Software Developers Have Health Risks - by Devid R
If you’re like most computer programmers, this is probably what you look like for a large portion of the day, hunched over your desk at a computer for hours on end. It sucks. I know because I’ve been there.
The head is forward (1), shoulders are slouched (2), back is arched (3) and your hips form an angle of less than 90 degrees (4). The evidence is overwhelming that sitting this way is really bad for you. Slouching can cause problems with headaches and jaw pain, gastrointestinal problems, give you a beer gut, even cause you to perform poorly at your job and wreak havoc on your perceived confidence. In order to avoid these problems, a number of experts advise improving your sitting posture.
This what the textbook “correct” sitting posture looks like. The monitor is positioned at or just below eye level so that the head is straight (1). The shoulders are back and the back is slightly arched (2). The elbows form a 90-degree angle (3) so that the forearms are level.
It’s true that sitting properly may improve your overall posture, but it’s only part of the story. For me, the improvement was marginal at best. I still walked around with slouched shoulders and with my head forward. About a year ago, I made a concerted effort to change that.
