Nick works remotely and spends 10 to 13 hours a day at his desk. Two months into the Maxis Airflow, the early Omni backer says it finally solved the one problem the original chair couldn't: size.

Overview

Nick logs 8 to 10 hours a day working remotely, plus evenings of gaming and video; I can spend anywhere from 10 to 13 hours at my desk. He has L5-S1 disc issues, and years of searching behind him for a chair that supports his posture without causing pain. He backed the original Omni on Kickstarter and loved it, except that it was too small for his tall frame. When LiberNovo announced a larger version, he saw it as the fix he'd been waiting for, and after two months of daily use, he says it's the first chair that's checked every box: ergonomic support, comfort, and a size that actually fits him.

---

The Person Behind the Setup

Can you introduce yourself and what a typical day looks like?

My typical day is spent mostly at my desk. I work remotely, so I spend anywhere from 8 to 10 hours working every day, and then I usually unwind in the evening with some gaming or watching videos. So sometimes I can spend anywhere from 10 to 12 hours at my desk in a day.

What does that time actually consist of, and how often do you get up?

A lot of meetings, video calls, emails, and presentation prep. It's not necessarily a lot of physical work, but it's really hard on your body to sit in the same position for eight to ten hours a day, and that's generally where my issues with previous chairs have come from. I try to take a break every couple of hours and get up and walk around, just to stretch, because it can get pretty taxing after a while.

Was there a personal health reason this mattered so much to you?

Before I found a chair that worked, I had severe sacrum and tailbone pain. I have my own medical journey around this. I have lower disc issues, L5S1 specifically, which is your very bottom disc, and it's a bad one for me personally. I've been to tons of doctors, tried different medications, stretching, all types of things, and it kept coming back to the chair. If I could sit in a way that didn't put me in a bad position and kept my posture good, I figured that would help a lot.

Has anything else about your situation changed over this journey?

I've also been on a weight-loss journey over the last year and lost about 65 pounds. So I understand what matters to somebody who's a bigger size in a chair too, because I used to be that person. Now I'm lighter and trimmer, but I still wouldn't have picked a different chair. The Maxis is the right fit either way, whether you're a bigger person or just tall.

 

---

Before the Change

What was wrong with the chair you had before this?

It was more of what I'd call a comfy chair, really pillowy and plushy, and it was big, but it had no ergonomic support at all. My back wasn't supported, and I was constantly trying to keep my posture up even though the chair didn't want me to, because it was more of a loungey office chair.

Was there a moment you realized it wasn't working anymore?

There's usually a bit of a honeymoon period in the first few weeks with a new chair: it feels great and soft. But chairs like that start breaking down pretty fast, and you start feeling the bottom of the chair or realize the back support isn't there. I'd had that chair about a year, but it was maybe three months in that I already knew it wasn't the right chair anymore.

And before that, you'd actually already tried the original Omni?

Right, I was an early Omni backer, and I loved it, but it was just too small for me. So when I heard LiberNovo was making a larger version, I was immediately interested.

---

Why LiberNovo

How did you first come across the brand?

I'd done a lot of research into ergonomic chairs over the last several years, especially once everybody shifted to working from home and I started spending almost all my time in the chair instead of getting up for meetings like I used to in an office. I tried Steelcase Leap, Herman Miller, Anthros, all of the big-name brands, and every single one had its faults. Maybe it was ergonomically supportive but not comfortable, or comfortable but not supportive. Eventually LiberNovo showed up in my feed through the Kickstarter campaign. I loved that it was contoured to the body and had a soft but supportive seat, so I backed it. I loved everything about the Omni except that it wasn't big enough. About six months later, I heard rumors of a larger version, and I figured that would solve my one real problem.

A lot of ergonomic brands skip the headrest. What's your take on that?

I love a good headrest. When I work, I keep my chair fully upright, close to 90 degrees, and what's great about the LiberNovo is I can actually use the headrest while working upright, which most chairs don't let you do comfortably. With the Anthros, I loved the lower lumbar support, but the chair was so small. The back only came about halfway up my back, so it wasn't very supportive, and it didn't have a headrest at all.

Did you hesitate before buying the Maxis Airflow yourself?

Because I'd already tried the Omni, I knew roughly what to expect, just a larger build. The one thing I was a little concerned about was that the back looked less contoured than the Omni's, since it's bigger. But that resolved very quickly once I used it. It hugs you the same way the Omni does. I'd also seen people on Reddit asking whether the seat length actually measured up to what was advertised, since some of the criticism of the original Omni was that part of the backrest ate into the usable seat. So I went and measured mine, and it's exactly the advertised length, maybe even very slightly longer.

---

A New Way to Sit

How has it been living with it day to day?

Honestly, very few complaints overall. I think the first couple of weeks I was adjusting the arms a lot to figure out the right position, and I haven't touched them in the last month and a half. Once you find the spot, you don't need to move it again.

Which features do you actually use?

I'm usually either fully upright or one notch from fully reclined, since full recline means I'm probably about to fall asleep. For the Airflow, I honestly thought it might be a little gimmicky going in, but it really works, to the point that it can get almost cold, which I have liked since I live in Texas. It's also quieter than I expected, somewhere around 20 to 30 decibels on low and maybe 40 to 45 on the highest setting. I make a lot of video calls, and I can run them without anyone noticing.

How do you use OmniStretch?

Not daily, maybe a couple times a week, and sometimes I'll run it for two or three cycles back-to-back. Because of my L5S1 issue, when I go into full recline I actually scoot up a bit so the stretch lands right on that spot; it really helps loosen the tension. It reminds me of using a foam roller. Sometimes it feels like it's trying to push me out of the chair, depending on where it hits, so I'll move it to the support that works for my lower back and stop there rather than let it run the full cycle.

---

Built to Fit

Anything you'd change?

The seat itself is maybe a little firmer than I'd personally prefer. But if I had to choose between too firm and too soft, I'd take firm every time; feeling the mechanics underneath you is the last thing you want. I've pressed around trying to feel anything under the seat, and there's nothing there. Other than that slight preference, it's fantastic.

Who do you think benefits most from the Maxis specifically?

If you're tall or larger, the Maxis is easily the right choice. Even if you're a bit shorter, under six feet, and you really value being able to sit cross-legged, it can still work well. But ultimately, anyone who values having their spine supported from top to bottom during long desk sessions is going to get the most out of it. It's the only chair I've sat in that checks every box. A lot of chairs are great at a couple of things but fall short elsewhere.

---

Their Words

What does comfortable sitting mean to you now?

Comfortable means you don't think about it. That's the best endorsement I can give: that I don't think about the chair anymore. With my previous chairs, the second I started feeling pain, I'd immediately start thinking, "I need a new chair, I need to find something that fixes this." Now I just don't think about it, which means it's doing its job.

"After using LiberNovo, I realized I had wasted a lot of time with really bad chairs, and I would like to get that time back because I think it would have done wonders for my back."

Fast facts: Remote worker, 10 to 13 hours seated daily · L5S1 disc issues · Lost 65 lbs over the past year · Early Omni Kickstarter backer · Previously tried Steelcase Leap, Herman Miller, Anthros · Purchased the Maxis Airflow himself, roughly two months of daily use at the time of the interview.