In today’s competitive world, we have various job categories like different industries, functional roles, and areas of expertise. One common thing is the sitting posture.
- Sitting too much is seriously bad for your health.
- People who sit a lot every day have an increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, burn very few calories, linked it to weight gain, obesity, and untimely death.
- This is a major problem for office workers because they sit down for most of the day.
With technology advancement and innovation, we always have inventions in the workplace environment. One such thing is the ‘standing desk’.
What Is a Standing Desk?
A standing desk, also called a stand-up desk, is basically a desk that allows you to stand up comfortably while working.
Although research is still in early stages, using a standing desk can have impressive benefits for health. It may also increase productivity. At the very least, using this type of desk can partly negate the harmful effects of sitting too much.
Here are a few benefits of using a standing desk, that are supported by science.
- Standing lowers your risk of weight gain and obesity.
- Using a Standing Desk may lower blood sugar levels.
- Standing may lower your risk of heart disease.
- Standing Desks Appear to Reduce Back Pain
- Standing Desks Help Improve Mood and Energy Levels
- Standing Desks May Even Boost Productivity
- Standing more may help you live longer
Reducing sedentary time can improve physical, metabolic and even mental health. Therefore, sitting less and standing more is such an important lifestyle change.
The Downside of Standing Desk
- The sooner you ditch a chair, the healthier you will become. Not true.
- In a rush of abandoned sitting, the swift change of body position and a little time to adjust things goes liable to swelling.
- Though sitting is too much harmful, a long duration of standing is not healthier either. – Dr. Hidde Van, an expert on occupational health at VU University, Amsterdam.
- Blood polling while standing, if the legs aren’t periodically moving, we get cankles.
- Cardio vascular problem
- Ehler Danlos–joint tissues
- Varicose veins,
- Pregnancy difficulties
Sit-Stand desk
Many modern versions are adjustable, so that you can change the height of the desk and alternate between sitting and standing. I refer these as height-adjustable desks, or sit-stand desks.
A study published by the CDC found that use of a sit-stand desk reduced upper back and neck pain by 54% after just 4 weeks.
Once you get your height adjustable standing desk, you will want to learn how to use it properly and ultimately feel great while doing it!
- Create standing/sitting intervals
- Move while using a standing desk
- Being static will never be good for your body, no matter what position it is in (sleeping is an exception, but that’s a whole different matter!) – move from time to time – good for you to take a short walk around the office space – you can even do some calf raises
- Learn how to stand correctly, even it’s not comfortable at first.
- Just as there is a right and wrong way of sitting while working, is there a similar thing on how to stand correctly by using a standing desk?
- You should also activate most of the muscles in your legs and keep your back and neck straight, but really straight.
- Put something soft beneath your feet.
- Just as your bottom, back, and neck will get the brunt of the pain from sitting for too long, so will your feet get the same after standing for too long.
- An anti-fatigue mat that has a comfortable ergonomic design that will help you relieve the pressure that you put on your feet.
- Ergonomics – Defined as the science of fitting a workplace to the user’s needs, ergonomics aims to increase efficiency and productivity and reduce discomfort.
- Hold your shoulders properly
- do not make us hunch our backs and slouch our shoulders.
- Use arm support
- Take breaks!
- When all other movement fails, fidget!
- Fidgeting is spontaneous, easy, and won’t distract you from your work while using your standing desk, so it’s certainly one of the best tips on this list, if not the best!
Conclusion – The bottom line
In the end, a good height adjustable standing desk will prove to be a wonderful thing for your health, if you have the proper way to use it. Going by the adage ‘Too much of anything is good for nothing’ technology is a boon or ban, depends on how we use it.
It’s Time to Take a Stand
Reference:
https://qz.com/272350/theres-a-huge-hidden-downside-to-standing-desks-that-no-one-told-me-about-2/
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/7-benefits-of-a-standing-desk
https://www.autonomous.ai/ourblog/12-tips-for-using-your-standing-desk-like-a-pro?