I’m still standing at my standing work station.
More than two months ago I posted about how I was switching to a standing work station.
I was just a few weeks into it and at that point it was going pretty well. However, my feet were hurting at the end of the day and I was not really sure how well this experiment in switching from mainly sitting to mainly standing at work was going to work out long term.
Now about 10 weeks into it, I’m enjoying working standing up.
I work standing up most of the day on most days.
Most days I work standing up the whole day and I barely notice I am doing it since I’m so used to it.
Other days I work most of the day standing and the few remaining hours sitting. I let how I’m feeling dictate how much I work standing versus sitting. Some days my back or feet just do not feel like standing all day, but that’s pretty rare. A couple weeks ago I had a bad cold and just wasn’t feeling as energetic as usual, and I found myself sitting at work more, but it was surprisingly a subtle change. I was still standing most of the time; I think at least in part this was because I am so used to it.
The biggest surprise from this experiment is how I feel when I work sitting down.
I don’t like it anymore.
I’m so used to working standing up that working sitting down often feels downright uncomfortable at times.
The key bullet points of advice that I would give people pondering such a change:
1) Make sure your standing work station is ergonomic
2) perhaps talk to your doctor and/or workplace ergonomics person before you start
3) get an antifatigue mat
4) consider something like Dr. Scholl’s inserts for your shoes
5) start off transitioning to working standing slowly and don’t necessarily have the goal of a complete switch.
6) move around.
The last point might be the most important. Standing still all day is not necessarily any better for you than sitting and might cause other problems. I think one of the key benefits of a standing work station is that it is most conducive to moving around while you work.
If you do try this, let us know how it goes for you and any advice you might have.
I agree about transitioning so you get used to standing to work.
Dear Paul, Good for you! I embraced the same standing strategy 10 years ago and loved it. I purchased an inexpensive architect table, ditched the desk and never went back to the padded, swivel chair again. I still prefer this nontraditional work position and encourage people to try it!