Sitting in one position all day at work can negatively affect our health in the long term. While it can help to take short breaks and walk around your office or home (provided you work from home), there are more effective solutions to combat the relative lack of inactivity of working in a seated position. One of those solutions is a home office all-in-one desk bike.
A desk bike is a seat for your desk, but it's designed like a cycling machine (we'll discuss this device in greater detail in this article). There are numerous advantages of using such a setup, one of which is helping you stay fit.
Therefore, this article offers an overview of the benefits of desk bikes. It also offers some insight into some potential disadvantages of getting and using one. This way, you can make an informed decision on improving your home office space and overall productivity.
What Are Desk Bikes?
As explained above, desk bikes are seats that are like exercise bikes. Therefore, you can pedal with different resistance settings and work out your lower body. However, this device allows you to write in a notebook or type on a computer on your desk. It manages this by eliminating the handlebars in the front.
Desk bikes come in two main configurations. One is an under-desk bike. In that case, it's just the bike part that can fit in front of and slightly under your desk so that you can work at a desk with ease. If you plan to use one at your home office or workplace, you may need a height-adjustable desk. This is because your seat will be relatively higher than a regular seat. So, you should be able to still follow basic ergonomic practices even with this seat.
These practices include keeping your elbows at about 90 degrees and your wrists straight with your arms almost parallel to the floor. This way, you will put less stress on your wrists, reducing the risk of conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome.
The second type of desk bike is an all-in-one design. These bikes have desks attached to them. So, you don't need an external desk to work on it. They can also be used for students who need a study space where they can work and stay healthy at the same time.
Benefits of Desk Bikes
Investing in a desk bike for your home office can make a drastic improvement in your overall work experience. You'll feel more positive and healthier simply by spending an hour or two pedaling while you work. You can also turn down the resistance levels to just lightly pedal if you don't want something too intense. With that said, here are details on the benefits of desk bikes.
It Can Potentially Improve Concentration and Overall Work Productivity
One of the reasons why a home office all-in-one desk bike is great for ergonomics is because it improves your concentration. Exercising releases hormones in your body. Therefore the hormones reduce cortisol and increase endorphins. Cortisol is the stress hormone. Therefore, with reduced stress, you can stay more focused on your work and improve your overall productivity and efficiency.
So, you can pedal every time you feel nervousness building up. It can help reduce that stress and allow you to clear your thoughts, which can help with getting newer ideas out as well.
It Helps You Stay Fitter
Using a desk bike allows you to increase the overall mobility of your body when you're working. You're not only exercising your legs when you use them, but you're also engaging your core to stay balanced. Therefore, you're using your muscles, improving blood circulation, and keeping your body flexible at all times. At the same time, it's also good cardiovascular exercise. So, you're helping your heart stay healthier too. You don't need to pedal very quickly to get its health benefits either.
It Can Help Improve Your Mood
You may have noticed that exercising typically improves your mood. It's no different in this case. Using your desk bike releases endorphins in your brain—chemicals that help you feel better and happier. So, you can feel more positive when you're working, which can improve your work experience, the quality of your work, and how you deal with colleagues or clients.
It Helps You Burn Calories
If you want to squeeze a little more physical activity into your schedule to burn some of the extra calories you consumed, a desk bike is a great way to do it. You don't need to get away from your desk to take a walk; you can simply pedal and burn calories while you work. It's a great solution also to minimize the time you spend in the gym or on activities that improve your fitness.
You should note that you shouldn't use a desk bike as a replacement for exercise in the gym or through sports. A desk bike won't burn many calories because you won't be able to put your maximal energy into your pedaling. That said, the V9 model of a home office all-in-one desk bike from FlexiSpot has 8 different resistance levels. So, you can increase the resistance level when you put in more effort and burn even more calories. Turn down the resistance level if you just want to pedal passively while you work.
You Can Use an All-In-One Desk Bike as a Separate Desk
You don’t have to use your desk bike all day. In fact, you may even sore your muscles and back by pedaling all day. So, using an all-in-one desk bike in your home allows you to have a separate workstation that you can use whenever you want to get a bit of exercise. In that case, you can have a separate desk that functions as your primary workspace. However, you can have this home office all-in-one desk bike at the side as a secondary work area.
If you’re using a laptop, you can simply shift it between your desks in a minute. So, you won't even spend time setting up your alternative desk. The V9 model from FlexiSpot also includes a spacious desk in the desk bike, allowing you to fit a laptop, external keyboard, and mouse with ease.
That said, you can switch between a desk bike and a regular seat even if you don't have a built-in desk on the bike. You can just drag the bike to your desk. The V9 model and others come with lockable gravity casters that make it easy to move the bike around.
Some Disadvantages of Using Desk Bikes
It's important to understand that the benefits of desk bikes far outweigh the disadvantages. This is also because the disadvantages can easily be combated by using the desk smartly. Nevertheless, here are some of its disadvantages.
A Desk Bike Does Not Offer Lumbar and Neck Support
One of the major disadvantages of desk bikes is the lack of lumbar and neck support. The lack of support may even make it hard for you to sit upright for long periods. Therefore, you may experience increased back and neck pain after prolonged use. That is why it's to your benefit to switch between this bike and a regular ergonomic office chair with lumbar support and an adjustable headrest. Using a chair will help reduce strain in your body, and you can then get the benefits of both the bike and the chair if you switch between each throughout your work day.
That said, if you work at a desk only for a couple of hours or fewer every day, an all-in-one desk bike may be sufficient. You will just have to make sure that it has enough space for your gear (see the point below).
A Desk Bike Does Not Have Adequate Storage Space
While the V9 model has a fairly spacious desk at the front, it may not be enough for a large, permanent setup. For example, you may not be able to place a desktop computer and a monitor with its stand on the desk. In addition to the limited space, the weight of the computer, monitor, and peripherals may be too much for the desk.
In that case, it's best to use it as a secondary desk. You can use it with your laptop and keep your regular desk for your desktop computer. A regular desk typically also includes drawers to store certain items so that you can have a neater desk when you're working. If you need even more storage space, you can look into options such as cabinets and so on.
Last Few Words
Now that you know the benefits of desk bikes, you can see why it's worth the investment. While a desk bike is a great addition to a home office, you can also talk to your employer to add them to the office if you work there. Visit FlexiSpot today for more options on ergonomic office furniture and equipment.
