The Stand Up Desk

Danananda says on June 13th, 2007 at 9:41 am

I sit on an aerobics ball at work. Actually, quite a few people do. I work at a yoga studio, but I am in the office for hours at a time. Sitting on a ball keeps you moving, as you constantly have to keep your core engaged. This is WONDERFUL for both your back and your abs, and really isn’t that much work.

MK says on June 13th, 2007 at 9:52 am

At my last job I had a desk that was kitchen cabinet height (~36″). I stood most of the time, but I also had a bar stool (with back). This arrangment virtually eliminated the back/shoulder pain I have had off and on for years.
Now I’m back to a regular desk and I quite miss it.
The higher desk and stool combo worked really well as you could stand or sit without adustment of your work area.

MagnoliaSouth says on June 13th, 2007 at 10:23 am

Actually I have to disagree with the pain tie in. I’m a nurse and have been so for 18 years.

I am here to tell you that standing on your feet in one spot for any length of time is just as bad on your back as sitting for any length of time. Movement is what is important, not standing or sitting.

I just wanted to make this clear because it would be easy for your readers to think that this is a solution for back pain tied with sitting. It simply is not and will likely aggravate the pain instead.

Just wanted to set that straight. Great idea however with the motivational theory.

Bob says on June 13th, 2007 at 11:51 am

In my time in the office furniture biz in the mid-90’s, adjustable height desks were all the rage from the Steelcase’s and Haworth’s. They had either a pneumatic cylinder like in a desk chair, or a scissors mechanism that moved the entire desktop to standing height.

Not sure if they’re still out there.

Adam says on June 13th, 2007 at 12:41 pm

I don’t think I could work standing up for long. But I do think it would be beneficial to have a “standing” arrangement with a network appliance, or just an older computer, to use for checking the news, blogs, rss feed, etc… That way you would be more aware of how much time you are spending on that stuff. It too easy to just slouch down in a chair and spend three hours surfing the web. Maybe even go as far as to block access on you work machine, either at the machine or gateway. That way the only place you could check your news, blogs, etc… would be the standing system. So you would be getting your breaks from sitting and limiting your compulsive web activity at the same time.

frogcat says on June 13th, 2007 at 1:30 pm

I think I ran across this page on lifehack a few weeks ago. (Or was it lifehacker?!?!)

Anyways, I got inspired to try it myself. Our general counsel (in his 70s) uses a standup desk that he had custom made many years ago, due to his back problems.

I too, have been feeling back aches more and more, and I have noticed that I feel I build this “lethargic inertia” while sitting too long. Basically, the less I move, the less I want to move, the less energy I have. The more I move, the more I keep staying active.

I wasn’t ready to commit to buying a standup desk, so I decided to improvise one from IKEA. And put something on top of my regular desk.

My desk is pretty visible at the office, so I didn’t want to just something with ugly design on top of my desk.

I did a height check by putting a keyboard on an upside-down trashcan on my desk, to see what height range I was comfortable with. (basically, my forearms are a little lower than a right angle as they rest on the keyboard.)

I went to IKEA, and checked out all their low coffee tables, their storage units, the possibilities of putting some of their shelving units sideways, etc.

Many of them were kinda ugly or cheap looking. Some were too low for my needs. Some where too high.

I ended up getting
*two storage cubes 13″x13″x13″
*Glass desktop
*felt pads to put between the glass and the cubes.

I assembled it all on a Friday afternoon.

All the next week, got a huge amount of comments and curiosity from coworkers. It seems like everyone sympathised with the need to address back problems, and the desire to increase productivity.

The first week, my feet ached, and my shoulders ached, and my back felt achy, but in a “good” way, like it was exercising.

The second week, my body adapted.

Advantages: back is much better.
Productivity better, because I do much less web surfing. Basically, there’s times I need to sit and think. So, I now have an incentive to do this. And when I sit and think, I’m not tempted to surf the web instead.

aaron griffin says on June 13th, 2007 at 2:17 pm

It could be possible to throw some hardware at this, and attach a sliding LCD bracket to the wall, with a little shelf up high, so that you can sit, do what you need to do, then stand and slide the monitor up and use it there.

I’d actually try something like that if I had the spare time.

Matt Rutherford says on June 14th, 2007 at 6:29 am

A few years ago I did some work in the Copenhagen office of a company I was with, and the whole office was equipped with electrically adjustable desks.

They had three presets(and a ‘free’ setting for a guest at a desk) – and some cleverly designed cable management that meant a standing position was only ever a few seconds away.

Nearly all of the office used to stand for the first hour after lunch (I guess good for digestion), and some people stood for longer, alternating between sitting and standing.

Some people even used the ‘end’ of their desk for impromptu meetings (in an open plan office) and adjusted the desk to a standing position to make the meeting a little less formal (and time-consuming).

I still envy these desks…

Cathy says on June 14th, 2007 at 8:39 am

The first time I saw a stand-up desk was a few years ago on tv in a story about a guy who needed to lose weight (if I recall correctly, he had heart problems). He’d lost a significant amount after switching to standing up, so that’s another benefit to consider.

Ross says on June 14th, 2007 at 4:52 pm

Apparently these desks are really catching on in Europe. My step-brother works for a Danish firm that sells them, and he reports that business is brisk.

paulkdad says on June 17th, 2007 at 4:44 pm

My computer is just a 12″ powerbook, but I’ve used it on a stand-up desk for the past 11 months, and I love it. The “desk” is a 3′ tall kitchen storage stand with a top that’s just over 1′ on each side. It has one shelf and three drawers underneath. I had to stabilize it (it’s on casters), then support my computer so the keyboard was at a better angle, but it has been great.

Apart from the health benefits, it’s also a space-saver if you’re working in a cramped space (chairs take up lots of room). I do find that I’m more focused on my work when standing, and it makes it easier for me to take “micro-breaks” when all I have to do is turn and walk away.

The point about being stationary being bad for you is well taken, but simply doesn’t apply. I’m constantly shifting my weight or moving my legs while typing, without any impact on my ability to work.

And while their research didn’t compare standing with sitting, a 2006 study by a Canadian researcher (Dr. Bashir) concluded that “sitting up straight” was definitely bad for your back. I think, if you have to sit, that the Pilates ball chairs would definitely be the way to go.

Calvin Spealman says on June 18th, 2007 at 12:19 am

Thinking of trying this with an arm mounted platform for my laptop. I can attach the base to the mount, connecting a keyboard and mouse on the desk. When I stand, I can just pull the laptop to a comfortable level and continue easily.

I also did some sketches of counter balanced mechanisms to allow the desk to slide up and down without much effort, but I am too lazy to take them beyond my post it notes.

R Grace says on September 13th, 2007 at 4:03 pm

I’ve been playing around with sit/stand positions at work as well – here’s what I’ve found so far:

- Standing definitely improves my motivation, and allows me to be more “haptic” – walk away and come back between typing sentences.

- Standing alone all day is tiring on the legs,and I’d be pretty tired all-around, but still better than back strain/pain, and I do adapt after several days of standing

- Better yet – alternate sit/stand, ideally with large exercise ball for sitting. Have played with dual-monitor, top/bottom shelf arrangement, now have a side-by-side arrangement with – ready for this? – two monitors on a board on a pneumatic chair on a table! A little effort to raise/lower, but allows sit/stand adjustment. I have a separate board with my keyboard / mouse that I can move off separate levelled supports

- Alternatives I’m considering for sit/stand:
– Two monitors in vertical orientation – so sit / stand may work without moving monitors up/down
– Two sets of keyboard/mouse on two shelves – USB allows multiple mice/keyboards, so nothing to move there.
– Getting new monitors that have spring-loaded vertical adjustment (Dell monitors have this)

meepster says on December 2nd, 2007 at 4:42 pm

I just did this, after suffering for months; I am a student and live in a dorm, and the desk/chair setup they’ve got for us here is about as ergonomic as a medieval torture device. So, I put my laptop up on a bookshelf above my desk, and propped up my external keyboard and external mouse on stacks of books. It’s working quite well so far (I only set it up today, so it’s still early). But my knee doesn’t hurt anymore.

ak says on February 26th, 2008 at 3:48 am

I’m doing this for half a week, productivity way up. If I work when sitting, I get tired and then I lose a few hours on a game or reading. If I work standing up I almost never get tired anymore, and if I do, I sit down on a floor rug for a couple of minutes and then go back to work. I figure sitting down is halfway to lying down and it turns on some mechanism in the brain that tells you that you’re not working but resting. At the same time I push myself to keep working because, eh, I got zillions of things to do, and this creates major brain conflict. When standing up, no conflict. Legs do get tired but sitting down for half an hour is enough to rest them. For height adjustment I just used some random boxes. I set the monitors to be about half way up and tilted upward, when I do sit down, I tilt them down and remove the box from under keyboard. Moving mouse is even easier because it’s wireless. All easily adjustable height desks are very expensive, over $700. The most practical thing to do is either a stool or to have monitor and keyboard a little lower than perfect height and adjust chair to max height – when sitting on the chair, the setup will still be fairly comfortable, you’d do most intensive work standing and only sit down once in a while to rest for half an hour.

kelly says on April 22nd, 2008 at 12:21 pm

I just found this post and thought I’d comment. I’ve been dreaming of a sit/stand desk for a few years. My back kills me sitting all day but I also don’t want to stand all day either. I tried experimenting with crates and realize I can be very happy standing up, but not all the time.

Enter WorkRiteErgo. There latest Sierra Electric desks start at about $1000 and offer the solutions another commenter mentioned, quick adjust to any position, and 3 user-preset positions quickly obtained by the push of the button. They certainly look the best and have the most options of any system.

My back is killing me at the moment so I may pop for one on the credit card this week, hence finding this post while checking out the latest ideas.

Also, iKea used to carry a Gallant line electric sit/stand desk for $600 but stopped.

Fritz Schantz says on March 19th, 2009 at 9:52 am

I built an interesting stand up desk – check it out here.
http://www.fritzdesigns.com/Ho.....fault.aspx

Nathalie Lussier says on August 1st, 2009 at 5:57 pm

I’ve heard of the benefits of a stand up desk and now that I’m moving and need to purchase a desk, I’m think I’m going for it! I’ve seen some “wall mounted” type desks at ikea that would work well for laptops. I’ve got an iMac though, so I’ll need another arrangement.

Still, it’s great to read from others who have done it! My father is a hair dresser and he stands up all day, and is actually healthier than most people who sit all day. I know it’s not a fair comparison, and he moves a lot, but still I think it’s worth giving it a go!

Michelle says on August 22nd, 2009 at 1:20 am

Hey Natalie, good for you! I just read recently that you burn more calories while standing and computing vs sitting and computing. Another benefit! Plus, our bodies crave movement. Being able to sit or stand, as you choose, even better. Check out the ergonomics setup info here, might be useful: http://computingcomfort.org. Good luck!

Andy Glew says on October 13th, 2009 at 6:28 pm

At home I have a Biomorph adjustable desk. Two adjustable height surfaces, one for the keyboard and the other for the heavy CRT monitors of back in the day.

I found that regularly changing the height a few cranks (non-powered) helped back pain.

Now that there are lightweight LCD monitors with monitor arms I am considering using both surfaces as keyboard surfaces, one for sit, the other stand.