How many minutes of your day do you spend doing something that requires physical effort? If you've got a desk job, the answer wouldn't be a positive one. You aren't the only one who's leading a life with little to no physical activity. A huge majority of people today are living sedentary lives where they spend most of their day sitting in one place.
Experts say that sitting is the new smoking which indicates how harmful sitting is for your health. But unfortunately, the hectic work schedules leave little to no time on hand, which you can use for physical activity or exercises. You're already too exhausted to move any muscle when you get home from work.
How about we tell you that you can mitigate the risks associated with prolonged sitting and lack of physical activity while at work without having to take a break from work? Well, we're serious! It's very much possible.
You can work while standing. As uncomfortable and tiring as it sounds, it's actually beneficial for your health and overall well-being.
This blog post explains how standing at work can benefit you and how you can make working while standing more comfortable.
Benefits of Working While Standing
If you wish to start working while standing, the first thing that you'll need is a standing desk or sit-to-stand workstation. You simply can't work while standing using a regular work desk. A regular work desk is high enough to be used while sitting, and if you use the same desk to work while standing, you'll have to curve your back and bend your neck too much. This posture can be detrimental to your health and can put you at risk of developing posture-related musculoskeletal disorders. A standing desk comes with an adjustable height feature that allows you to adjust the height of the desk to suit your comfort so that you don't have to work standing in an incorrect posture.
Investing in a standing desk is worth every penny. Let's look at the many benefits of standing at work:
Helps You Lose Weight
Many people with desk jobs often complain about gaining unwanted kilos. This is because they don't burn as many calories as they consume, as sitting doesn't help burn calories. However, when you work while standing, you're actually burning calories without doing anything! When you're standing, the muscles of your legs and back have to work extra. They're in a constant state of micro-movements (contractions) to hold you upright against gravity. These micro-movements of the muscles burn calories. Spending a few hours standing at work every day for the whole week can help you burn a significant number of calories, and this helps you lose weight.
Reduces the Incidence of Back and Neck Pain
Another noticeable benefit of standing at work is reduced back and neck pain incidence. When you sit in front of your computer screen for several hours at a stretch, your back gets strained. Sitting puts extensive pressure on the lower back, and this often leads to pain. Moreover, if your computer monitor isn't positioned at the right height for any reason (incorrect height of the work desk or chair), you'll have to sit with your neck bent forward or backward in a chin-out posture, which can cause neck pain.
But, when you're standing at work with your standing desk at the right height, your computer monitor will be at the right height for you, and you won't have to raise or bend your neck awkwardly.
Improves Posture
As explained above, when you're working while standing with your standing desk at the right height for you, you won't have to bend or raise your neck or curve your back. Working while standing helps you improve your posture. The risk of posture-related musculoskeletal disorders is significantly lowered when your posture improves.
Boosts Productivity
Standing at work boosts your productivity. Standing reduces the number of distracting factors like discomfort and back and neck pain. Standing is a lot more comfortable than sitting in an incorrect posture. When you're more comfortable at work, you'll be able to focus on work better and deliver better results. Your productivity will increase by several folds compared to how productive you are when you're working while sitting in an incorrect and uncomfortable posture.
Boosts Energy
According to a study, individuals who stand at work are more energetic than those who work while sitting. You're more likely to move around your workplace when you're working while standing. However, sitting for prolonged durations tends to cause fatigue and make you lazy and unwilling to stand up and move around.
Improves Circulation and Reduces the Risk of Cardiovascular Diseases
Sitting puts you at massive risk of developing cardiovascular conditions like stroke and high blood pressure. This is because when you're sitting, the blood starts to pool in your legs (which is why your feet swell after prolonged sitting). As a result, the amount of blood available for the rest of the body is reduced, and this puts a load on the heart, thereby putting you at risk of stroke and other heart conditions. Not only this, but the pooling of blood also increases the risk of blood clot formation and puts you at risk of developing conditions like Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT).
Standing at work ensures smooth and healthy blood circulation. Your leg muscles are constantly at work which ensures unhindered blood flow to and from the legs, thereby reducing the load on the heart and reducing the risk of heart conditions.
Reduces the Risk of Type-2 Diabetes
Most people return to their workstations immediately after lunch. Your blood sugar levels spike after meals. If you don't engage in physical activity, the sugar spike will last longer, and this increases the risk of type-2 diabetes by increasing insulin resistance. But when you stand at work, the sugar spike following meals subsides sooner and reduces the risk of type-2 diabetes.
Improves Mood
People who stand at work aren't just more active and energetic, but they appear happier too. Standing at work improves your mood. This is because standing enhances comfort; the more comfortable you are, the better your mood will be! And the better your mood at work, the better your relations with your coworkers, the higher your productivity, and the better it is for your mental health!
How to Make Standing at Work More Comfortable?
Standing is definitely healthier and better than sitting for long hours. However, even long hours of standing continuously can become uncomfortable and even painful. But fret not. You can make standing at work comfortable. Let's look at some of the ways you can enhance your comfort while standing at work:
Switch to a Sit-Stand Workstation
The best way to make the time you spend at work comfortable is to switch to a sit-stand workstation. These workstations let you alternate between sitting and standing. This way, you aren't sitting or standing for too long. Sit-stand workstations come with an adjustable height feature. You can raise the height to make it a standing desk and lower the height to use it as a regular work desk that you can use while sitting.
Use an Anti-Fatigue Mat
Standing for long hours causes the leg muscles to get fatigued. Your muscles are tensed when you're standing because they need to keep you upright. However, prolonged standing constricts the muscles, reduces the blood flow, and results in pain. This stress on your muscles and joints builds over time and puts you at risk of long-term health problems. Using an anti-fatigue mat reduces this stress and makes standing at work more comfortable and less painful.
Anti-fatigue mats like Ergonomic Anti Fatigue Mat DM1 improve circulation. These mats create micro-movements in the muscles of your legs. Anti-fatigue mats are soft, which eases the pressure on the back and knees and offers comfort. These mats also create instability and encourage the leg muscles to work more. The result is an even distribution of pressure so that any one leg doesn't have to bear too much weight or stress when you're standing.
Closing Word
Standing at work offers tremendous benefits. If you can't make time for exercise or spend the entire day sitting in one place, you've got to consider working while standing. Standing activates leg muscles which burn calories. From helping you lose weight to ensuring a good mood, standing at work might be just what you have been missing in your life all along!
