Tag Archives: Workplace Wellness

How to use reusable earplugs

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For workers required to wear earplugs on the job, there are many factors that can affect which type they will prefer, or will be required to wear. Depending on these factors, you or your employee may choose to wear reusable earplugs – some benefits are listed below.

Benefits of Reusable earplugs:

  • Are washable and have flexible, elastic flanges attached to a handle/grip
  • Can be reused many times, resulting in less waste
  • Cost-effective because they are replaced less often
  • Can be inserted when hands are dirty or when gloves are worn
  • Material doesn’t absorb moisture, making them ideal for wet conditions or when workers perspire heavily
  • Have a moderate attenuation which allows workers to hear more sound when a high noise reduction rating (NNR) isn’t needed

Watch the video for steps to ensure proper use!

Earplugs only work well when they are used properly. See the video below for the proper steps to take when using reusable earplugs.

Looking for earplugs for your facility?
Contact us! We carry many varieties and we can help you select the earplug that is perfect for your application.

Workstation Ergonomics: How to Set Up a Healthy Desk

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By now, you know that poor office posture can lead to repetitive stress injuries and overall health issues. But you might still be wondering how exactly to correct the problem. Here, you’ll find a handy guide to help you adjust your way to workplace health.

Bends

When adjusting your monitor, chair and desk, the right angle in your best friend. For example, your knees should be bent at ninety degrees, with your thighs resting comfortably and your feet planted on the floor.

The right angle is also what you’re aiming for with mouse and keyboard adjustment. Your upper arms should rest comfortably at your sides, with your elbows bending at ninety degrees. From there, your forearms rest on the desk, never over-reaching for the mouse or keyboard. If in order to reach your keyboard, you need to move your upper arm away from your side, it’s too far. Bring the keyboard and mouse closer.

hand-wrist-posture

The final right angle to look for is in your torso. When you sit, do your hips stack directly under your shoulders and neck? If you’re slouching or leaning forward, the chair could be to blame. Look for something that supports your low and upper back. That way, you can lean comfortably into your chair while maintaining an upright posture.

Heights

To get started, your chair height should be equal to the length of your calves, allowing your knees to bend at ninety degrees.

The height of your desk should allow your arms to access the mouse and keyboard at a ninety degree angle whether sitting or standing, so what does that look like?

For a sitting desk, look for something with a height around your pelvic region.

sitting-posture

For a standing desk, you’ll want something that tops out around your naval.

sit-stand-setup

Monitor height is a crucial part of our muscular well-being, but so many people get it wrong. The top of your screen should align with your mouth area, and angle upward at about 30 to 40 degrees. This will allow your neck to stay upright, with your chin slightly tucked.

A proper monitor can be especially tricky to visualize, since it’s such a far-cry from how most of us use our computers. For a great visual aid and measurements customized to your body type, check out Computing Comfort.

First Sit and Stand Experience: A Week Long Study

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Hello everyone,

Nem here, the Web Marketing Specialist. Hope your journey to a healthier workplace is going according to plan. As part of this month’s workplace wellness blog we thought it would be worthwhile to do a mini-study on myself, by myself (not sure if this one will be a part of any peer reviewed journals) with regards to the sit and stand workstations.

Sit & Stand Workstation Study

Many of us at our office got outfitted with these options and we’ve been trying to implement a good balance between sitting and standing. My personal goal was to reach a 50-50 balance. And as a little background on my daily activity; I do not do much moving around – my tasks consist mainly of working on the computer, unless we have to move tables, throw out old equipment or carry stuff into the storage room (Raf, the graphic designer and I are the internal moving team). The only times I get up are for lunch, grabbing coffee or restroom breaks.

 

 

Below is a chart where you will find my sitting vs. standing schedule over a week. You will notice I only hit that goal once during the week, and as a first timer using a sit & stand extension I think that is not too bad. Most of the time I would forget to stand (caught up in doing work) and then I would have to make up the time by standing for prolonged periods of time as opposed to doing timely and balanced intervals.

Weekly Chart: Sitting vs. Standing

Summary of my experiences during this week:

1. Making a daily schedule of when to sit and stand helps remind you to actually stand.

We all get caught up in our responsibilities and our brains have been basically wired to sit (if your job is computer heavy like mine) at work. I made a schedule for each day and followed it (for the most part) to gradually increase my standing time.

2. Doing short intervals between sitting and standing is much better than trying to stand or sit for longer periods.

When I would sit for too long, I tried to balance it out by standing for the same (if not longer) amount of time. Let me tell you, your feet get sore! It’s not too bad but at some point you start to lean on one leg, then the other to avoid soreness. I found myself shuffling my feet, anything but to stay stationary. We even got a Steppie (balancing board for your feet while you stand, it rocks left and right) that I used but it elevated me past my monitors so I went back to alternating my legs while standing. Short intervals > long periods of time.

3. My focus increased while standing.

Usually I would lock in and chip away at a specific task continuously. Perhaps it was the increased blood flow as the manufacturers claim, or it could have been the fact that when you stand to work it’s almost like raising your hand in class. You are put on the spot to answer (or ask a question) and “everyone” is watching. Probably a little subconscious trick of the brain to get you into another gear.

4. Another interesting thing I found is that if any of my colleagues near me were standing, we would be more collaborative (or communicative).

Being eye level with someone (as opposed to being separated by a cubicle wall) made it easier to ask a question directly while working instead of sending an email and waiting for a response. Actually the same case can be made for colleagues in different locations of the office. I found myself walking over and having a conversation (assuming they were not busy or in meetings) regarding certain tasks as opposed to just emailing back and forth.

5. First thing in the morning and first thing after lunch were NOT my standing times.

I would usually take the 1st hour after coming into the office and about 30-45 minutes after lunch to sit. Any other time of the day was fair game.

So there you have it – my initial experiences with the sit & stand workstation on the road to a healthier workday. I would love to hear if anyone else has had a similar or different experience using one of these. I would also be very interested in hearing from people who don’t necessarily work at a computer all day – do you find sitting breaks necessary sometimes?