I’ve been using a vertical monitor recently and I have to say I haven’t noticed any pain. I don’t tend to look up and down with my head, I simply move my eyes up and down
I used to be able to ride a bicycle for hours on end in my 20's and 30's. Now I can't look up when bent over in that position, I need a rise in the handlebars to get me almost vertical. I didn't hurt myself. I didn't get in an accident. It is just a fundamentally unnatural position and the discs just started to deteriorate from years of holding that position. My bikes were sized and fit properly, and I was doing everything right and everything felt OK for literally decades until one day it wasn't OK.
Intense bike positions require you to statically position the neck at almost 90 degrees to look forward, and keeping the neck maxed out like that is probably not great in the long run.
The articulation to look up/down is maybe +/- 15 degrees, and being dynamic it should be a positive movement that strengthens your neck.
That you have reduced neck flexibility decades later could easily just be age…
> Intense bike positions require you to statically position the neck at almost 90 degrees to look forward
Cyclists learn that the proper position is to hold the head at roughly the same angle of the spine and to peer upwards at an angle. So you are basically looking UP, but since the top 2/3rds of the spine is tilted forward at 45 degrees, you end up looking forward. However, as the neck muscles tire from holding a 15 pound head this odd position, riders end up like you described.
I think most of ppl have the opposite problem called "nerd neck" from looking down all the time while using phone, laptop ect. This could be a nice antidote to that :D .
Never heard of nerd neck til now. Every single piece of ergonomic advice on using monitors that I have encountered has recommended that the top of your monitor be level with your eyes so you look down (slightly) rather than up.
Yes, and it doesn't just affect your neck. Setting it up like that is also better for eye strain and fatigue, because if your monitor is too high and you're looking up (defined as your eyes angled above your horizon), tear production is inhibited and your eyes get tired a lot faster.
I just had a cervical fusion after 26 years in IT. Not a fun time. I really suggest you do not look downward at your screens. My surgeon used the term “computer neck” so it must be a common thing.
To be fair to the poster, we have in general horizontally distributed eyes. Yes the display is squarish, so the focus uses similar distances, but maybe the game of peripheral vision gives the L↔R space some advantage.
I have the exact opposite experience. I run a 34” ultra wide on top of a 27” 16x9 monitor. The top one is angled down just a bit and there bottom one is angled up a bit. I just need to move by eyes to see them well. With side by side monitors I’m either straining my eyes or moving my neck.
