How do I fix my mousing posture?

[WhiteRice]

I just realized while I was playing a game that my mousing hand tilts in a little bit. Some times this causes inaccuracy when I need a quick up or down stroke.

I imagine that ideally when I mouse my hand should be aligned to my forearm; parallel to side of my keyboard.

I am currently playing games with a logitech g5. Is this a problem of my mouse or is it something that I need to retrain my brain to over come?

If you believe that it is the mouse please make a recommendation for another one.

[Minskleip]

One of the things I learned from my Classical guitar teacher is the elbows are the key to hand position.

Please explain more! I'm pretty crap with fingering my guitar, but my basses loves it. Don't play much chords down on the bass though, so maybe that's it.

Chords sounds better on bass than guitar!

[Minskleip]

I see. I usually play it on my left thigh, without the pretty clothes. Sometimes I drool on the fretboard too, if I'm in deep.

[Minskleip]

It's not rocknroll if you get applause.

[Boerta]

Show Image

I was about to say "You didn't learn that from your guitar teacher, did you?" but then I noticed the name of the picture..

I frequently play classical pieces sitting like that, although I do it with an SG so that means I'm excused.

[Conditioned]

take a picture of your arm/posture dont understand how you are sitting. there are so many ways in which you can shift it (and maybe the problem is you are sitting in the same posture too long) that its impossible to advice you. there are some general tips like rest your elbow in something etc that might be good but if you are already doing that you might want to shift around that. just try different postures and find another one you are comfortable with.

[molto]

This always did good for my back http://howtofixstuff.blogspot.com/2012/01/how-to-fix-your-posture.html

[Ciardhubh]

parallel to side of my keyboard

That sounds like it's part of the problem. If I try to get my mouse parallel to the keyboard it feels really awkward. I use my mouse at an angle, relative to the keyboard. Depending on how I sit, that angle is somewhere between 15 and 45 degree.

Since you're using the same mouse frame as I do (got a Logitech MX510), do you use the ring or middle finger to press the right mouse button? The best change I made some time back was to use the ring finger. Helps to keep a relaxed grip on the mouse. The more relaxed your hand is, the less likely you are to develop a bad posture, I guess. Plus if your hand is relaxed in its default position, you retain flexibility in all directions (e.g. for sudden movements while gaming).

[Anyguy4321]

Ergonomics and posture is very important when being comfortable with your mouse.  You should have a table that is set to be right below your arms if your forearms are parallel to the floor and bent at 90 degrees from your arms (which should be pointed downwards).  That is a very comfortable resting position.  If your table is too high or low, it tends to make your feel uncomfortable and makes your mouse hand tilt for example.  

Also the G5 is more of a palm-grip mouse.  If you use a fingertip or claw grip, then you might want to get a smaller mouse.

[Arc'xer]

I just realized while I was playing a game that my mousing hand tilts in a little bit. Some times this causes inaccuracy when I need a quick up or down stroke. I am currently playing games with a logitech g5.

The way some if not most people play is not the way they use their mouse normally on the desktop and posture isn't part of anything to do with how you use the mouse unless your desk and chair are just terrible. First of all your G5 is a palm grip mouse and the sensor is off-set. So if you move up and down your kinda moving in an odd way at least with a centered sensor or with a sensor towards the front center or front and left, it'll come out more normal. And just because it tilts in doesn't really mean it changes anything you just gotta understand it's not facing your position it's sorta like you believe you need your mouse parallel to the image being displayed because you control the character so it would be like as if your inside the game rather than controlling a character as if it were a puppet or machine.

Now the palm grip of the G5 does not allow you to move down. Seems like an odd thing to mention but the way it's used if your high sensitivity from reading what you said you try and move down when the mouse is already touching your palm. From the way you play sounds like you fingertip and or claw grip were by you hold it with the fingertips and you sorta leave a space so when you aim up(fingers go forward) and come back down(curl back) it comes out fine but when you move down your pressing up against your palm the only way to properly aim down is by slightly moving the arm down.

Something along the lines of this. Except with a higher sensitivity but if you notice when he needs to look down he just brings down his arm that's pretty much a limitation of the claw grip.

I imagine that ideally when I mouse my hand should be aligned to my forearm; parallel to side of my keyboard.

Not really most play like that for the sake of playing like that but you can play with say your arm bent in or away from you or whatever way you want, sorta like this. Like I said before you play as if it's you inside the game for the fact of logical reasoning but sometimes you need to decouple that habit and find a way to play differently to better suit you though I'd say in particular to a high sensitivity were mistakes punish you more than low at times.