The Editor’s Ergonomic Workspace

I’d like to think I’ve always been reasonably mindful about having good posture and a comfortable setup when I work, but I definitely got a lot more mindful about it when I left my in-house job and started working full-time from a home office in 2017. Since COVID hit, a lot of people have obviously joined me in that setup, whether whey work for a company or for themselves.

I haven’t tested every option out there, so I won’t try to be exhaustive—plenty of reputable sites have published helpful rankings of ergonomic office equipment. Instead, I’m going to talk about what I use and like from the perspective of an editor and proofreader.

Keyboard: Logitech Ergo K860

Most of us spend a lot of time typing, and for editors, it’s fundamental to our jobs. Making it as comfortable an experience as possible lets you concentrate on the content and can help avoid injuries down the line.

I’ve talked about my Ergo keyboard before—in fact, I mentioned it in my first-ever blog post here. As I wrote back in 2020, I picked it because it was well reviewed but didn’t have as extreme of a key split or curve as some ergonomic keyboards, which I felt like would be easier to get used to. It’s also fairly sleek looking, with a slim profile, which isn’t always the case with accessories labeled “ergonomic.” After almost three years of daily use, I can say I’m still very happy with the Ergo, and other than some wear on a few of the key labels, it looks as good as new. It took two or three weeks for it to feel “natural” for me, but since then, it’s been the most comfortable keyboard I’ve ever used.

One feature I didn’t need until recently is the row of buttons that let you toggle between up to three Bluetooth-connected devices. This was perfect when I started a six-month contract that had me working on a company Macbook: I could switch between that and my own PC laptop instantly.

Mouse: Logitech Lift

I stubbornly resisted vertical mice for a long, long time. I knew they were supposed to be good for comfort and long-term health, but they just seemed a little, well, weird. I’d never gotten around to trying one out, and they looked like they’d take too much getting used to (if I got used to them at all) to be worth taking a chance on. So I stuck with mice that were labeled “ergonomic” but used the usual shape and orientation.

But in 2022, when I started getting some discomfort in my mousing elbow, I decided to bite the bullet and buy one to see if it helped. I figured that, worst-case scenario, I could offload it on a friend or colleague if I didn’t like it. Since I already liked my Logitech keyboard, I ordered a Logitech Lift mouse. Like the keyboard, it had good reviews, and I figured I might as well have a matching set.

It was an immediate game-changer. It had taken a few weeks to really get used to my keyboard, but the mouse only took a few hours. It was instantly more comfortable than what I’d been using. I really can’t overemphasize how quickly I came to love it—when my computer had an unrelated Bluetooth issue just a few weeks later and I had to temporarily go back to an old wired mouse while I fixed it, it was incredible how much I hated it when I’d used it for years without a thought.

The Lift has a pretty standard number of buttons: besides the main two and the scroll wheel, there’s a middle nub below the wheel plus two programmable buttons on the opposite side. There’s also a button on the bottom to toggle between three Bluetooth-paired devices, which, just as with the keyboard, has come in clutch during my contract work on a company-issued laptop. All the buttons are incredibly quiet, which isn’t a major concern to me given that I work by myself, but it’s nice that it’s less intrusive when I’m in a video meeting.

The mouse comes in three colors and is available in right- and left-handed versions. I’m a smaller person, but I hear Logitech’s MX mouse is similar but better-suited to bigger hands.

It’s also worth noting that I used to use a gel-padded wrist rest, but a lot of resources I’ve come across claim they can do more harm than good. I don’t pretend to be an expert, but someone who is an expert told PC Gamer, “The inner wrist has no bony or muscular protection over the carpal tunnel and Guyon's canal, which are the pathways through which nerves and tendons enter the hand. The ‘roof’ of those tunnels is formed by a lightweight, very flexible band of tissue, called a retinaculum. Any pressure on that area is pressure on the tendons and nerves. If you rest the wrist itself on your wrist rest, you are putting compressive stress on an area that can't really take it.” There seems to be a bit of debate, but after seeing similar advice in a lot of reputable places, I decided to ditch mine. I don’t feel the absence as much with a vertical mouse as I did with a traditional mouse anyway.

Chair: Herman Miller Aeron

When I first started out as a freelancer, I was using a simple Långfjäll desk chair from Ikea. It had been fine enough for short stints of computer work here and there, but once I was working from home full-time, I realized I’d need a replacement, and soon. After a few hours, I’d start getting stiff. After a long day (or multiple days) of deadline-driven, glued-to-my-seat work, it would get downright painful.

When you start looking into office chairs, two models come up over and over: the Herman Miller Aeron and the Steelcase Leap. They’re both great, but unfortunately, they’re also both expensive—twice what I spent on my laptop and as much as ten times the cost of my little Långfjäll. The good news is you might be able to pick one up for significantly less than retail price through a workspace auction or office surplus seller, or by buying an “open box” or returned chair. They’re built to last, so getting one used can be a great deal. Still, I realize they’re out of reach for a lot of folks even at a deep discount, and it’s only thanks to luck that I was able to get one as early in my freelance career as I did. I look at this as a buy-it-for-life purchase as well as an investment in current and future health.

Two main factors made me pick the Aeron over the Leap and other models. The most important, and one that proofreaders in particular might want to consider, was the seat angle: the Aeron is the only one I tried that allowed me to adjust the angle of the seat so that it’s tilting forward slightly. I sometimes have to look very closely at details on the screen while trying to avoid craning or hunching, so this was an important feature for me, and I’ve definitely used it. Less important, but still relevant, was the material: the Leap has a padded fabric seat, while the Aeron is mesh. I expected either chair to last for many, many years, and that mesh felt like a better bet when it came to cleaning. Plus, I don’t have central air, and I figured it would be more breathable on those hot summer days at the computer. I’ve been happy with it on all counts, though I’ll note that while it is easy to wipe clean, it definitely accumulates dust and lint on the backside of the mesh and in the various nooks and crannies of the frame.

Foot Rest: Ergonomic Innovations Cushion

There are a huge number of under-desk foot rests available, and depending on how your workspace is set up, it can be critical to have some kind of support for your feet. Ergonomics recommendations tend to involve a lot of right angles—your elbows should be bent at 90 degrees when typing on your keyboard or using your mouse, and your knees should be bent at 90 degrees with your feet flat. If the height of your desk means you can’t hit all those angles with your feet on the floor, a foot rest is an easy fix to raise them up. The only question is what type will work best for you.

The one I have is a half-cylinder cushion with a washable zip-off cover (a plus for something meant for feet) that can be used with the flat side either facing down, for a stable base, or facing up, so you can rock your feet back and forth to get some movement. I mostly keep mine flat, but I can still get some ankle movement in that position by moving my feet around to different spots along the curve, and it’s nice to have the option to flip it over. It’s worth mentioning that the foam inside is solid on the curved side but has some depressions or cutouts on the flat side, which doesn’t bother me but could bother other people. There are a lot of similar models available from other brands.

Other Tools

I wanted to mention a few other tools that I don’t use myself, or don’t use every day, but that other editors I know use and recommend.

Programmable Keypads

Keyboard shortcuts are great, but macro pads take the idea a step further. If there are functions you use constantly, you can map them onto these programmable buttons so that it only takes a single stroke to run your favorite Paul Beverly macro or toggle Track Changes on and off. Aside from the convenience, using fewer keystrokes means less stress on the body. Available models range from simple blocks of four or eight programmable keys to complex units with scroll wheels and dozens of buttons.

Laptop Stands

My main computer is a laptop, but most of the time I work with it docked to a big external monitor. Occasionally, though, I still need to use the laptop screen, whether because I’m on a casual video call and want to use the built-in camera rather than setting up my high-quality DSLR or because I’m using it as a secondary display. When I do, I use my adjustable laptop stand to get it in exactly the position I want. The one I have offers a wide range of motion in terms of both the maximum height and the tilt angles, and the joints are firm enough that I never have to worry about it drifting out of position.

Mounting Arms

If you work in multiple positions at your workspace rather than always in the same spot, mounting your monitor on an adjustable swing arm can help you make sure it’s always in a comfortable position. For example, if you sit along one side of an L-shaped desk to use your keyboard but switch to the other when you’re checking physical proofs or running a video conference, this setup can avoid having to turn 90 degrees to check your display. A mounting arm (or a monitor riser) is also useful if you need to get it higher than desktop height for it to be at eye level.

Further Reading

techMadeleine Vasaly