I remember a day in the ’90s when my dad brought home a trendy ergonomic kneeling stool for our home office. I’m sure most people remember them and the belief that kneeling on a somewhat bizarre piece of furniture would help with posture. My personal favorite is the giant balance ball “chair” that keeps the user moving all day and strengthens the core. The only downside – its hard to take a CEO seriously when they’re bopping up and down on a giant blue ball while criticizing your work performance. Desk jobs and long days spent at a computer have lead to a slew of health problems from tennis elbow to carpal tunnel to vision loss. On the 3rd day of my new job I had to ask for a keyboard tray for wrist and elbow pains that make it difficult to focus after only 4 years of working a full-time job.

Saddle and Pony Saddle. Designed by Humanscale.

Humanscale is known for its ergonomic office seating and sustainable design efforts. Their Freedom seating line is an award-winning collection that includes The Saddle and Pony Saddle seats made for short term seating. The original Saddle and the more compact Pony Saddle offer incredibly comfortable seating that is versatile for the office environment. Ergonomically the stools position the user in a saddle posture, which lowers the thighs, opens up the hips and puts the spine into a healthy lordotic curve. Hard casters allow easy movement of the stools from carpet to hard flooring, for guests or for when you need to put your feet up. It may help to know that your feet are resting on a Greenguard certification and 59% recycled content. The stools will be shipped to you in 85% recycled packaging material or blanket wrapped when possible.

Designer Niels Diffrients has a rich history of work with designers such as Eero Saarinen, Marco Zanuso, and Henry Dreyfuss which has lead to many honors including the 2002 National Design Award from the Smithsonian’s Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, and the 1999 Chrysler Design Award. His work with Humanscale has lead to ergonomic breakthroughs, from pneumatic cylinders for seat height adjustment to weight-activated automatic recline.