SitCorrect: Pregnancy Seating

I’ve linked to a new study posted by Varier earlier this week regarding the benefits of kneeling chairs for women during the latter stages of their pregnancies.  Check it out!

Ergo Expo 2011

It’s that time of year again!  The annual Ergo Expo takes place in Las Vegas from November 30th to December 2nd.

Ergonomic Mecca

Ergo Expo is the largest and most comprehensive ergonomic event in the nation.  Speakers and manufacturers from around the world come to share their ergo-friendly products and knowledge.  This year’s schedules include companies like JetBlue and Chevron  with implemented ergonomic strategies, as well as some of our favorite manufacturers (Humanscale, Varier, ESI, Neutral Posture and Office Master, to name a few!) with their superb product lines.

Events like this ensure that ergonomic products and workplace strategies get the support they need in order to deliver unparalleled support to us on a daily basis.  For those of us who can’t attend, Ergo Expo’s offering free webinars throughout the conference.  They’re certainly not to be missed!

This one is for the fidgeters.

Varier’s come out with a press release on a recent study done using their Move Stool for ADD/ADHD children in which they found that providing an outlet for fidgeting  increases aptitude and learning.

I remember being a kid and having trouble sitting still, be it at home or at school.  Even now it’s hard to sit at my desk and work uninterrupted.  As a writer with more than my fair share of imagination, I process ideas the best when I’m in motion, be it pacing or gesticulating while talking to myself.  As a new teacher I need to come up with all sorts of learning strategies to engage my kids, and the more freedom I give them to move, the more ownership they have over their learning and their work in the classroom.

Humans are active.  We sprawl, lean, tap, drum and generally wiggle our way through the day. It’s unnatural to sit still for hours, and a static body promotes a static mind.  By allowing kids the freedom to move while they read and interact in a classroom, we encourage the development of their kinetic intelligence and actually, believe it or not, promote healthier brain function.

The same goes for adults in the workplace, and companies like Varier focus on ergonomic options for the active adult as well as their smaller Move Stool for kids.  The Move Stool and their line of kneeling chairs give us the freedom to fidget in the office while providing great ergonomic support for our bodies.  What’s not to love?

Slouch-asaurus Rex

Our friends at Varier recently posted about the importance of posture – only this time, they’re not talking about in the office.

So, you have an ergonomic chair in the office.  You sit in it 8 hours a day.  You make sure to adjust your position periodically to support your spine.  You’re more alert throughout your day and by the time you leave, that early morning stiffness you came in with is gone.  What’s the first thing you do when you go home?

If you’re me, you throw something on the grill, flip on the TV and instantly slouch back onto your sofa.  This negates your daily efforts toward perfect posture, and it promotes long-term spinal damage:

 If your home seating fails to maintain the natural curve of your low back, indeed encourages you to sit in a sustained slouch, then the ligaments in your back are going to be stretched, just as they are if you sit badly in the office. As a result the small stretch receptors in the ligaments and deep muscles of your back will tire of their protective role and switch off, and you lose the reflex that automatically protects your spine. Your spinal stability is gone and your spine is now very vulnerable to injury. And all the time you are sitting slouched, fluid is emerging from the muscles, ligaments, discs and joints, irritating the spinal structures, and creating inflammation.

Put simply, habitual slouching = inflammation = injury.  Sitting well in the office does not cancel out the damage you do to your back at home.

We don’t usually think about ergonomic seating in the home.  It’s long been an important issue where we work, but at home our personal rule is the softer, the better. Varier doesn’t agree, and neither do we.  We’ve blogged about the Gravity Chair before, but now is the perfect time to reconsider your home seating arrangements.

You don’t have to sacrifice style with the Gravity Chair and, most importantly, your money goes to support the continued flexibility and health of your back.  At 25 and as a habitual sloucher, I’m already experiencing early-morning soreness and a loss of flexibility that has me worried.  The earlier you become aware of your posture and take steps to correct it, the healthier and easier your mobility will become as you get older.

Varier’s committed to bringing beautiful, healthy seating to you no matter where you are.  We at Seating Zone are proud to offer their phenomenal products in the US.

And just think – a kneeling chair at work and a Gravity Chair at home?  I’m all about matching, and this sounds like a dream come true.

varier gravity chair

This isn’t a new item, but it’s been awhile since I’ve mentioned our friends at Varier. Whenever people call up asking for a kneeling chair, it’s inevitably their classic Variable Balans (or Wing Chair) that I suggest. But they also have a very special model that’s more than just a kneeling chair: the Gravity Balans.

We have one of these in our showroom right now (it looks exactly like the model in the video!), and at a very good price. This beautiful chair draws comments from everyone — impressive to behold, it also tilts forward and backwards into four distinct positions, even a kneeling chair! And don’t be afraid to take your feet off the ground, because the floating sensation is very relaxing.

peel and peel club

Oh, Variér, will there ever be a day you design furniture that doesn’t make my heart skip a beat?

(Peel)

(Peel Club)

Inimitable Norway-based makers of the stunning Gravity balans chair and  classic Variable balans kneeling chair, Variér holds nothing back when it comes to these Peel and Peel Club chairs.  They feature  eco-friendly and lush leathers, cradle-shapes that make the shift from cuddle to upright a cinch, and that delicate, sought-after blend of modernity and nostalgia that makes these chairs perfect for hotels, lounges, or the comfort-loving aesthete.

If you’re not seduced yet, take note:  SeatingZone.com is offering not one, but two deals for the Peel family through March 31, 2010.  Buy two Peel chairs, receive 20% off the second chair; buy one Peel chair, receive a free footrest.  Buy two Peel Club chairs , receive 20% off the second chair.  Très magnifique!

Gravity Chair

Introducing the Gravity Chair from Varier… Or more like Miracle Chair if you ask me. The weird and wonderful design of this chair means you can lie back and relax — with no support behind you! Is it witchcraft? No, it’s just the mind-boggling, impeccable Scandinavian design that brought you the Variable Balans and the Thatsit.

This amazing chair is more than just a recliner, though. It can be used in four different positions, including one upright for table or desk work. It’s also made from sustainable woods, and if you order now from SeatingZone, you can get it for $1,000 off the list price!

What a perfect, decadent Christmas present.

Appealing Chair

You know I love “orange” chairs, but this one from Varier brings the concept to a whole new level!

We started carrying a the Varier Balans kneeling chair a couple of months ago, as I’ve mentioned before here, but it’s worth pointing out that Varier has a whole line of very swanky, cool, and distinctive seating options. Every one of their beautifully crafted pieces is a work of art, created by some of the most original minds in Norwegian design.

I encourage you to surf around the Varier website and see the spectacular designs illustrated there. So far we don’t have anything but the Balans listed on our sites, but we can get anything from their line — so if anything strikes your fancy, call us at 866-495-0400 for a quote!

Price Drop!

Oh wow!  I totally thought I blogged the big news about the Varier Balans chair, but I guess I just put it in our newsletter and forgot to mention it here.

Anyway, the big news:
The VAR-100 Variable Balans has been marked down to $395!

And okay, that’s not a cheap chair, but you should know that it regularly retails for nearly $900!  Yeah, this is no ordinary kneeling chair.  Finely crafted, with authentic Norwegian design, this is definitely ergonomic seating for connoisseurs.