How do you use a standing desk properly? Read on to find out!

Home Electric Standing Desk

How do you use a standing desk properly? Read on to find out!

Ergonomics are one of the most important parts of staying healthy, comfortable, and safe while at work.

Just changing the way that you sit can have a huge impact on your ability to focus, as well as your risk of ailments like muscle tension or aches.

Just because you’ve made the switch from a traditional desk to a standing desk doesn’t mean that you can just forget about ergonomics!

Our course, ergonomics with an electric standing desk are a little bit different than a standard desk.

And that brings us to today’s topic: what is the “correct” way to stand at a standing desk?

Ergonomics while working at your electric standing desk: let’s start with the similarities

Standing desks and traditional desks are like apples and oranges. A brief glance at them immediately reveals how different they are – after all, you sit at one and stand at the other!

However, there are a couple of ergonomic principles that hold true regardless of what type of desk you use at work or in your home office.

Avoid a literal pain in the neck by setting your monitor to the right height

Does the phrase “tech neck” ring any bells?

If it doesn’t, it should – it’s only one of the fastest growing types of muscle pain out there!

Like the name suggests, the way we use technology is the culprit – and while smartphones take much of the blame, the reality is that a sore neck can result from any set-up that forces you to crane your neck for extended periods of time.

The solution is to make sure that your computer monitor is at a height that doesn’t force you to unnaturally look up or down; ideally, your line of sight should line up perfectly with the top third of your screen – this is the sweet spot.

Whether you’re using a standing desk or a traditional one, it’s important to ensure that your computer monitor is at the right height. There are a few ways you can do this:

  • Adjusting your monitor stand
  • Using a monitor arm to better control the depth, height, and angle
  • Or, if you’re using a height adjustable desk, changing its height to a more comfortable level

The 90-degree rule

It isn’t just your neck that can suffer when you hold it in a less-than-ideal position for long periods of time – your arms can also suffer from the same problem.

Ideally, your arms should lie flat on your desk and your elbows should make a 90-degree angle.

This gives support to your arms and wrists, minimising the amount of strain as well as the need to actively hold them in position, thereby minimising the risk of wrist pain further down the line.

There are a couple ways of achieving this – the most straightforward one being to adjust your seat until your arms are at the right angle.

Of course, if you use a height adjustable electric standing desk, you’ll be able to adjust the height of your desk as well until your wrists and arms comfortably rest on the desk.

Electric Standing Desks

What’s different: how to make the most of your standing desk

While there’s some overlap between ergonomics for traditional desks and their standing counterparts, there are also a couple of major differences (owing to the obvious difference between traditional and standing desks).

If you’ve recently made the jump from a traditional desk to a standing desk, it may be wise to read on and take some of these suggestions on board!

Just because you have a standing desk doesn’t mean you have to stand all day long

Since you, you know, stand at standing desks, you’ll have to account for the added strain that standing for long periods of time can come with.

Just ask anyone who spends a lot of time on their feet and they’ll tell you how important it is to take care of your legs!

There are many potential consequences of spending too much time on your feet:

  • Varicose veins
  • Muscle pain
  • Fatigue and tiredness

Making your body hold the same pose or posture for long periods of time is bad, regardless of what you’re standing or sitting. Just like with sitting, it’s best to break it up throughout the day.

Specifically, that means by alternating between sitting and standing.

Switching things up lets you enjoy the benefits of standing (like lower risk of heart disease and better concentration, just to name a few) while also giving your legs an opportunity to rest between bouts of standing.

Ideally, we recommend timing it so that you switch over every 30 minutes.

That means setting an alarm on your phone, or if you’re using our new Edesk standing desk, using the desk’s inbuilt desk panel app to set reminders to change up your stance.

Fidgeting is a good thing when using a standing desk

Under normal circumstances, fidgeting and squirming might get you some odd looks from around the office.

With a standing desk however, it’s completely fine. In fact, it’s what you should be doing!

Anyone who uses a standing desk will tell you that long sessions on flat ground can get uncomfortable. Holding the same pose can cause postural fatigue, cramping and other issues.

One of the best ways to fight this is by adjusting your standing throughout the day. By all means, feel free to fidget, squirm and shuffle to your heart’s content!

That’s exactly what our Topo standing mat is designed to do.

With all the ridges, curves and slopes needed to accommodate all sorts of shuffling, fidgeting, and more, a standing mat can help you articulate your joints and activate your muscles throughout the day, improving your circulation and making standing even healthier!

Our Edesk standing desk takes workplace ergonomics to the next level!

Standing desks are starting to pop up in offices and workplaces all over Australia, and you want your home office to join them.

We’d like you to meet the Edesk!

Our Edesk is in stock and ready to ship now – and it comes with a range of optional features that won’t be found in budget standing desks, such as:

  • Sensors to prevent pinching and other accidents
  • A mobile app to control your desk
  • Multiple memory settings to ensure you have the most ergonomic working experience
  • Optional ergonomic extras like monitor arms and desk trays
  • Whisper-quiet electric motors

Our Edesk is the perfect standing desk solution for those working from home – which, at the moment, is a lot of us!

Order the Edesk online now and explore all the optional extras you can choose from.

Got questions? We’d love to chat: call (03) 9579 1454, or click here to get in touch online.

author avatar
Guy Director
Higher Diploma in Mechanical Engineering. Ergomotion Director since 2005.

Google Reviews

Ergomotion

Google Reviews

Jennifer Fadriquela 23/03/24

Google
I purchased an EDesk this month from Ergomotion, and it was a remarkably smooth transaction. Guy was eager to answer all my questions before my purchase. As a first-time buyer of a standing desk, I truly appreciated how he addressed my queries with thorough details and provided options within my budget.

The delivery process was also smooth, despite a slight delay in the ETA. Guy ensured I received all necessary updates from the courier/removalist.

I've been using the desk for a couple of weeks now and I'm satisfied with it. It's sturdy on all height adjustments and the motor works as expected. I also like oak finish because it's clean-looking and suits my room setup.

Overall, I'm happy with my purchase and I'll definitely recommend Ergomotion to someone looking for their desk needs.

Josh Oliver 04/02/24

Google
I've had an ergomotion desk for 10 years. It's still as good today as it was brand new. Over the years Guy has always responded promptly to any guidance I've needed (mostly help putting the desk back together after removalists take it apart).

Michael Cheung 18/01/24

Google
Great service from Guy and the team at Ergomotion! Helped with all my queries and was able to source a standing desk part for me when many others weren't able! Highly recommend!

Shao Lei 30/11/23

Google
Decent desk and awesome service. Highly recommend

Rod Hathway 10/11/23

Google
Awesome experience. Great value, super customer experience, ordered, assembled and picked up in 24 hours!

Dom K 06/11/23

Google
Skip the big name brands and buy from Guy instead, 10/10 linak parts with a very well built tabletop.

Chris Wu 06/11/23

Google
I purchased the edesk from Guy at Ergomotion. Guy was a pleasure to deal with and the desk arrived the next day. Guy was highly knowledgeable on the desk and provided very prompt support on the installation. I can highly recommend Ergomotion.

Albert Altit 29/09/23

Google
Excellent quality and superb Customer service. Guy walked us through the options and benefits of each and enabled us to easily decide on which option we wanted.

Installation was a breeze - Guy did a fantastic job !!

Long Hei Tai 15/09/23

Google
Guy is very helpful on my inquiry. The desk is very good in quality and I love it very much.

Thai Nguyen 03/09/23

Google
This is the second desk I have ordered to cater for my growing business. I find the quality of the products excellent and definitely an investment for the future. Great and efficient service and very helpful from the ordering process to the delivery process also. Thank so much to Guy who did a great job with following up and providing updates every step of the way.
Read more...