Tips for Better Keyboarding
Are your shoulders sore after a day at your computer? Do your hands or wrists ache when you spend too much time at your keyboard? Here are a few tips to help you stay healthier and pain-free while typing.
Confirm proper keyboard placement. Your keyboard should sit flat on a surface, or even better, at a slightly negative slope away from your body. It should rest about two inches above your legs, about an inch below your elbow height. The space bar on your keyboard should be perfectly centered to your body.
Sit up straight! Remember you mom always telling you to sit up? She was right. Proper posture while typing is one of the most significant changes you can make to relieve pain and discomfort.
Keep your wrists straight. Your arms and hand should form a straight line from your elbow through your wrist and down to your middle finger.
Float your hands. For the least amount of stress and strain, your hands and wrists should hover over the keys. Never rest them on your desk or wrist rest while you are typing.
Rest on your palms. Between keystrokes you can support the weight of your arms and hands on the ball of your hands. Do not put any pressure or weight directly on the wrists; any surface pressure on the wrists can agitate the sensitive carpal tunnel area.
Press the keys lightly. There is no need to pound on the keys. Most keyboards require very little pressure to register a keystroke. This can save you significant muscle wear in your hands and wrists throughout the day.
Never reach for a key. If your hands are properly floating over the keys, it should be an easy motion to move your entire hand and arm until you fingers hover over the needed key. By stretching or straining to press higher keys, you add wear on your muscles and tendons.
Keep your hands and fingers curved. As you float over the keys, with your wrists and arms forming a straight line, curving your hands into a loose ball comes almost naturally. Be especially careful that you don’t allow your littlest finger or your thumb to lock straight.
Use two hands for two-key combos. Whenever you use your Shift key (or Ctrl or Alt) with an additional key, always press the Shift key with one hand and the second key with the opposite hand. Trying to perform these actions with one hand will cause unnecessary wear and muscle strain.
This list may seem daunting, but these tips can save you wear and tear, and protect you from pain and injury. A reasonable plan would be to take a little time each week to focus on one or two things that can improve your typing comfort and health, or pick out one area that could benefit you the most. Even little changes in your posture and habits can make a huge impact in your keyboarding health.