What are the benefits of a standing desk?
There are a lot of benefits to using a standing desk, the most important is better health.
Sitting all day at work and at home is not good for your health and especially not good for your back.
Do you complain about lower back pain? This was the main reason I started to look at standing desks as an option for my work station.
I work from home at my computer for hours that can span well into the evenings.
Whether you go to work and stay at your desk or you work from home, the issues are the same. We sit way too much!
I noticed something the other day when I was grocery shopping. I took my cart from the front of the store and then went about shopping for groceries. Not one time did I look for a place to sit down. I did not think to myself that I was tired or that I needed to sit.
There are no chairs or sofas or desks to sit at in the grocery store so your mind is already conditioned to want to find a place to sit down.
But then think about this situation:
You go to your dentist or doctor for your appointment and there are chairs and areas for sitting all around the office. As soon as you check-in at the front desk, you turn around to find a place to sit.
You scan the room looking for where you will sit down. It is like second nature, more like conditioning actually.
If all the seats are taken, you become a little grumpy and annoyed that there is standing room only.
When this happens to me again, I will make sure I am aware of this and appreciate the opportunity to stand instead of sit.
We as humans tend to be a bit lazy. Sitting does not take effort. It seems to have become our default position in this modern computer and information age.
Become more proactive in your decisions whether to stand or sit.
One of the ways to accomplish this is to buy a standing desk. But it should be an adjustable standing desk that you can move up and down to position it for sitting and standing.
You should not be standing all day either. Find the balance.
This video shows why sitting for too long is bad for you.
Benefits Of Standing At Your Desk
Standing at your desk while working offers a lot of benefits. Here are some of them:
- Less strain on your back
- Reduces lower back pain
- May reduce blood sugar levels right after eating
- Helps you to be in a better mood
- May increase your productivity
- Reduce stiffness in your joints
- Gain better posture
- Promotes muscle activity
- Helps hips from becoming too tight
Can A Standing Desk Help You Lose Weight?
What standing desks will not do is make you lose weight. When you sit at your desk you burn 80 calories, when you stand, you burn 88. You might as well eat some celery instead which is a negative calorie food.
Typically, obese people sit a lot more than thin and fit people do. But it is not the standing that makes that happen, it is the movement and activities you choose to participate in throughout the day.
In 2013, only 13% of employers offered standing desks; 44% did so by 2017. The survey showed that 60% of employers now provide or subsidize standing desks for their employees.
This study was conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management.
Will A Standing Desk Help With Neck Pain?
The best practice is to switch between working at your standing desk, sitting to work in a very good ergonomic chair, moving around while working, taking a walk while on the phone, stretching in between your sitting and standing sessions.
The “Take-a-Stand Project”1 in 2011 found that participants who spent an average of 66 minutes of their workday standing experienced a 54% reduction in upper back and neck pain.
More important than any of these studies is the main fact that we need as humans to move more. Our bodies were designed to move. So it makes a lot of sense that there are side-effects to being so sedentary.
There is no other time in history where we in first world countries have ever sat more than now. I am actually sitting on a sofa right now writing this article.
It is too easy to sit instead of stand. But after some time, your back starts to feel the pain caused by sitting too much.
Should I Get A Standing Desk?
I am looking forward to changing the way I work, sit, stand….
I can’t wait to get my stand up desk! When I was at my daughter’s visiting for the summer in Utah, I used her high counter ( bar style) area to stand and work. I loved it! I was so comfortable standing and working on my laptop.
You can make your own temporary desk riser on top of your current desk to mimic a stand up desk.
I have used boxes, books, and other sturdy and heavy items to place my laptop on top of in order to work standing up until my standing desk arrives.
It does not work well with the heavier desktops though. My iMacs are way too large and will need the anchors even when my desk arrives.
I like the way those anchors work that is placed on the wall and your desktop computers hang from there. I will look into that option too.
Related Questions
Is It Better To Sit Or Stand At Work?
Moving is the key to better health. Another technique I use is the Pomodoro Technique™ where I set a timer for 25-minute blocks of time.
After I do one 25 minute session of working at my computer, I take a 5-minute break. I will do some running in place or do a chore like my laundry.
I try to choose things that are not work-related and that gets my body moving.
After the second 25 minute session, I take a 10-minute break. On this break, I like to do my indoor walking or running for ten minutes.
Standing and moving is very important for your health, your back, and your mood.
When you move around a lot, you tend to be in a better mood and that helps you to be more productive in your work.
I am excited about getting my stand up desk. I am not looking at it as some magical solution but rather as a step to improve my health.
I figure anything that can help me stop sitting all day long will help me be in better health.
How do I transition to a standing desk?
Slowly ease your way into transitioning from sitting to standing. You cannot do it overnight.
Start by working on your standing desk for 25 to 45 minutes then sit for about 10 to 15 minutes. You can bring your laptop with you when you sit so you can still continue working.
Your body is your best alarm clock. Once you start feeling a tingling sensation on your feet, legs, or back, it’s time to move your body and sit for a while.
As you go along, you will notice that your standing time is longer and you are more comfortable standing.