8 Unconventional Chairs for Healthier Sitting
Need a little more support in the ergonomic department? Feel like your regular old desk chair is cramping your style? Then you should definitely take a look at these 8 unconventional options, targeted at keeping you active, healthy, and might even improve your abs!
By taking an active posture rather than a passive one, these chairs keep your body moving and engage your core, improving balance, posture, and general well-being. In fact, studies have shown that making small movements while seated will stimulate circulation, send oxygen to the brain, and improve concentration.
1. Swopper Stool ($713): First up, the Swopper! Designed to provide the sitter with horizontal, vertical, and lateral movement, it’s all about reducing lower back pain by engaging muscles that normally go unused in a normal office chair.
2. Gaiam Balance Ball Chair ($100): Part exercise and part balance-builder, this ball-based chair employs the same ball used in your workout routine but outfits it with an adjustable support bar, easy-glide casters, an air pump, and a desktop guide to keep you moving. This will help keep your spine aligned, and is said to improve overall well-being.
3. Neutral Posture Ongo Chair ($480): Ideal for meetings or as supporting characters in a standing desk setup, the Ongo chair promotes health relaxation and well-being through almost constant movement. Forget that sedentary couch potato slump – the Ongo keeps you alert and on your toes.
4. Ergo Ergo Stool ($100): Ergo Ergo! For an option a bit more stable than a balance ball, this stool allows for greater fluidity of motion by allowing you to rock gently in any direction, building strength and flexibility in the process.
5. Kneeling Posture Office Chair ($64): Um, remember the original ergonomic chair? I remember friends who had these in the ’90s, along with their gigantic desktops that took up half their desks. Can’t go wrong with a classic.
6. Rockin’ Exercise Ball Chair ($129): Leave it to the folks at Pottery Barn Teen to turn an exercise ball into a statement piece. This furry little number is cozy, and looks nothing like a piece of equipment you’d use at the gym.
7. Buoy ($169): We’ve got our sights set on the Buoy here at Brit HQ. It’s a stool for active sitting, allowing you to swivel, turn, tilt, and move up and down. As they write, “Whether you’re a knee bouncer, a pencil tapper, or you’ve got jazz hands, Buoy lets you move freely.”
8. Exercise Ball ($17): Last, just go for the classic exercise balance ball! A couple Brit + Co. staffers swear by theirs, and no one’s rolled off their seat… yet ;)
