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The science of sitting
Built to move. Asked to sit.
The human body is designed to move, but desk work keeps it still for most of the day. Here is what long hours of sitting do, where you are likely to feel it, and what your chair should be doing about it.
- 77% of working hours were spent sedentary in a study of Australian desk-based workersThorp et al., 2012
- 1 in 6 Australians live with back problemsAIHW, 2022
- #1 Low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwideWorld Health Organization, 2023
Tap a number to see what's going on
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What's happening
Lean towards a screen and your head drifts forward of your shoulders, so the muscles at the back of the neck work harder just to hold it up. In a widely cited model, tilting the head forward by 15° raised the load on the neck from about 5 kg to around 12 kg.
How it can feel
Stiffness at the base of the skull, tight upper shoulders, tension headaches by mid-afternoon.
What helps
- A headrest you can actually lean back into for calls and reading.
- Armrests at elbow height, so your shoulders can drop.
- A screen raised so its top edge sits at about eye level.
Source: Hansraj, 2014
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What's happening
Reaching for a keyboard and mouse rounds the upper back and pulls the shoulders forward. Held for hours, the muscles between the shoulder blades stay stretched and working, while the chest muscles shorten.
How it can feel
A burning or aching spot between the shoulder blades, and rounded shoulders when you stand up.
What helps
- A backrest that supports the upper back, not just the lower back.
- Armrests that adjust in height and slide in, so your elbows stay by your sides.
- Keyboard and mouse close enough that you never have to reach.
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What's happening
Slumping tips the pelvis backwards and flattens the lower back's natural inward curve, so discs and ligaments take load that the curve and muscles would normally share. Holding any one position for a long time is what tends to make it ache.
How it can feel
A dull ache across the low back, and stiffness when you first stand up.
What helps
- Lumbar support that fills the curve of your lower back, so you don't have to hold it there yourself.
- A backrest that follows you as you lean back, instead of leaving a gap.
- Room to shift and recline freely: the best posture is your next posture.
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What's happening
Sitting keeps the hip flexors at the front of the hips in a shortened position for hours, while the glutes do very little. Over time the hips can feel tight and the lower back starts to compensate.
How it can feel
Tight hips and stiff first steps when you stand, or a pulling feeling at the front of the hip.
What helps
- Seat depth set so you sit all the way back, with a two-to-three-finger gap behind the knees.
- Seat height that puts your hips level with or slightly above your knees.
- A seat that spreads pressure instead of concentrating it.
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What's happening
Blood flow in the legs slows during long, unbroken sitting. In a lab study, three hours of sitting reduced how well the main leg artery could widen, and a short walk every hour prevented the drop.
How it can feel
Heavy or restless legs, swollen ankles at the end of the day, pins and needles.
What helps
- Enough seat-height range for your feet to rest flat on the floor.
- A rounded front edge that doesn't press into the back of your thighs.
- A footrest if your feet don't reach, and a short walk every hour.
Source: Thosar et al., 2015
Do the maths
1,920 hours a year in a chair
That's 80 full days, every year.
Over the next ten years: 2.2 years of your life.
No other piece of furniture gets that much of you. The right chair can't make sitting healthy on its own, but it decides how much of that load your spine, neck and hips carry, and whether it moves with you or holds you still.
Based on 240 working days a year.
60-second chair finder
Let's find your chair.
Six quick questions about how you sit. We'll match you with the chairs that fit — then you can try them in Sydney or Melbourne.
- No email needed
- Matched on fit, not just features
- Try your matches in a showroom
Your matches
Three chairs worth sitting in
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Best match LiberNovo LiberNovo Omni Pro Dynamic Ergonomic Chair
Motorised lumbar, a flexing eight-panel back and a fan-ventilated seat.
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Best match Herman Miller Herman Miller Aeron Chair
Suspension mesh seat and back in three sizes: the benchmark for staying cool.
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Best match Sihoo Sihoo DORO-C300 Pro V2 Ergonomic Office Chair
Backrest, lumbar and seat move as one as you recline. No levers to fiddle with.
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Best match HBADA HBADA X7 Smart Ergonomic Office Chair
Lumbar that follows you, plus massage, heat and a fan-cooled seat.
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Best match LiberNovo LiberNovo Omni Dynamic Ergonomic Chair
Motorised lumbar with 50 mm of powered travel and a flexing eight-panel back.
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Best match HBADA HBADA T8 Max Ergonomic Office Chair
Sensor-driven lumbar tracking, a 152° recline and a ventilated seat.
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Best match Herman Miller Herman Miller Embody Chair
Hundreds of moving pixels spread pressure for very long days.
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Best match Herman Miller Herman Miller Embody Gaming Chair
Built for long gaming sessions: Backfit lumbar, a pixelated back and a cooling-foam seat.
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Best match LiberNovo LiberNovo Maxis Dynamic Ergonomic Chair
Big-and-tall: 52 cm seat, 63 cm back, rated to 181 kg.
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Best match UE UE Ergonomic Office Chair FLOW 660 Pro
Taiji dynamic lumbar, a 100–150° locking recline, fold-out desk armrests and a wide footrest.
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Best match HBADA HBADA E3 Ultra Ergonomic Office Chair
Neck-to-hip support, a 5 cm seat slide and a built-in footrest.
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Best match HBADA HBADA E3 Pro Ergonomic Office Chair
Spring-loaded 3-zone lumbar, 140° recline and a built-in footrest.
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Best match LiberNovo LiberNovo Omni SE Dynamic Ergonomic Chair
The fully mechanical Omni: flexing back, 105–160° recline, nothing to charge.
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Best match UE UE Ergonomic Office Chair FLOW 550
Floating lumbar that follows your posture, with 4D fingertip-control arms.
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Best match Sihoo Sihoo M57 Ergonomic Office Chair
Full-mesh all-rounder with a lumbar pad that adjusts in height and depth.
Matches are a starting point. Sitting in them is the real test, and a fitting is free.
Find your fit
Which one sounds like you?
01 / 05
The executive
Back-to-back meetings and big calls, in a chair that looks the part.
Our picks
02 / 05
Big & tall
Wider seats, taller backs and higher load ratings.
Our picks
03 / 05
Work by day, play by night
Upright for spreadsheets, laid back for the late game.
Our picks
04 / 05
8+ hours a day
When the chair is your workplace, comfort has to last.
Our picks
05 / 05
Back & neck pain
Support that holds your curve and lets your neck rest.
Our picks
How a fitting works
Three steps to the right chair.
Fifteen minutes in a showroom tells you more than a week of reading reviews. Here is how we spend them.
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Tell us about your day
How many hours you sit, what you do at the desk, any back or neck complaints. That decides the shortlist.
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Sit in two or three, back to back
Any brand on the floor, say a Herman Miller, a LiberNovo and a Sihoo side by side. A specialist sets each one to your height and desk, so the comparison is fair.
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Decide at your own pace
Take home the one your back prefers, or go away and think about it. No pressure either way.
Try Before You Buy
Ergonomic Chair Showrooms in Sydney & Melbourne
Try Herman Miller, LiberNovo, Sihoo and more side by side at our Sydney showroom in South Granville or our Melbourne showroom in Nunawading. The consultation is free and no-pressure: a specialist sets each chair to your height and desk and gives you honest guidance. In-stock chairs can also be viewed and collected at pickup points in Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Tasmania and Auckland.
- Showroom
- Pickup point
AustraliaNew Zealand
Sydney
Sydney
Showroom
11/46-50 Wellington Rd, South Granville NSW 2142
Melbourne
Melbourne
Showroom
1A/280 Whitehorse Rd, Nunawading, VIC 3131
Brisbane
Brisbane
Pickup point
32 Crockford St Banyo, QLD 4014
Perth
Perth
Pickup point
11–15 Fargo Way, Welshpool, WA 6106
Adelaide
Adelaide
Pickup point
2/41 Wood Ave, Brompton, SA 5007Weekdays, 10am – 4pm
Auckland
Auckland
Pickup point
Unit 1/135 Cryers Road, East Tāmaki, ACK 2013
Tasmania
Tasmania
Pickup point
16 Lila Dr, Prospect, TAS 7250
Accessories
Complete your setup
Sit-stand desks
Stand up, sit down, keep moving
Real Reviews From Customers
What our customers say
4.9 out of 5
Buying guides
Choose with confidence
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Best Ergonomic Office Chairs Australia 2026: Showroom-Tested Picks
Ten ergonomic office chairs we stock and keep on the floor in Sydney or Melbourne, grouped by situation: best overall, long hours and back pain, hot rooms, big and tall, sit-stand desks and everyday mesh, each with its fit range and an honest con.
Read the guide -
LiberNovo Maxis Review (Australia): Big & Tall, Sit-Tested in Showroom
Our showroom sit-test of the LiberNovo Maxis big-and-tall chair: how big the 58 cm-wide, 52 cm-deep seat really is, why 178 cm is a real fit floor, how the wide lumbar and 60 cm armrests feel, Manual vs Airflow, and where overseas reviewers agree with us.
Read the guide -
Herman Miller Aeron Size Guide Australia: A vs B vs C in cm & kg
A metric Herman Miller Aeron size chart for Australia: A, B and C fit ranges in cm and kg, what the official chart says at 180–193 cm, the raised-dots check for any existing chair, and three sit-tests for the B-or-C decision.
Read the guide
