Yep, this year's going to be the best Thanksgiving ever because you're following ergonomic best practices to keep yourself and friends and family safe.

You start by setting your vehicle up so that your drive is comfortable while you drive to your in-laws. You've adjusted the backrest, the lumbar, steering wheel and have the perfect reach to the gas pedals. You planned your drive so that you and any passengers can take a stretch break every 2 hours on the road trip.

You remember to pack your favorite pillow so that you can get a good night's sleep in somebody else's bed. You have brought the right shoes for the morning Turkey Bowl, and you are going to ensure the family all stretches before they play the annual football game.

You have planned the seating arrangement so that you have enough elbow room while you are eating that delicious meal. Those in the kitchen have the right properly sharpened knives, hot pads and plates in easy reach and ready to go for handling the many delicious dishes. You even remember to pack your stretchy pants and wear them at the dinner table.

The dishwasher is sure to cut the workload down. And implementing a job rotation strategy so that everybody only has to do a few dishes ensures no one is overworked. It’s time for a break and off to get the comfy chair to watch the football game. The one that gives you lots of back support and is soft and easy on the legs is a perfect place to recharge.

On Black Friday you're wearing your good walking shoes and you're going to get a cart so you're not carrying things, because you know that those checkout lanes are going to be long. That's going to save your muscles from the long day of shopping.

Setting up your vehicle for perfect seat placement, stretching, getting your steps in, having a kitchen job rotation, and having the proper setup is going to make this the most ergonomically correct Thanksgiving ever.

Then when you get home from your Thanksgiving dinner, you're going to tell your co-workers how ergonomics made your Thanksgiving the best ever. That should lead to a great discussion at work on how you can improve your ergonomics by implementing ergonomic best practices.

We hope you have a great Thanksgiving weekend.

Shane Hudson, Ergonomist