitalize and pump more blood which gives your brain more oxygen and more productivity

Start good posture early

Replacing classroom chairs with stability balls helps students focus study finds

Photo courtesy of The Aroostook Medical Center

Students at the Dr Levesque Elementary School in Frenchville participated in a pilot project that replaced classroom chairs with stability balls Pictured are (in front from left) Jonah Babin Chyanne Price and Andrew Oakes (in back from left) Lauren Paradis Savanah Hanlin Caitlin Chasse and Morgan Corriveau

Public school students in Aroostook County who sat on stability balls instead of chairs experienced benefits including improved academic performance and better health according to results from a recent formal study

At work Pam OrsquoDonnell types at her computer talks on the phone and every so often bounces a bit on a big blue ball OrsquoDonnell has an office chair but this doesnrsquot mean she uses it She prefers to sit on an exercise ball Although some posture experts are leery of the practice she and others say sitting on the ball lets them work a little workout into their work time and strengthen their legs abs and back muscles The inflatable balls typically the size of a big beach ball but made of tougher plastic have migrated to offices from health clubs and physical therapy clinics The lack of armrests back support or other attributes of a chair except for a spot on which to sit makes her pay more attention to posture said OrsquoDonnell director of member service for the International Health Racquet and Sportsclub Association a Boston-based trade group ldquoIt makes me sit up straightrdquo which gives a ball some advantage over a chair she said ldquoWhen you are sitting at your desk especially at a computer or keyboard you tend to hunch overrdquo ldquoWhat we are trying to promote is active sitting versus passive sittingrdquo said physical therapist Cheryl Soleway of Vernon British Columbia a consultant to Ball Dynamics of Longmont Colo which sells the products ldquoYou get a low level of neuromuscular activity mdash your abdominal and trunk muscles are contracting to some degreerdquo Soleway said ldquoWithout that activity you would fall offrdquo An upside to falling down To Soleway there is even an upside to the fear of falling down The natural urge not to slide off the ball should help to train the balance system reducing the risk of falls she said

Position counts in ball work Soleway said the ball should be big enough to allow the legs to slope slightly downward at not quite a right angle from the thighs However she conceded there are many unknowns in the physiology of ball sitting as an office exercise ldquoIrsquom not sure anybody has spent a lot of dollars researching thisrdquo Sitting on a ball at work should improve muscle tone but a risk of injury could await people who do it for a full day said Dr Henry Goitz chief of sports medicine at the Medical College of Ohio ldquoTwenty minutes is good 30 minutes is great but 8 to 12 hours some time in that span you may have fatigabilityrdquo he said Exercise balls in offices have raised concern in other parts of the world ldquoProviding fitness balls in a workplace may place the employer at risk of introducing a hazardrdquo according to a statement posted on the Internet by workplace safety officials in the Australian state of Victoria

Exercise balls as office furniture Get ready for hippity-hop races in the workplace

Exercise balls as office furniture Get ready for hippity-hop races in the workplace

Continuedhellip

And an expert in office ergonomics mdash the fitting of office functions to the strengths and limits of human bodies mdash has doubts about the wisdom of substituting a bouncy ball for an ergonomically designed chair ldquoI donrsquot think this would be anything I would use to reduce my exposure to musculoskeletal disordersrdquo said Peter Budnick chief executive officer of Ergoweb an ergonomics training and equipment sales company in Midway Utah ldquoItrsquos not an ergonomic device It does not offer the full support you would expect from an ergonomic chair stable base adjustable height and back supportrdquo lsquoSounds like fun Just the same ldquoI have to say it sounds like funrdquo Budnick said If exercise balls encourage fun mdash or a less stressful workplace mdash companies should encourage balls said Nancy Lynch an adjunct professor of human resources management at Canisius College and president of Human Resources Consulting Associates in Buffalo NY Companies in which employees look like they are having fun will find it easier to attract new hires she said Activities that get people moving are also good for ldquothinking and problem-solvingrdquo Lynch said OrsquoDonnell said fun is only one of the advantages to using a ball ldquoEvery so often you do sort of roll back and forth or bounce a littlerdquo she said ldquoI have a little radio on and if therersquos a good song that comes on I might bounce a littlerdquo As for group activity OrsquoDonnell noted that some workers in her office use exercise balls ldquoWe havenrsquot had any hippity-hop races around the office at this point but that might be a good Friday eventrdquo

Not excited about the esthetics of a Stability Ball or it Rolling awayhellip

There are many different lsquotraditionalrsquo holders for stability balls to make your new office Chair more attractive Below you will find some different availabilitieshellip

Gaiam Power-Systems AeroMat Yoga

Accessoriescom Health Mark

Evolution

Cando Children sizes Isokenetics

Why I Switched My Office Chair with an Exercise Ball (and What Its Like)

Many of us spend the majority of our professional lives sitting which makes the office chair an all-important piece of furniture Lately mine hasnt been cutting it so as an experiment I swapped my chair with an exercise ball Heres whats been great about it whats been less than perfect and what you might want to consider if youre interested in switching to an exercise ball as your office chair Purported Benefits of an Exercise Ball as a Chair I dont have one of those $500+ Herman Miller ergonomic chairs but do have a lumbar support roll for my desk chair which is sized small enough for my frame so I fit comfortably in it and everything is measured for ergonomic workstation perfection (as best as I could manage at least) But maybe its my increased awareness of the health hazards of sitting all day or just the years catching up with me but this regular chair isnt working so great Lately Ive been catching myself standing up to type in bouts of nervous energy or worse slouching My neck and shoulders perpetually ache Frankly my butt hurts

My alternatives were to adopt a standing desk or a treadputer or try a more ergonomically-designed Aeron or similar chair (like a good pair of shoes and a quality mattress its the everyday things that are worth investing in) Being both a yoga lover and a cheapskate I decided to first try out this exercise ball chair for $75

Besides being much cheaper than buying a new desk or a more expensive chair the exercise ball chair promised to allow me to work in some abdominal exercise throughout the day and possibly improve my years-of-working-slumped-at-a-desk posture

What Its Like to Sit on an Exercise Ball All Day The first time you sit on an exercise ball at your desk your back will probably shoot up so straight youll feel like a marionette If youre like me this will be a foreign even delightful experience (oh thats what its like) Twenty minutes later if youre like me your butt will hurt and you will switch back to your regular chair which will feel mushy by comparison After a couple more days of this you may find yourself sitting on the exercise ball chair for much longer periods of time (A week later I spend the majority of my day on the exercise ball chair but still take lots of breaks and occasionally switch back to the old chair) Some pleasant things You can bounce on the chair when a nice song comes on You can bounce on the chair in frustration while waiting for a browser page to reload If youre a kinesthetictactile learning type bouncing on the ball might stimulate your thinking Whenever you need a good stretch just lean slightly back or to the side as needed Exercise on the spot The Isokinetics manual provided some sample fitness ball exercises you could do at the desk One person found a rather unique advantage of the bouncy ball chair for women at least (warning NSFW) though Tim Ferriss points out a potential problem for men Some less pleasant things Although you can buy height adjusters for this particular chair depending on your setup the ball may be too low or too high in relation to your monitor and keyboard You may need to adjust your whole workstation You cant really just lean back on this chair and relax If you bounce too much you may get a headache The ball can get sticky in warm weather After a little over a week of using the chair its impossible to tell if its helping to increase my core strength as I hope it will but I do feel like I walk and sit much taller than I used to and can sit for longer periods of time If its only that Im more aware of my posture thats finemdashin my book the ball is doing its job Plus I now have another outlet for some creative nervous energy am sneaking in some extra (albeit minuscule in terms of calorie-burning) exercise and my butt doesnt hurt anymoremdashwhat more could I ask for

Exert from LifeHacker

Start good posture early

Replacing classroom chairs with stability balls helps students focus study finds

Photo courtesy of The Aroostook Medical Center

Students at the Dr Levesque Elementary School in Frenchville participated in a pilot project that replaced classroom chairs with stability balls Pictured are (in front from left) Jonah Babin Chyanne Price and Andrew Oakes (in back from left) Lauren Paradis Savanah Hanlin Caitlin Chasse and Morgan Corriveau

Public school students in Aroostook County who sat on stability balls instead of chairs experienced benefits including improved academic performance and better health according to results from a recent formal study

At work Pam OrsquoDonnell types at her computer talks on the phone and every so often bounces a bit on a big blue ball OrsquoDonnell has an office chair but this doesnrsquot mean she uses it She prefers to sit on an exercise ball Although some posture experts are leery of the practice she and others say sitting on the ball lets them work a little workout into their work time and strengthen their legs abs and back muscles The inflatable balls typically the size of a big beach ball but made of tougher plastic have migrated to offices from health clubs and physical therapy clinics The lack of armrests back support or other attributes of a chair except for a spot on which to sit makes her pay more attention to posture said OrsquoDonnell director of member service for the International Health Racquet and Sportsclub Association a Boston-based trade group ldquoIt makes me sit up straightrdquo which gives a ball some advantage over a chair she said ldquoWhen you are sitting at your desk especially at a computer or keyboard you tend to hunch overrdquo ldquoWhat we are trying to promote is active sitting versus passive sittingrdquo said physical therapist Cheryl Soleway of Vernon British Columbia a consultant to Ball Dynamics of Longmont Colo which sells the products ldquoYou get a low level of neuromuscular activity mdash your abdominal and trunk muscles are contracting to some degreerdquo Soleway said ldquoWithout that activity you would fall offrdquo An upside to falling down To Soleway there is even an upside to the fear of falling down The natural urge not to slide off the ball should help to train the balance system reducing the risk of falls she said

Position counts in ball work Soleway said the ball should be big enough to allow the legs to slope slightly downward at not quite a right angle from the thighs However she conceded there are many unknowns in the physiology of ball sitting as an office exercise ldquoIrsquom not sure anybody has spent a lot of dollars researching thisrdquo Sitting on a ball at work should improve muscle tone but a risk of injury could await people who do it for a full day said Dr Henry Goitz chief of sports medicine at the Medical College of Ohio ldquoTwenty minutes is good 30 minutes is great but 8 to 12 hours some time in that span you may have fatigabilityrdquo he said Exercise balls in offices have raised concern in other parts of the world ldquoProviding fitness balls in a workplace may place the employer at risk of introducing a hazardrdquo according to a statement posted on the Internet by workplace safety officials in the Australian state of Victoria

Exercise balls as office furniture Get ready for hippity-hop races in the workplace

Exercise balls as office furniture Get ready for hippity-hop races in the workplace

Continuedhellip

And an expert in office ergonomics mdash the fitting of office functions to the strengths and limits of human bodies mdash has doubts about the wisdom of substituting a bouncy ball for an ergonomically designed chair ldquoI donrsquot think this would be anything I would use to reduce my exposure to musculoskeletal disordersrdquo said Peter Budnick chief executive officer of Ergoweb an ergonomics training and equipment sales company in Midway Utah ldquoItrsquos not an ergonomic device It does not offer the full support you would expect from an ergonomic chair stable base adjustable height and back supportrdquo lsquoSounds like fun Just the same ldquoI have to say it sounds like funrdquo Budnick said If exercise balls encourage fun mdash or a less stressful workplace mdash companies should encourage balls said Nancy Lynch an adjunct professor of human resources management at Canisius College and president of Human Resources Consulting Associates in Buffalo NY Companies in which employees look like they are having fun will find it easier to attract new hires she said Activities that get people moving are also good for ldquothinking and problem-solvingrdquo Lynch said OrsquoDonnell said fun is only one of the advantages to using a ball ldquoEvery so often you do sort of roll back and forth or bounce a littlerdquo she said ldquoI have a little radio on and if therersquos a good song that comes on I might bounce a littlerdquo As for group activity OrsquoDonnell noted that some workers in her office use exercise balls ldquoWe havenrsquot had any hippity-hop races around the office at this point but that might be a good Friday eventrdquo

Not excited about the esthetics of a Stability Ball or it Rolling awayhellip

There are many different lsquotraditionalrsquo holders for stability balls to make your new office Chair more attractive Below you will find some different availabilitieshellip

Gaiam Power-Systems AeroMat Yoga

Accessoriescom Health Mark

Evolution

Cando Children sizes Isokenetics

Why I Switched My Office Chair with an Exercise Ball (and What Its Like)

Many of us spend the majority of our professional lives sitting which makes the office chair an all-important piece of furniture Lately mine hasnt been cutting it so as an experiment I swapped my chair with an exercise ball Heres whats been great about it whats been less than perfect and what you might want to consider if youre interested in switching to an exercise ball as your office chair Purported Benefits of an Exercise Ball as a Chair I dont have one of those $500+ Herman Miller ergonomic chairs but do have a lumbar support roll for my desk chair which is sized small enough for my frame so I fit comfortably in it and everything is measured for ergonomic workstation perfection (as best as I could manage at least) But maybe its my increased awareness of the health hazards of sitting all day or just the years catching up with me but this regular chair isnt working so great Lately Ive been catching myself standing up to type in bouts of nervous energy or worse slouching My neck and shoulders perpetually ache Frankly my butt hurts

My alternatives were to adopt a standing desk or a treadputer or try a more ergonomically-designed Aeron or similar chair (like a good pair of shoes and a quality mattress its the everyday things that are worth investing in) Being both a yoga lover and a cheapskate I decided to first try out this exercise ball chair for $75

Besides being much cheaper than buying a new desk or a more expensive chair the exercise ball chair promised to allow me to work in some abdominal exercise throughout the day and possibly improve my years-of-working-slumped-at-a-desk posture

What Its Like to Sit on an Exercise Ball All Day The first time you sit on an exercise ball at your desk your back will probably shoot up so straight youll feel like a marionette If youre like me this will be a foreign even delightful experience (oh thats what its like) Twenty minutes later if youre like me your butt will hurt and you will switch back to your regular chair which will feel mushy by comparison After a couple more days of this you may find yourself sitting on the exercise ball chair for much longer periods of time (A week later I spend the majority of my day on the exercise ball chair but still take lots of breaks and occasionally switch back to the old chair) Some pleasant things You can bounce on the chair when a nice song comes on You can bounce on the chair in frustration while waiting for a browser page to reload If youre a kinesthetictactile learning type bouncing on the ball might stimulate your thinking Whenever you need a good stretch just lean slightly back or to the side as needed Exercise on the spot The Isokinetics manual provided some sample fitness ball exercises you could do at the desk One person found a rather unique advantage of the bouncy ball chair for women at least (warning NSFW) though Tim Ferriss points out a potential problem for men Some less pleasant things Although you can buy height adjusters for this particular chair depending on your setup the ball may be too low or too high in relation to your monitor and keyboard You may need to adjust your whole workstation You cant really just lean back on this chair and relax If you bounce too much you may get a headache The ball can get sticky in warm weather After a little over a week of using the chair its impossible to tell if its helping to increase my core strength as I hope it will but I do feel like I walk and sit much taller than I used to and can sit for longer periods of time If its only that Im more aware of my posture thats finemdashin my book the ball is doing its job Plus I now have another outlet for some creative nervous energy am sneaking in some extra (albeit minuscule in terms of calorie-burning) exercise and my butt doesnt hurt anymoremdashwhat more could I ask for

Exert from LifeHacker

At work Pam OrsquoDonnell types at her computer talks on the phone and every so often bounces a bit on a big blue ball OrsquoDonnell has an office chair but this doesnrsquot mean she uses it She prefers to sit on an exercise ball Although some posture experts are leery of the practice she and others say sitting on the ball lets them work a little workout into their work time and strengthen their legs abs and back muscles The inflatable balls typically the size of a big beach ball but made of tougher plastic have migrated to offices from health clubs and physical therapy clinics The lack of armrests back support or other attributes of a chair except for a spot on which to sit makes her pay more attention to posture said OrsquoDonnell director of member service for the International Health Racquet and Sportsclub Association a Boston-based trade group ldquoIt makes me sit up straightrdquo which gives a ball some advantage over a chair she said ldquoWhen you are sitting at your desk especially at a computer or keyboard you tend to hunch overrdquo ldquoWhat we are trying to promote is active sitting versus passive sittingrdquo said physical therapist Cheryl Soleway of Vernon British Columbia a consultant to Ball Dynamics of Longmont Colo which sells the products ldquoYou get a low level of neuromuscular activity mdash your abdominal and trunk muscles are contracting to some degreerdquo Soleway said ldquoWithout that activity you would fall offrdquo An upside to falling down To Soleway there is even an upside to the fear of falling down The natural urge not to slide off the ball should help to train the balance system reducing the risk of falls she said

Position counts in ball work Soleway said the ball should be big enough to allow the legs to slope slightly downward at not quite a right angle from the thighs However she conceded there are many unknowns in the physiology of ball sitting as an office exercise ldquoIrsquom not sure anybody has spent a lot of dollars researching thisrdquo Sitting on a ball at work should improve muscle tone but a risk of injury could await people who do it for a full day said Dr Henry Goitz chief of sports medicine at the Medical College of Ohio ldquoTwenty minutes is good 30 minutes is great but 8 to 12 hours some time in that span you may have fatigabilityrdquo he said Exercise balls in offices have raised concern in other parts of the world ldquoProviding fitness balls in a workplace may place the employer at risk of introducing a hazardrdquo according to a statement posted on the Internet by workplace safety officials in the Australian state of Victoria

Exercise balls as office furniture Get ready for hippity-hop races in the workplace

Exercise balls as office furniture Get ready for hippity-hop races in the workplace

Continuedhellip

And an expert in office ergonomics mdash the fitting of office functions to the strengths and limits of human bodies mdash has doubts about the wisdom of substituting a bouncy ball for an ergonomically designed chair ldquoI donrsquot think this would be anything I would use to reduce my exposure to musculoskeletal disordersrdquo said Peter Budnick chief executive officer of Ergoweb an ergonomics training and equipment sales company in Midway Utah ldquoItrsquos not an ergonomic device It does not offer the full support you would expect from an ergonomic chair stable base adjustable height and back supportrdquo lsquoSounds like fun Just the same ldquoI have to say it sounds like funrdquo Budnick said If exercise balls encourage fun mdash or a less stressful workplace mdash companies should encourage balls said Nancy Lynch an adjunct professor of human resources management at Canisius College and president of Human Resources Consulting Associates in Buffalo NY Companies in which employees look like they are having fun will find it easier to attract new hires she said Activities that get people moving are also good for ldquothinking and problem-solvingrdquo Lynch said OrsquoDonnell said fun is only one of the advantages to using a ball ldquoEvery so often you do sort of roll back and forth or bounce a littlerdquo she said ldquoI have a little radio on and if therersquos a good song that comes on I might bounce a littlerdquo As for group activity OrsquoDonnell noted that some workers in her office use exercise balls ldquoWe havenrsquot had any hippity-hop races around the office at this point but that might be a good Friday eventrdquo

Not excited about the esthetics of a Stability Ball or it Rolling awayhellip

There are many different lsquotraditionalrsquo holders for stability balls to make your new office Chair more attractive Below you will find some different availabilitieshellip

Gaiam Power-Systems AeroMat Yoga

Accessoriescom Health Mark

Evolution

Cando Children sizes Isokenetics

Why I Switched My Office Chair with an Exercise Ball (and What Its Like)

Many of us spend the majority of our professional lives sitting which makes the office chair an all-important piece of furniture Lately mine hasnt been cutting it so as an experiment I swapped my chair with an exercise ball Heres whats been great about it whats been less than perfect and what you might want to consider if youre interested in switching to an exercise ball as your office chair Purported Benefits of an Exercise Ball as a Chair I dont have one of those $500+ Herman Miller ergonomic chairs but do have a lumbar support roll for my desk chair which is sized small enough for my frame so I fit comfortably in it and everything is measured for ergonomic workstation perfection (as best as I could manage at least) But maybe its my increased awareness of the health hazards of sitting all day or just the years catching up with me but this regular chair isnt working so great Lately Ive been catching myself standing up to type in bouts of nervous energy or worse slouching My neck and shoulders perpetually ache Frankly my butt hurts

My alternatives were to adopt a standing desk or a treadputer or try a more ergonomically-designed Aeron or similar chair (like a good pair of shoes and a quality mattress its the everyday things that are worth investing in) Being both a yoga lover and a cheapskate I decided to first try out this exercise ball chair for $75

Besides being much cheaper than buying a new desk or a more expensive chair the exercise ball chair promised to allow me to work in some abdominal exercise throughout the day and possibly improve my years-of-working-slumped-at-a-desk posture

What Its Like to Sit on an Exercise Ball All Day The first time you sit on an exercise ball at your desk your back will probably shoot up so straight youll feel like a marionette If youre like me this will be a foreign even delightful experience (oh thats what its like) Twenty minutes later if youre like me your butt will hurt and you will switch back to your regular chair which will feel mushy by comparison After a couple more days of this you may find yourself sitting on the exercise ball chair for much longer periods of time (A week later I spend the majority of my day on the exercise ball chair but still take lots of breaks and occasionally switch back to the old chair) Some pleasant things You can bounce on the chair when a nice song comes on You can bounce on the chair in frustration while waiting for a browser page to reload If youre a kinesthetictactile learning type bouncing on the ball might stimulate your thinking Whenever you need a good stretch just lean slightly back or to the side as needed Exercise on the spot The Isokinetics manual provided some sample fitness ball exercises you could do at the desk One person found a rather unique advantage of the bouncy ball chair for women at least (warning NSFW) though Tim Ferriss points out a potential problem for men Some less pleasant things Although you can buy height adjusters for this particular chair depending on your setup the ball may be too low or too high in relation to your monitor and keyboard You may need to adjust your whole workstation You cant really just lean back on this chair and relax If you bounce too much you may get a headache The ball can get sticky in warm weather After a little over a week of using the chair its impossible to tell if its helping to increase my core strength as I hope it will but I do feel like I walk and sit much taller than I used to and can sit for longer periods of time If its only that Im more aware of my posture thats finemdashin my book the ball is doing its job Plus I now have another outlet for some creative nervous energy am sneaking in some extra (albeit minuscule in terms of calorie-burning) exercise and my butt doesnt hurt anymoremdashwhat more could I ask for

Exert from LifeHacker

Exercise balls as office furniture Get ready for hippity-hop races in the workplace

Continuedhellip

And an expert in office ergonomics mdash the fitting of office functions to the strengths and limits of human bodies mdash has doubts about the wisdom of substituting a bouncy ball for an ergonomically designed chair ldquoI donrsquot think this would be anything I would use to reduce my exposure to musculoskeletal disordersrdquo said Peter Budnick chief executive officer of Ergoweb an ergonomics training and equipment sales company in Midway Utah ldquoItrsquos not an ergonomic device It does not offer the full support you would expect from an ergonomic chair stable base adjustable height and back supportrdquo lsquoSounds like fun Just the same ldquoI have to say it sounds like funrdquo Budnick said If exercise balls encourage fun mdash or a less stressful workplace mdash companies should encourage balls said Nancy Lynch an adjunct professor of human resources management at Canisius College and president of Human Resources Consulting Associates in Buffalo NY Companies in which employees look like they are having fun will find it easier to attract new hires she said Activities that get people moving are also good for ldquothinking and problem-solvingrdquo Lynch said OrsquoDonnell said fun is only one of the advantages to using a ball ldquoEvery so often you do sort of roll back and forth or bounce a littlerdquo she said ldquoI have a little radio on and if therersquos a good song that comes on I might bounce a littlerdquo As for group activity OrsquoDonnell noted that some workers in her office use exercise balls ldquoWe havenrsquot had any hippity-hop races around the office at this point but that might be a good Friday eventrdquo

Not excited about the esthetics of a Stability Ball or it Rolling awayhellip

There are many different lsquotraditionalrsquo holders for stability balls to make your new office Chair more attractive Below you will find some different availabilitieshellip

Gaiam Power-Systems AeroMat Yoga

Accessoriescom Health Mark

Evolution

Cando Children sizes Isokenetics

Why I Switched My Office Chair with an Exercise Ball (and What Its Like)

Many of us spend the majority of our professional lives sitting which makes the office chair an all-important piece of furniture Lately mine hasnt been cutting it so as an experiment I swapped my chair with an exercise ball Heres whats been great about it whats been less than perfect and what you might want to consider if youre interested in switching to an exercise ball as your office chair Purported Benefits of an Exercise Ball as a Chair I dont have one of those $500+ Herman Miller ergonomic chairs but do have a lumbar support roll for my desk chair which is sized small enough for my frame so I fit comfortably in it and everything is measured for ergonomic workstation perfection (as best as I could manage at least) But maybe its my increased awareness of the health hazards of sitting all day or just the years catching up with me but this regular chair isnt working so great Lately Ive been catching myself standing up to type in bouts of nervous energy or worse slouching My neck and shoulders perpetually ache Frankly my butt hurts

My alternatives were to adopt a standing desk or a treadputer or try a more ergonomically-designed Aeron or similar chair (like a good pair of shoes and a quality mattress its the everyday things that are worth investing in) Being both a yoga lover and a cheapskate I decided to first try out this exercise ball chair for $75

Besides being much cheaper than buying a new desk or a more expensive chair the exercise ball chair promised to allow me to work in some abdominal exercise throughout the day and possibly improve my years-of-working-slumped-at-a-desk posture

What Its Like to Sit on an Exercise Ball All Day The first time you sit on an exercise ball at your desk your back will probably shoot up so straight youll feel like a marionette If youre like me this will be a foreign even delightful experience (oh thats what its like) Twenty minutes later if youre like me your butt will hurt and you will switch back to your regular chair which will feel mushy by comparison After a couple more days of this you may find yourself sitting on the exercise ball chair for much longer periods of time (A week later I spend the majority of my day on the exercise ball chair but still take lots of breaks and occasionally switch back to the old chair) Some pleasant things You can bounce on the chair when a nice song comes on You can bounce on the chair in frustration while waiting for a browser page to reload If youre a kinesthetictactile learning type bouncing on the ball might stimulate your thinking Whenever you need a good stretch just lean slightly back or to the side as needed Exercise on the spot The Isokinetics manual provided some sample fitness ball exercises you could do at the desk One person found a rather unique advantage of the bouncy ball chair for women at least (warning NSFW) though Tim Ferriss points out a potential problem for men Some less pleasant things Although you can buy height adjusters for this particular chair depending on your setup the ball may be too low or too high in relation to your monitor and keyboard You may need to adjust your whole workstation You cant really just lean back on this chair and relax If you bounce too much you may get a headache The ball can get sticky in warm weather After a little over a week of using the chair its impossible to tell if its helping to increase my core strength as I hope it will but I do feel like I walk and sit much taller than I used to and can sit for longer periods of time If its only that Im more aware of my posture thats finemdashin my book the ball is doing its job Plus I now have another outlet for some creative nervous energy am sneaking in some extra (albeit minuscule in terms of calorie-burning) exercise and my butt doesnt hurt anymoremdashwhat more could I ask for

Exert from LifeHacker

Not excited about the esthetics of a Stability Ball or it Rolling awayhellip

There are many different lsquotraditionalrsquo holders for stability balls to make your new office Chair more attractive Below you will find some different availabilitieshellip

Gaiam Power-Systems AeroMat Yoga

Accessoriescom Health Mark

Evolution

Cando Children sizes Isokenetics

Why I Switched My Office Chair with an Exercise Ball (and What Its Like)

Many of us spend the majority of our professional lives sitting which makes the office chair an all-important piece of furniture Lately mine hasnt been cutting it so as an experiment I swapped my chair with an exercise ball Heres whats been great about it whats been less than perfect and what you might want to consider if youre interested in switching to an exercise ball as your office chair Purported Benefits of an Exercise Ball as a Chair I dont have one of those $500+ Herman Miller ergonomic chairs but do have a lumbar support roll for my desk chair which is sized small enough for my frame so I fit comfortably in it and everything is measured for ergonomic workstation perfection (as best as I could manage at least) But maybe its my increased awareness of the health hazards of sitting all day or just the years catching up with me but this regular chair isnt working so great Lately Ive been catching myself standing up to type in bouts of nervous energy or worse slouching My neck and shoulders perpetually ache Frankly my butt hurts

My alternatives were to adopt a standing desk or a treadputer or try a more ergonomically-designed Aeron or similar chair (like a good pair of shoes and a quality mattress its the everyday things that are worth investing in) Being both a yoga lover and a cheapskate I decided to first try out this exercise ball chair for $75

Besides being much cheaper than buying a new desk or a more expensive chair the exercise ball chair promised to allow me to work in some abdominal exercise throughout the day and possibly improve my years-of-working-slumped-at-a-desk posture

What Its Like to Sit on an Exercise Ball All Day The first time you sit on an exercise ball at your desk your back will probably shoot up so straight youll feel like a marionette If youre like me this will be a foreign even delightful experience (oh thats what its like) Twenty minutes later if youre like me your butt will hurt and you will switch back to your regular chair which will feel mushy by comparison After a couple more days of this you may find yourself sitting on the exercise ball chair for much longer periods of time (A week later I spend the majority of my day on the exercise ball chair but still take lots of breaks and occasionally switch back to the old chair) Some pleasant things You can bounce on the chair when a nice song comes on You can bounce on the chair in frustration while waiting for a browser page to reload If youre a kinesthetictactile learning type bouncing on the ball might stimulate your thinking Whenever you need a good stretch just lean slightly back or to the side as needed Exercise on the spot The Isokinetics manual provided some sample fitness ball exercises you could do at the desk One person found a rather unique advantage of the bouncy ball chair for women at least (warning NSFW) though Tim Ferriss points out a potential problem for men Some less pleasant things Although you can buy height adjusters for this particular chair depending on your setup the ball may be too low or too high in relation to your monitor and keyboard You may need to adjust your whole workstation You cant really just lean back on this chair and relax If you bounce too much you may get a headache The ball can get sticky in warm weather After a little over a week of using the chair its impossible to tell if its helping to increase my core strength as I hope it will but I do feel like I walk and sit much taller than I used to and can sit for longer periods of time If its only that Im more aware of my posture thats finemdashin my book the ball is doing its job Plus I now have another outlet for some creative nervous energy am sneaking in some extra (albeit minuscule in terms of calorie-burning) exercise and my butt doesnt hurt anymoremdashwhat more could I ask for

Exert from LifeHacker

Why I Switched My Office Chair with an Exercise Ball (and What Its Like)

Many of us spend the majority of our professional lives sitting which makes the office chair an all-important piece of furniture Lately mine hasnt been cutting it so as an experiment I swapped my chair with an exercise ball Heres whats been great about it whats been less than perfect and what you might want to consider if youre interested in switching to an exercise ball as your office chair Purported Benefits of an Exercise Ball as a Chair I dont have one of those $500+ Herman Miller ergonomic chairs but do have a lumbar support roll for my desk chair which is sized small enough for my frame so I fit comfortably in it and everything is measured for ergonomic workstation perfection (as best as I could manage at least) But maybe its my increased awareness of the health hazards of sitting all day or just the years catching up with me but this regular chair isnt working so great Lately Ive been catching myself standing up to type in bouts of nervous energy or worse slouching My neck and shoulders perpetually ache Frankly my butt hurts

My alternatives were to adopt a standing desk or a treadputer or try a more ergonomically-designed Aeron or similar chair (like a good pair of shoes and a quality mattress its the everyday things that are worth investing in) Being both a yoga lover and a cheapskate I decided to first try out this exercise ball chair for $75

Besides being much cheaper than buying a new desk or a more expensive chair the exercise ball chair promised to allow me to work in some abdominal exercise throughout the day and possibly improve my years-of-working-slumped-at-a-desk posture

What Its Like to Sit on an Exercise Ball All Day The first time you sit on an exercise ball at your desk your back will probably shoot up so straight youll feel like a marionette If youre like me this will be a foreign even delightful experience (oh thats what its like) Twenty minutes later if youre like me your butt will hurt and you will switch back to your regular chair which will feel mushy by comparison After a couple more days of this you may find yourself sitting on the exercise ball chair for much longer periods of time (A week later I spend the majority of my day on the exercise ball chair but still take lots of breaks and occasionally switch back to the old chair) Some pleasant things You can bounce on the chair when a nice song comes on You can bounce on the chair in frustration while waiting for a browser page to reload If youre a kinesthetictactile learning type bouncing on the ball might stimulate your thinking Whenever you need a good stretch just lean slightly back or to the side as needed Exercise on the spot The Isokinetics manual provided some sample fitness ball exercises you could do at the desk One person found a rather unique advantage of the bouncy ball chair for women at least (warning NSFW) though Tim Ferriss points out a potential problem for men Some less pleasant things Although you can buy height adjusters for this particular chair depending on your setup the ball may be too low or too high in relation to your monitor and keyboard You may need to adjust your whole workstation You cant really just lean back on this chair and relax If you bounce too much you may get a headache The ball can get sticky in warm weather After a little over a week of using the chair its impossible to tell if its helping to increase my core strength as I hope it will but I do feel like I walk and sit much taller than I used to and can sit for longer periods of time If its only that Im more aware of my posture thats finemdashin my book the ball is doing its job Plus I now have another outlet for some creative nervous energy am sneaking in some extra (albeit minuscule in terms of calorie-burning) exercise and my butt doesnt hurt anymoremdashwhat more could I ask for

Exert from LifeHacker

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