The shift I’m glad happened

24 May 2021

Looking back, when I think of my adamance to board the standing desk bandwagon, I’m so glad to have come around on the matter. Speaking as a converted critic, the standing desk is one of the greatest things to happen to modern-day workers and especially me.

Sitting at your desk all day for work is no picnic, but when the standing desk began to gain popularity, I couldn’t wrap my head around the possibility of working on your computer while standing. Somehow, that sounded worse than sitting in uncomfortable positions all day.

I put my theory to the test, which further alienated me from the standing desk. You see, I didn’t use a standing desk; I just stood and worked around counters and any surface higher than my chair. That left me ten times more exhausted than sitting. Until a fellow skeptic purchased their standing desk, and I figured, what could it hurt to give it a shot?

So, in a manner of speaking, when I bought my standing desk, it was to confirm whether it actually works or not. I can, however, confirm that I love having a standing desk so much now that I can’t believe I ever doubted it.

Buying my first standing desk

You’d think that because I just needed any ol’ standing desk to test my theory on, I’d just go out and get the first desk I could find, but that’s not the case. I’m quite thorough, and I did extensive research into standing desks, their benefits, problems, and even price ranges as I didn’t want to dig too deep into my pockets.

During my research, I came across Flexispot and somehow stayed with them. Their range of products had me pausing for a second and reading more into their offering. Perhaps it’s because they are furniture experts, but I wanted my desk from the best, albeit for the wrong reasons at the time. I figured, if I could get the best standing desk out there and find out that it doesn’t work, I would write them all off.

That didn’t happen. I found the Flexispot standing desk; it’s more a sit-stand desk, height-adjustable and electric. The desk is 48x30 inches of sturdy, functional, and impeccable furniture. Before I get into the specifics of this standing desk, I’ve got to say; the blacktop was the first thing that pulled me to this desk.

Features of my standing desk

Seeing that I was aiming for the best to prove everyone wrong, I chose a spacious desk that would accommodate all my work material. The product description said it had enough space to fit two monitors and a laptop, and I can attest to that. You even have a bit of space left over.

The height adjustment on this desk is electric. A seamless transition makes you feel like you’re doing very important work. I love how easy it is to transition from sitting to standing, not to mention how fast it happens. The desk specifications say at 1 second; I haven’t timed it, but I believe it having seen the desk in action.

During height adjustment, the desk produces very low noise, 50B, and that is great because squeaking from a desk can distract you and even kill your mood to get any work done. For the standing desk to make minimal noise and adjust to different heights so fast is extremely convenient.

Moving on to weight, the desk can comfortably hold up to 154lbs. This gives you a solid desk that can comfortably hold all your work materials. Being as it’s built for remote workers; you won’t have very heavy materials to place on this desk. I can confirm that the desk is built from industrial-grade steel as advertised on the product specifications.

Lastly, on features, I should touch on installation. The desk was shipped to me in two packages; there came the first problem. I think I’d convinced myself that buying a standing desk means that it’ll come fully assembled. When these two packages arrived, I got down to making the parts into a standing desk. The installation process itself was surprisingly easy. I say surprisingly because I have tried to assemble products by referring to a manual before and failed miserably. This might be one of those few times that the manual is not complicated and assembling the product is quite easy. However, if you purchase this desk before it gets to you, find yourself a drill if you don’t have one. I had one, thanks to Pinterest and DIY enthusiasm.

The experience: A changed environment

I love the Flexispot standing desk. My love for the desk began as soon as I assembled it and saw how nicely it fit into my home workstation. I finally got it to look like all those images I see online, and somehow that made me more motivated to get work done.

The desk is smooth and very functional. The first few days were a bit of an adjustment, especially for my body that has been used to slouched positions. But even though the adjustment, I found myself getting work done faster than usual, and when I left my workstation, I wasn’t completely drained of energy.

I have now gone from believing that standing desks were just another trend to make money to recommending them to anyone who’ll listen. Standing desks improve your overall health, even away from work. Before I had it, I’d leave my work area and almost immediately curl up on the couch, floor, or the bed, and it was a vicious cycle of my muscles feeling twisted every day. Since the standing desk, I find myself walking around my house more, having leftover energy to fix a healthy meal, and I’m even considering one of those fitness chairs that allow me to cycle while sitting.

The downside

I don’t think there exists a product that is 100% problem-free, and that’s true with this desk too. Even with all the love I have for it, I can’t ignore that the base scratched my floor a bit. Maybe you shouldn’t push the desk, but I’d like for it to have smoother stands that move around easier.

This might be me nitpicking, but as far as electric standing desks go, this one doesn’t have all the other fancy features that I’ve seen on newer models, but it’s a lot more affordable than those desks. You’re basically getting the same features, with a few fancy additions for 2x the price of this one.

Should you purchase a standing desk?

My answer is now a firm YES. It is worth all the buzz circulating around it. The standing desk is a work-from-home must-have and just like any other product, conduct your research before you purchase a standing desk. It is important that you understand the features and how it works.

I think I recommend that you consider Flexispot for your standing desk, speaking from my personal experience. They have great furniture, a wide range of standing desks to choose from, and are among the top furniture manufacturers.

We cannot ignore that the pace the world is moving at has us running all the time to try to keep up. This often leads to neglecting our health and wellness. It is good to know that people are thinking of people's overall well-being working from home or those who work at their desks for long periods of time.

Having a standing desk in your home will change your life. It’ll do for you what it’s done for me, and that is make you more productive, overall happier, and energetic. It is also an excellent opportunity to work on the move, I’ve seen people fit treadmills on their standing desks so they can walk while working, and I’m very interested in that.

To wrap up, I hope this serves as more of a lesson to those of us who have a tendency to knock things before we try them. I think experiencing the standing desk helped me see that it wasn’t being oversold; people have just been genuinely happy about the changes it has brought to their lives that they were excited to share, as I’m doing now.