Ergonomics: Evaluating Your Computer Workstation

Noise
 
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Radiation
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Pregnancy
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34
Fatigue 
If you work all day at a computer, get up and move frequently to reduce 
fatigue. A three- to five-minute break after each hour of intense computer work 
and a 
10- to 15-minute break
after two hours of moderate computer work should 
be sufficient. 
Daily stretching exercises can help reduce muscle tension and eyestrain, but 
stretching doesn’t take the place of a properly setup workstation or cure exist
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ing discomfort. The stretches below take about five minutes. Repeat each 
stretch three to five times. Do all of the exercises or just those that relieve ten
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sion in a particular area. 
If you have concerns about an existing medical condition or injury, see your 
physician before you do any of these exercises.
Shoulders
• Squeeze your shoulder blades together 
with your elbows lifted away from your 
body. Imagine you have a pencil between 
your shoulder blades and you are trying 
to trap it and then release it.
Neck
• Move your head back as far as it will go, 
keeping your head and ears level. Next, 
move your head forward. Repeat three 
times.
• Shrug your shoulders, raising them for 
a count of three, then lowering them. 
Rotate your shoulders backward, arms 
relaxed at your sides. Repeat three times.
Courtesy of the Workers’ Compensation Board of 
British Columbia. Ilustrations used with permission. 

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