I’ve been living with a less than adequate seating situation in my home office. There are two work areas, three computers (not counting the laptop), and just one real desk chair. And a real desk chair it is… an honest-to-goodness Herman Miller Aeron (that I splurged for way back before the dotcom bust). While I’ve been meaning to pick up a second ergonomic chair for years, my budget would never permit the indulgence.

Prior to the Aeron, I ran through a string of inexpensive desk chairs, and numerous back woes. The experience resulted in my vow to never buy a crummy desk chair ever again. Over the years, the Aeron’s served me quite well. I would’ve bought a mirror image long ago, if it weren’t for the funding issue. Like many well-designed products, these babies aren’t cheap.

An office life changing event occurred yesterday, as I was skimming through the conversations in one of my email lists. I read a post that made immediate sense. A list member raved how she found joy and good posture through an innovative seating arrangement. Even better than innovative, it was enticingly inexpensive. (How inexpensive? Try thirty bucks… that’s a whole lot more inexpensive than six bills, lemmetellya.)

The innovative seating arrangement? An inflatable exercise ball.

The concept of using an exercise ball as an office chair held an enormous appeal. I was instantly enchanted with the idea. Within hours, I procured a 75 cm exercise ball from a local fitness shop. I’m chalking it all up as an experiment, brought upon by a fond remembrance of my childhood Hoppity Hop.

I cranked up the compressor this morning, filled up the bright yellow exercise ball, and rolled it into the office. I giggled through a bouncy half hour sitting on the ball this morning. Then I took a break for a few hours and switched to my Aeron.

I’m balancing on the ball as I write this, my feet off the ground. The feeling is unique… almost weightless, in some positions, yet in others it’s providing an intensely-targeted workout.

Who would’ve thunk it? A $30 office seating solution that encourages fitness, while building balance and agility!

Yeah, I know… it won’t work in a corporate environment…

[tags]office chair, herman miller aeron, exercise ball[/tags]