Boost Productivity by Standing: The Benefits of Using a Standing Desk

Productivity is an essential aspect of our daily lives, and we are always looking for ways to increase it. However, we may be spending a significant amount of our day doing something that hampers productivity and increases the risk of reducing our lifespan – sitting.

Sitting is not necessarily a bad idea, but spending too much time engaging in it can significantly affect our productivity. Unfortunately, in the digital age, we currently live in, the average human spends around nine hours sitting daily. When you sit for just six hours a day, you increase your risk of dying within the next 15 years by 40% higher than someone who sits for only three hours a day.

Thankfully, there is a solution to this problem – standing. Using standing desks is an excellent way to incorporate standing while working. It may not be easy at first, especially if you have spent most of your life sitting, but there are several benefits to using a standing desk that are worth considering.

1. Standing constitutes a little pain.

Comfort can make it difficult for us to produce quality output, while pain makes us focus. Standing for prolonged periods can cause pain, leaving us with one thought: “how to quickly finish what we’re doing so we can sit down.” Unfortunately, productivity is hardly achievable in a comfortable environment, and achieving success is only possible through struggles. The key to productivity is to challenge yourself and step out of your comfort zone. Standing does all that, while sitting is the direct opposite.

2. Standing is associated with work more than sitting.

The modern world is more about perception than reality. Thus, productivity is more of a psychological process than physical. Creation is a mental process, which means you must be in the right frame of mind to create. Sitting is mostly associated with rest and relaxation, making it less productive for work compared to standing. We spend a considerable portion of our time sitting while watching TV, playing games, and chatting with ourselves. The reality is that we do all these activities while sitting, while the majority of activities that can be classified as “real work” are done while standing, such as brainstorming, meetings, and speaking engagements, among others.

3. Standing while working is actually healthier than sitting.

Health is wealth, and our desire and mental preparation for getting things done may be jeopardized if we are not healthy enough to carry out tasks. Sitting for prolonged periods can lead to several health conditions. They include:

• Death: Sitting for six or more hours a day increases your chance of dying within the next 15 years compared to someone who sits for only three hours a day, by 40%.

• Obesity: Obesity can be detrimental to productivity, and the more obese you become, the less you feel like working. Research has shown that obese people sit for 2.5 more hours a day compared to their thin counterparts.

• Diseases: Sitting for 3 or more hours a day watching TV increases your chance of dying from heart diseases by 64%. Also, people with sitting jobs have twice the cardiovascular disease as people with standing jobs.

Exercise is nearly ineffective for those who spend a large part of their day sitting, even if they exercise for an hour a day.

How to Get the Best from Standing While Working

Now that we know the benefits of standing while working, it is crucial to realize that there are things we can do to maximize productivity. Here are some tips to get the most out of standing while working:

• Create a resting interval: Don’t work for prolonged hours on your feet without taking any action. Segment your work into various periods and take a break every hour or so of standing. A 10 – 20-minute break per hour can improve productivity, so ensure you do not exhaust yourself by working while standing for prolonged hours.

• Alternate sitting with standing: Know when to stand and when to sit. Suppose you think you need to get a lot of work done for a particular day and will probably be working for an extended period. In that case, you may sit for a few minutes to rest your brain. Standing for too long can increase your chances of having back pain, so ensure you alternate sitting with standing every once in a while.

Conclusion

Using a standing desk to work can improve productivity, enhance your health, and reduce the risk of prolonged sitting. It may not be easy to adapt to standing for prolonged hours, but with time, patience, and discipline, standing can become the new norm for us all. By incorporating standing into our work routines, we can boost productivity and achieve our goals.