The Benefits of a Standing Desk
The concept of a ‘seated desk job’ is nothing new, but advances in technology over the past few decades have made moving around the office a virtually obsolete task! This has resulted in prolonged sitting times across countless workplaces.
Prolonged sitting, though, can cause significant body injuries.
You can picture it easily: fatigued workers slouching in their desk chairs, struggling to maintain focus and becoming increasingly restless as the day wears on …
Back, neck and shoulder problems are the most common, but other issues can be as severe as Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT), where a blood clot can form in a vein after long periods of sitting.
Additionally, workplaces may notice a drop in productivity if employees are weary and sore from constant sitting.
Standing desks
Ergomotion’s standing desks are electric desks can that transform from traditional seated desks to elevated desks. This means you are able to quickly alternate between sitting and standing as often as required which results in a healthier work environment.
Remember, it’s not just the eight or so hours a day in the office where you’re sitting. Many of us commute to and from work sitting in our cars, and then are quite likely to spend a few hours in front of the television each evening.
These hours add up quickly, so your total sitting time per day could be around twelve hours!
Combine that with six or seven hours of sleep, and you could be on your feet for a mere five or six hours in a day!
How to use a standing desk
If you’re new to the concept of working at a standing desk, remember that you should ease in to the practice.
A good routine to begin may be to choose a certain task, such as making and receiving calls, and every time you need to do that particular task, do it at your standing desk.
Week by week, increase the amount of time you stand per period, and remember to alternate between sitting and standing!
Better Posture
Simply put, our bodies were not built to sit all day.
A standing desk can help minimise health risks that are normally associated with lengthy intervals of sitting at a desk, like back problems and poor blood circulation.
In fact, working for periods of time at a standing desk can even help to strengthen your back. You’ll begin to work muscles you never knew you had, because they’re actually working to give you better posture. When we’re standing, our muscles are engaged, contracting and relaxing to support us.
This means that we can burn a third more calories standing than sitting down.
Having the option to alternate between standing and sitting is also great for injured people to ease their way back into their office job.
Standing allows the free flow of blood, making you more alert and productive during the working day. It’s even been said to eliminate that ‘3 o’clock slump’!
Notable standers include:
– Leonardo da Vinci
– Benjamin Franklin
– Winston Churchill
– Thomas Jefferson
– Virginia Woolfe
So, you’re in good company!
