Playful, eye-catching,
Inflated and functional
Plus, ergonomic
More Ergonomic Than Ergonomic
At one time in my life, I owned two ball chairs. While most people equate them to exercise balls, which they are, I owned the type of ball chairs with a plastic cradle on wheels, so they functioned less like an exercise ball and more like a comfortable chair – a really comfortable chair. For many years my company issued me expensive, ergonomic desk chairs, which are only ergonomic if you sit in the chair, but not anything else. They are so deep, that sitting in the chair does not allow the user to reach the desk. If I ever tried to reach the desk, I’d only be sitting on half the seat, thereby foregoing the adjustable back support and the curve of the seat itself, and the arms of the chair would bang into the desk. Raising the arms, didn’t solve the problem. Lowering the arms rendered them useless.
The ball chairs, even without arm rests, always felt more comfortable than the expensive corporate versions. They could be inflated to adjust both tension and height, and even when I was expecting twins and was nearly the size of a condo, the chairs held up like champs. The cradles were lightweight and easy to move from desk to desk as I changed jobs. The balls themselves, like exercise balls, were weighted with sand, but also easy to move. Of course, when it came time to move across country, I could tote them to a new place, but without an office, or a plethora of space, the bouncy ball chairs and their bases didn’t make the cut.
Blue, Yellow, Pink
Not two months into a later job, post ball chairs, I was given another truly crappy corporate chair – crappy to the tune of more than $1,000 in physical therapy. Rather than play musical desk chairs at the office, I again purchase a third exercise ball chair. Again it garners the attention of those individuals who have never seen an exercise ball nestled in its cradle. The style usually distracted from the obnoxious colors. I usually offered a test drive, which others almost always accepted. Those who have occasionally made reference to having seen these chairs in pop culture, still never used one. It’s a shame – they are fabulous!
For all the fancy chairs, the corporate chairs, the ergonomic chairs, the executive chairs, and the chairs around the conference room tables (which is where most people swap out the desk chairs they don’t like), I went rogue and bought my own chairs. They weren’t expensive or hefty. They were colorful, not subdued or by any means a professional style or color. Yet, they were so good for my wellbeing, and they were ideal for me. They carried me – literally – through two pregnancies kept me from the aches and pains of an eight-to-five desk life, and they were damn comfortable. They just weren’t ever going to make it to the next residence. But if I ever need a desk chair again in the future, I know exactly where to bounce.
Pam Portland 