Is sitting behind a desk all day affecting your productivity? Yes, it is. It’s that same sitting desk going to lead to health issues? Yes.
The idea of a standing desk first reached national attention when a young Georgia Representative in Congress, Newt Gingrich, used one. He told anyone who asked that he did not have time to sit down. The standing desk kept him always going, always moving and always ready.
Let’s take a look at what a standing desk does for you.
Executive Summary:
1. 45% Productivity Boost
Texas A&M University looked at standing desk benefits in a research study. ” We found that increased stand-capable desk use is a likely contributor to increased productivity over traditional seated desk use. These findings indicate that use of stand-capable desks as ergonomic interventions to improve physical health among employees may also positively impact their work productivity,” the six researchers wrote.
How much? “Users of stand-capable desks were 45% more productive on a daily basis compared to their seated counterparts. Further, productivity of the stand-capable desk users significantly increased over time, from 23% in the 1st month to 53% over the next 6 months.”
Google and Facebook offer employees standing desks.
2. Be Ready
Writing for Forbes Magazine, Steve Mullis talks about moving from a sitting to a standing desk and what it did for him. He said the standing desk benefits are being “ready for action: When you’re sitting and sedentary, it can take a few moments to get up and away from your desk in the case of an emergency or you just realized you’re late for a meeting.”
FF Venture Capital installed electronic desks that move quickly from standing to sitting positions. The company is tracking standing desk benefits and is pleased with the results so far. “We’ve found that the standing-only work set up encourages much more active participation and sharing of ideas on the white boards (just as we had hoped!),” David Teten told Business Insider.
3. Better Health
Miracle Desk links to numerous studies about the standing desk benefits in this article. This story has 18 reasons why a standing desk will improve your health. A few critical points are:
– Better circulation. Improved circulation means more blood to the brain. That means you are better able to concentrate on your work and be more productive.
– Burning calories means losing weight. Workers who stood at their desk all afternoon burned on average 170 more calories per day than those who sat all afternoon. This is almost 1000 calories/week.
– Keeps energy up. Standing helps keep your blood flowing, and makes you less likely to want to fall asleep at work.
– Improves digestion. In this area, standing desk benefits mean lower blood sugar. Your chance of diabetes and related issues goes down.
– Fewer hemorrhoids. Sitting is a main cause of this posterior problem. Ask long-haul truck drivers.
4. Reduces Disease Risk
Standing desk benefits include cutting the risk of several diseases, like diabetes. Because standing makes your body work more, it improves circulation giving you better cardiovascular health. Dr. Axe notes sitting a lot increases your chance of heart problems significant.
“A study from 2011 reported that 43,000 cases of colon cancer and 49,000 cases of breast cancer annually are caused by prolonged sitting,” says a story in the Huffington Post.
Stand more. Cut your risk of long-term health problems.
5. Less Pain
Back and neck pain wearing you down at the end of the day? Standing desk benefits including pain relief and reduction, “Upper back and neck pain declined significantly from T1 to T2 (the groups in the study) for the intervention group,” says a report from the Centers for Disease Control.
We also know why a standing desk reduces pain – posture. Better posture means less pain because it reduces strain on your spine. “The improvement in posture does not only apply in the office but is carried on into the rest of your life as well. This is because you train your back and other muscles to assume the right position,” says an article .
6. Live Longer
Healthline says standing desk benefits include a longer life. Joe Leech looked over 18 studies all of which said people who spend a lot of time sitting are 49 percent more likely to die early than those who do not sit as much.
Again, we also know why people live longer. Standing desk benefits include forcing more of your body to work. When you stand, you are moving far more muscles than when you sit. This is exercise, very mild exercise yes, but as you read above it does deliver health benefits.
Extra tip: Go Slow
Before you invest in standing desks, a word of advice, Start slow. You can’t go from sitting all day to standing all day overnight. Work up to it. Spend 30 minutes standing, then sit a while. Gradually increase the time spent standing.
If possible, invest in a desk that moves between standing a sitting. That way you can break when you need to until you can stand for long periods.
You Win
When it comes to standing desk benefits, you are the big winner. You become more productive and your energy levels will go up while the pain goes down. You will live longer and have better health. Once your employees see how much you improve they may ask for standing desks too. If so, you win again. Better employee health means fewer sick days. More productivity means increased profits.
What do you think? Interested in trying a standing desk? Take a look at our SHOP section. You will find amazing products exclusively selected for executives that, among others, will teach you how to strengthen your focus and attention, take your fitness to a new level, reduce stress, sleep well, be free from anxieties, have a healthier body and get more things done.
If you do implement a standing desk workplace, we want to know how it worked for you. If you already have this kind of arrangement, tell us so we can share your story with others.
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