Ergonomics is all about crafting your work or gaming set up to suit your needs, body shape, and individual preferences. Each aspect of your set up needs to be refined to ensure you remain comfortable and supported during extended hours of work or gameplay. Without, you risk damaging your back, wrists, neck, and much more.
Therefore, we’ve put together this guide detailing how you can optimise your ergonomics, to ensure your set up perfectly meets your needs and workflow.
Chair
We’ve all spent long hours sitting in our chairs, either hard at work or gaming. However, if your chair isn’t up to the task of keeping you well supported, you’ll soon be hit with uncomfortable back discomfort and pain, which in the long run can result in prolonged damage. A simple way to avoid this is by getting up for a good ol’ stretch now and then, but also investing in a high-quality chair.
Not only do gaming chairs look great, but they have been expertly designed to stay supportive, comfortable, meet a range of body shapes and sizes, along with featuring built-in back support.
A typical gaming chair will often include adjustable ergonomics, such as manoeuvrable armrests, customisable lumbar support, along with recline and tilt rocking mechanisms. All of which have been fine-tuned to enhance your comfort and keep you supported.
In addition to this, there are a range of gaming chairs that have been designed to suit all different types of gamers. This means, no matter your shape or size, you can sit in your chair, without being too cramped, hot, or uncomfortable.
If you’re stuck on which gaming chair is the right one for you, our dedicated gaming chair guide has all the information you need.
noblechairs LEGEND Black/White/Red Gaming Chair:
- Redefined design
- Built from PU leather with cold foam upholstery
- Integrated lumbar support
- 4D adjustable armrests
- Black/red/white design
ThunderX3 Eaze Loft Grey Gaming Chair:
- Ergonomic gaming chair
- Constructed from premium materials such as breathable fabric and a stainless steel frame
- SYNC 4 mechanism offers four-way adjustability
- Padded 2D armrests
Nitro Concepts S300 EX Black Gaming Chair:
- Premium gaming chair
- Built from comfortable PU leather and cold foam upholstery
- Adjustable ergonomics including 3D armrests
- Includes two plush cushions
Chair Accessories
Most gaming chairs are compatible with a range of additional accessories, which when paired together can enhance your comfort even further. This includes padded footrests and memory pillow sets.
A footrest will elevate your feet, improving your circulation, aligning your posture, and keeping your weight spread evenly across your chair. All of which will greatly reduce any strain on your body and back, along with helping you to maintain a more natural posture.
Pillow sets typically include a neck and lumbar pillow, to offer those vital areas more support and extra comfort. Plus, you can find pillow sets that sport your favourite video game, Marvel, or Star Wars character, for that extra unique and stylish touch to your set up.
noblechairs Memory Foam Special Edition Darth Vader Pillow Set:
- Darth Vadar edition
- Memory foam
- Head and lumbar pillows
- Plush fabric
- Machine washable
noblechairs Black Footrest V2:
- High-quality footrest
- Stitched leather cover
- Cold foam upholstery
Desk
You can find hundreds of different sized desks, all of which have been designed to fit into a range of office shapes and sizes. A typical gaming desk will be constructed from durable materials such as stainless steel or MDF, in order to support multiple monitors, your PC or laptop, and peripherals. Whilst features such as built-in cable management along with mounts and holders, keep your desk free of clutter and unnecessary wires.
No matter how equipped your desk may be, you might still be experiencing some general aches and pains from sitting down for extended periods of time. If this is the case, it’s worth investing in a height adjustable sit/stand desk.
These desks will typically feature an electric motor that you can use to move the desk up and down, from a seated to a standing position. This is perfect for getting you to stand up, stretch and move about, whilst still being able to do your work or game.
ThunderX3 ED7 Adjustable Gaming Desk:
- Adjustable desk
- Max height of 123cm
- Carbon-fibre finish
- Full surface mouse pad
- Integrated cup holder and cable grommets
Nitro Concepts D16E Sit/Stand Adjustable Gaming Desk:
- Sit/stand adjustable desk
- Built from a combination of stainless and robust MDF
- Comes with a micro-woven mouse pad
- Height adjustable up to 121cm
- Includes desktop inlets for cable management
- Headset holder
Your Desk Layout
However, it’s not just about the type of desk, it’s also how you have it arranged.
Not only do you need to keep your desk free of unnecessary clutter and mess, but there is also actually an ergonomic way to have your peripherals arranged. Typically, the important peripherals such as your keyboard and mouse, need to be at the front of your desk, within an easy reach. You shouldn’t be straining to reach them, and your wrists should remain straight, with your hands at the same height or just below your elbows.
In addition to this, your monitor should be situated at the back of the desk, within an arm’s length away and the top of the screen should be at or slightly just below your eye level, to reduce any strain on your eyes. Lastly, the height of your desk should be high enough to ensure there is ample space for your legs, without you having to sit in a slouched position. Your legs shouldn’t be cramped, and you should be able to easily rest your feet flat on the floor.
If you maintain this posture and desk arrangement, there should be virtually no strain on your body, and you can work or enjoy playing your favourite game for extended periods of time.
Monitor
We’ve just mentioned how you can situate your monitor on your desk in a way that reduces strain on your body and eyes. Whilst you can opt to keep your monitor on your desk, there are a few additional accessories such as monitor arms or risers, that you can utilise instead.
A monitor arm or riser will lift your monitor up at a height that you can customise, in order to keep your monitor at or just below your eye level. This will completely reduce any strain on your eyes or neck, since you aren’t having to consistently look up or down at your screen.
Kolink Chimera Dual Monitor Desk Mount:
- Dual monitor mount
- Up to 12kg per arm
- Integrated cable management
- Adjustable height and swivel
Kolink M32GPSS-1 Ergonomic Single Monitor Mount:
- Single monitor mount
- Support for monitors between 17” and 32”
- Up to 9kg
- Adjustable swivel and height
What’s more, if you opt to have multiple monitors, I’m afraid it’s not wise to just have them situated in any old position. In fact, it’s key that you keep them as close as possible, to simulate one big seamless display. This means you aren’t having to constantly move your neck side to side to look between your screens.
Peripherals
Peripherals are a must-have addition to any work or gaming set up, and you can optimise them to perfectly suit your needs and individual preferences.
Mouse:
To kick off, let’s talk about mice. Not only can you configure the DPI, create your own custom macros, and RGB lighting, you can find gaming mice that are suitable for right- and left-handed users, along with ambidextrous models. Selecting a mouse that suits your dominant hand and shape, means you’ll have greater control over your mouse movements, whilst remaining comfortable during long hours of gameplay or work. The DPI and macro buttons will be within easy reach, meaning you won’t have to strain, take your hand off or lose focus during critical boss battles, to simply adjust your mice settings.
Glorious Model O- Odin Optical Gaming Mouse:
- Ambidextrous gaming mouse
- Pixart PMW 3360 sensor
- DPI of up to 12,000
- Up to 50G acceleration
- Low-resistance mouse feet
- Honeycomb design
Endgame Gear XM2WE Wireless Optical Gaming Mouse:
- Wireless gaming mouse
- PixArt PAW3370 optical sensor
- Up to 19000 CPI
- Kalih GO optical switches
- Ultra lightweight design
Keyboard:
Next up is your keyboard.
Most of the latest gaming mechanical keyboards come equipped with hot-swappable technology. This offers great adjustability and means you can seamlessly swap between different types of key switches.
There are hundreds of key switches from a range of great bands, including Cherry MX and Glorious. The four most common types include:
- Linear
- Tactile
- Clicky
- Low Profile
Each of these have been designed for gamers or typists and feature their own unique set of characteristics. You can test out a range of key switches until you find the set or combination that perfectly suits what you’re looking for – whether this is ultra-fast response times, virtually inaudible typing, a smooth or a distinct bumpy feel, or that classic clicky noise.
Our range of configurable keyboards allows you to build your own and experiment with different types of key switches.
Ducky Project D Tinnker 75% USB Mechanical Keyboard
- Ducky Project D keyboard
- Pre-built
- Hot-swappable PCB allows you to freely swap between different key switches and keycaps
- PBT double-shot keycaps
- Integrated RGB lighting
If you do opt to build your own custom mechanical keyboard, you can find plenty of helpful articles all about different key switch types and even a step-by-step guide.
OcUK Academy: How to Build a Mechanical Keyboard
Ducky Key Switches Explained
Glorious Key Switches Explained
Keycaps:
Equally as important as your choice is key switches, are keycaps.
You can find keycaps in a variety of different height profiles, finishes, and materials. The two most common are:
- PBT
- ABS
PBT keycaps are built from polybutylene terephthalate plastic, which is typically expensive to produce but boasts incredible durability and resistance. PBT keycaps feature a matte finish and a textured typing feel. Whilst ABS keycaps are crafted from Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene plastic. These keycaps are typically cheaper than PBT and often have a shiny finish.
It’s key you find the correct set of key caps to suit your typing preferences and needs, to reduce strain on your fingers and wrists, along with providing some benefits to your performance.
Wrist & Mouse Rest:
Lastly, is a wrist or mouse rest.
Constructed utilising a thick padding with a soft cloth exterior, a wrist or mouse rest will help to keep them slightly elevated and in-line with the height of your keyboard or mouse. This greatly reduces the strain on your wrists and arms, since they are in a much more natural position and aren’t being rested on a hard tabletop.
Glorious GWR-100 Full-Sized Ergonomic Keyboard Wrist Rest:
- Full-sized keyboard wrist rest
- Padded foam interior
- Non-slip rubber base
- Easy to clean
Glorious GW-M Ergonomic Mouse Wrist Rest:
- Mouse wrist rest
- Padded foam interior
- Non-slip rubber base
- Easy to clean
If you want to read more about the importance of wrist rests, check out our dedicated blog article.
Your Tips and Tricks
Do you have any tips and tricks for how you’ve optimised your set-up’s ergonomics? Be sure to leave them in the comments below.
- 10 min read
Ruth Rowley
Author
Ruth has been with Overclockers UK for over a year and has gone on to write about everything ranging from in-depth hardware guides to monthly game releases.
Outside of writing blog posts, she can be found wrapped in a blanket with her black cat, engrossed in a book or playing life-simulation games such as The Sims, Stardew Valley, and Animal Crossing.
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