Typing Ergonomics

It is amazing how the simplest things in our daily routine can put pain producing stress on our bodies. How we use our keyboard is no exception. Do you practice proper typing ergonomics?

You probably do, if you...

1. Keep elbow height slightly higher than the hands, or keep the line between your elbows and hands parallel to the floor.
2. Hold elbows close to the body.
3. Sit with your shoulders back, not slumped forward.
4. Slant shoulders downward, rather than raised toward the ears.
5. Use a chair with armrests when your arms need additional support.
6. Avoid turning your body when using the keyboard and mouse.
7. Do NOT use a wrist rest while typing, but instead, rest the PALMS of the hands on them, when not typing.

And...

You are probably using correct typing ergonomics if you take frequent breaks to do ergonomic exercises. Exercises that can help reduce the hand, arm, neck, shoulder and back pain that is easily produced by hours of typing.

Ergonomic Exercises

Very simple exercises can help relieve the tension that often builds up in the muscles and joints while typing. 

Hand exercises should only be done with "healthy fingers" and may not be appropriate if you have hand arthritis, or hand injuries. As with all exercise - check with your doctor first!

Knuckle Bend

1. Extend your hand and support it on a flat surface.  
2. Bend knuckles, folding fingers downward.
3. Hold for a couple of seconds and then extend fingers.  Repeat several times.

Hand Squeeze

1. Use a squeeze ball if you have one, or another soft object the size of a hand-held ball.
2. Close your hands in around the object, pressing tightly.
3. Release and repeat several times.

Hand Press

1. Rest wrist on flat surface with fingers extended upward.
2. With the opposite hand gently press the fingers backward and hold for several seconds.
3. Repeat several times.

Back Swivel

1. In a standing position place your fingertips on your shoulders, with your upper arms parallel to the floor.
2. Slowly rotate your upper body to each side several times.

Arm and Back Stretch

1. In a standing position place your left arm behind your back, reaching up toward the center of your shoulder blades.
2. Raise your right hand over your head and then drop it down behind your back as though trying to touch the fingertips of your left hand. (In time, and with practice, they will eventually meet!)
3. Repeat with the opposite arms.

You may also be interested in:
Chair for Back Pain, Desk Ergonomics, Office Chair Exercise, Posture Exercises, Sitting Posture

Keyboarding Ergonomics

Not only are typing ergonomics important, but the keyboard (and the mouse) that are used can be equally as important.

With so many keyboard styles on the market, which ones are the best for proper typing ergonomics?

It appears that the ergonomic experts disagree...

Perhaps the best one is the one that feels the most natural and comfortable to YOU. You will have some interesting choices, for sure. Here is just a sampling...

Split Keyboard - Keyboards which divide the letter keys into halves are available in fixed angle, and adjustable angle. These keyboards are intended to allow for a more natural positioning of the arms. Some split keyboards also allow for the halves to be physically separated, which can be useful for large individuals.

Keyless Ergonomic Keyboard - orbiTouch has created a revolutionary keyless keyboard, designed to help people with repetitive stress injuries, such as carpel tunnel syndrome, hand or finger injuries, as well as people with cognitive challenges. You can check out their product by visiting:
www.keybowl.com.

Contoured Keyboard - Contour designs, such as that of the Kinesis contoured keyboards are said to reduce the force and stressful postures that contribute to discomfort and limited productivity. Among other features, the Kinesis offers closer placement of function keys, separate thumb keypads, a lateral tilt design, concave key wells, and separate key wells for each hand. A full listing of features is available at: www.kinesis-ergo.com.

Dvorak Keyboard Layout - QWERTY typing is what most of us are accustomed to. However, August Dvorak and William Dealey thought it might make more sense to reposition the keys, so that the keys most often used are split evenly between the left and right side of the keyboard - making typing more efficient. & Interesting typing ergonomics!

However, there seems to be much debate as to whether or not the Dvorak layout offers increased efficiency.

A U.S. Dvorak layout, as well as an International Dvorak layout, are available. Wikipedia has an excellent write-up on the Dvorak Keyboard system and how your computer can be set up to use it. This link will take you there:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dvorak_Simplified_Keyboard.

One of the ways in which Merriam-Webster OnLine defines ergonomics is...

The science, which concerns itself with designing and arranging things people use so that people and things interact efficiently and safely.

A good thought to keep in mind as you decide what the best typing ergonomics are for your own computer workstation.