Alan Heller’s Ergo Ergo has been called a designer pouf, an aesthetically-interesting exercise ball, a back-and shoulder-friendly desk chair, and a pogo stick for the modern age. Admittedly, I invented that last one, but if the contemporary incarnation of bounding up and down the street on an eight foot stick could be said to be the gentle, asynchronous rocking facilitated by Ergo’s accordioned and UV-stable recyclable technopolymer, well, there you have it.

Ergo Redux in Ergo’s booth at #Neocon10.

Ergo the First debuted at NeoCon last year, where fellow 3ringer Jenny Rector found it to “offer a subtle workout… it works similarly to an exercise ball while providing the comfort of a cushioned seat. As you sit, your body gently rocks, stimulating blood circulation and keeping your core muscles engaged.” The inspiration for Ergo Ergo was Heller’s wife, who had found an exercise ball to be the most congenial anatomical choice for long hours spent writing. After remarking upon the particular ugliness of said accoutrement, Heller proceeded to design an apparatus that possessed the very same functionality yet looked good.

The unlikely muse for this year’s incarnation (two new versions, actually–a smaller “Ergo for Kids” and a larger “Ergo Ab”) was a human interest piece on CNN that profiled various men’s strategies for waist reduction in anticipation of the summer swimsuit season. Heller noted that the staple abdominal exercise called crunches was second only to dietary restrictions in the planned regimen. So, Voila!, this year he gives you “Ergo Ab,” a slightly wider version of the original; thus, “a guy could be sitting on it all day, just like a woman would, but he could pull it out a few times and do a series of crunches.” The concept intends to capture the missing half of the market (the first Ergo appealed mostly to women) by not only accommodating the statistically larger posteriors of men, but also accommodating their statistically larger degree of cynicism–at least that’s been my experience.

Apart from the incentive of an in-situ abdominal workout, any Ergo is an excellent alternative to an $800 desk chair. As Heller says, “it’s versatile enough to be used at your desk, for breakout meetings, guests, working or relaxing. It promotes wellness and productivity. And it's comfortable, durable and easy on the budget.”

Check out Alan Heller live from #NeoCon10.