BEAT Self-Assessment Quiz

Posture of the head and neck while sitting at a desk is very important to help reduce the risks of developing musculoskeletal issues leading to pain, limited mobility, headaches or nerve impingement. Over time we tend to tilt our necks forward and lean into our workstation. This can result in an upward or downward tilt of the skull too. These abnormal postures put excess strain on the joints, ligaments, joint capsules and muscles surrounding the cervical spine (neck). As this posture continues the muscles become weak and tight. What that means is, if your muscle is tight from excessive abnormal use, it becomes partially contracted, meaning when you do need to use it you do not have its full length or power to use since it is already somewhat engaged.

The above scenario can lead to chronic neck, upper back, and shoulder pain along with headaches and limited motion of the neck. Some people develop nerve compression from inflammation and degeneration of spinal discs, which may lead you to a diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome.

Ideally your head and neck should be straight with no tilt of the head to look at your computer screen (we will test the screen height later). Your chair should also support your spine from the upper to low back and allow you to get in the best position to allow your spine to be straight and comfortable.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your head and neck?

Posture of the upper back while sitting at a desk is very important to help reduce the risks of developing musculoskeletal issues leading to pain, limited mobility, headaches or nerve impingement. Ideally your upper back should be straight (no slouching). Your chair should also support your body and allow you to get in the best position to allow your spine to be straight. The upper back can also be affected by having abnormal postures of the neck and the shoulders.

Now its time to analyze the position of your upper back.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your upper back?

Posture of the shoulders while sitting at a desk is very important to help reduce the risks of developing musculoskeletal issues leading to shoulder pain, acute or chronic upper back pain, limited mobility, or nerve impingement. Ideally your shoulders should be in a relaxed and neutral position while sitting at your desk. Most people slouch forward starting at the head and neck, then moving down to the upper portion of the back. When this happens the shoulders tend to move forward and rotate inwards. As this happens the shoulder blade is also stressed as it is rotating outward and has an upward tilt to it so that it can accommodate the altered position. This puts tremendous amounts of stress and strain of the muscles of the shoulder girdle, which includes the shoulder blade, shoulder, upper back and neck. Several things you do at your desk can contribute to shoulder pain. These include repeated reaching for items that are too far out, resting your elbows or wrists on a desk elevating the shoulders, leaning on the arm of your office chair for long periods of time.

Forward slouching posture from the upper back is not the only cause for concern or contributor to shoulder pain. You could have perfect posture but if the the devices you work with throughout the day are too far away from you and you have to reach forward this can put a lot of stress on you shoulder. This commonly happens to people using laptops or working from home and they have not figured out the best options for setting up their keyboard or they are limited by the table or chair they are using.

Your chair should give you enough support to allow you to get in the best position to allow your spine to be straight and comfortable. If your chair has armrests the height should be adjusted to allow your elbows to sit on them with the shoulders in a relaxed posture. The armrests should be in line with the top of the desk so the forearm is in a straight line and all of the force is equalized.

Now it’s time to analyze the posture of your shoulders.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your shoulders?

When sitting at your desk the position of your elbows is an important link between your shoulder and upper back and the forearm and wrist. All of these need to work together with each other to make sure we get the most benefit from our ergonomic make-over.

The elbows should be as close to 90 degrees as possible and resting comfortably on the arm rests of your office chair. If you do not have arm rests, try to get a new chair. A chair with armrests will take a lot of stress off of your shoulders and upper back and the height you put the armrests will be the one that helps your shoulders be the most relaxed. You can then use that as a guide through the day. If you notice your elbows have drifted off of your armrests that is your cue that you are tensing up in the shoulders, upper back or neck and you need to relax and get in a more natural and comfortable position. If getsing a chair with armrests isn’t an option try to modify the height of the chair so that your elbow/forearms are flat on your desk when you shoulders are relaxed.

You may fall in to one of the two different things we typically see with position of the elbow.
1. Your forearms are rested on the desk and opened up greater than 90 degrees with the arm flexed forward. This position puts a lot of stress from the neck down to the wrist.
2. Your shoulders are elevated, your body is leaning in toward the desk and your elbows are flexed to less than 90 degrees. This position typically puts your forearms on the edge of the desk or working surface creating a pinch=point on the soft tissues. This can create musculoskeletal issues in the forearm or lead to numbness or tingling in the hands and fingers.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your elbows?

Your elbows should be resting comfortably on the armrests of your chair with your forearms somewhat flat to slightly higher than the desk or table where your keyboard and mouse are located. This flat to slightly raised position helps keep the shoulders relaxed as well as lessening the backward bend of the wrists as you interact with the keyboard and mouse. This will decrease the chance of pressure or pinch points developing in your forearm which may lead to musculoskeletal issues or numbness and tingling in the hand and fingers.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your forearms/wrists?

Posture of the lower back while sitting at a desk is very important to help reduce the risks of developing musculoskeletal issues leading to acute or chronic low back pain, limited mobility, or nerve impingement. Ideally your low back should be relaxed and support the natural forward curve. Most people slouch forward starting at the head and neck, then moving down to the upper portion of the back. Eventually this affects the low back and the upper spine slouch becomes a whole spine curve forward. The low back has a “lordosis” which means it naturally curves toward the front of your body. When we slouch forward we straighten that curve and put stress on the surrounding muscles as well as the ligaments and capsules around the joints.

The low back should also not be pushed too far forward, in cases where you may be using a lumbar support device in your chair. This makes that forward curve of the spine even bigger and may lead to compression of the joints of the spine causing a “facet syndrome” which may lead to radiating pain.

Your chair should support your upper back as well and allow you to get in the best position to allow your spine to be straight and comfortable.

Now it’s time to analyze your shoulder posture.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your lower back?

When your seat height is adjusted properly your hips should be at about a 90 degree angle or your thigh should be flat from the hip to the knee. This position helps keep stress off of the low back, front of the hip and the knees.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your hips?

The knees should be in a straight line from the hip so that the thigh is flat on the chair. This allows the thighs to relax and takes pressure off of the low back. Resisting the urge to cross your legs or sit on one leg will help maintain blood flow to the lower extremity which will help with reduced swelling in the ankles or legs.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your head and neck?

Your chair should support your spinal curves to help you relax while seated. Another important aspect of your chair is the ability to raise or lower the seat height. You should be able to adjust the height of your chair so that your feet rest flat on the floor or on a footrest and your thighs are parallel to the floor. Most office chairs also allow you the ability to adjust the armrests so your arms can gently rest on them with your shoulders relaxed.The height of the armrests should match the height of the desk to avoid creating any pinch points in the forearm.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your seat?

Your monitor should be placed directly in front of you, and at about an arm’s length away. The top of the screen should be at or slightly below eye level. The monitor should be directly behind your keyboard to help keep your body position aligned. If you wear bifocals, lower the monitor an additional 1 to 2 inches for more comfortable viewing. Place your monitor so that the brightest light source is to the side.

If you use dual monitors determine if you use both monitors mostly equally throughout the day (50/50) or if one monitor is used more often than the other (80/20).

-50/50 setup:
-Set up the monitors beside each other with the seams directly in front of you, about an arms length away and at the heights listed above. If you find yourself using one monitor more than the other at times, swivel your chair and move your keyboard to avoid twisting the body and placing yourself in an awkward position.

-80/20
-Place the primary monitor in the same position as a single monitor setup (above). Set the other monitor up on the side of your dominant eye (find your dominant eye here). When moving to the less frequently moved monitor swivel your chair and move your keyboard to avoid twisting the body and placing yourself in an awkward position.

To help avoid eyestrain during the day look away from your monitor use the 20/20/20 rule. Every 20 minutes stare at something that is about 20 feet away for about 20 seconds. This will allow the muscles of your eyes to relax from the constant focus of staring at the screen.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your monitor(s)?

Place your keyboard and mouse within easy reach and on the same surface. While typing or using your mouse, keep your wrists straight, your upper arms close to your body, and your hands at or slightly below the level of your elbows. Use keyboard shortcuts to reduce extended use of the mouse. If possible, adjust the sensitivity of the mouse so you can use a light touch to operate it. Alternate the hand you use to operate the mouse by moving the mouse to the other side of your keyboard.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your keyboard and mouse?

If you frequently talk on the phone and type or write at the same time, place your phone on speaker or use a headset rather than cradling the phone between your head and neck. Make sure the dial pad for the phone is in close proximity so you do not have to overextend when using it.

Now, analyze yourself from a picture or a video someone has taken of you while you were at your workstation and answer the following question.

This is about awareness and there are no wrong answers.

Which of the following best describes the position of your phone?