Standing While Working Results in Better Work?

Bamafan77 asks: "I've recently become fascinated by the idea of standing while working. I've found that I'm much more productive for longer periods of time while standing as opposed to sitting. The best way to describe it is that my brain feels more 'engaged.' Apparently, many famous people feel the same way including Thomas Wolfe, Vladimir Nabokov, and Winston Churchill. Other benefits include a better ability to control weight. (Guess what? Your slow metabolism ain't the cause for that belly). The Mayo Clinic has gone so far as to do research into a treadmill workstation. Does anyone here have experiences to share when it comes to standing while working, especially in the IT field?"

My job.

[The Living Fractal]

I am a facility production operator on the North Slope of Alaska. To the layfolk, that means I separate oil from water and gas and some suspended solids and then ship it south, where it is turned into everything you see around you (basically).

Anyway, the point is, my job entails a lot of walking. Like, a lot. I routinely walk 12 miles per day during my 12 hour shifts. More than that even. But, sometimes, I sit. And when I sit, I get tired. And time slows down. And it generally gets pretty tough to handle.

So when there's nothing to do, I play janitor. Mopping the floors of a billion dollar facility is actually not too bad, considering the alternative (just sitting there waiting for time to pass).

TLF

Warehouses are a good example of this

[Durrok]

I used to be an office manager for a small hazmat shower manufacturer. We found that the people we had glueing the pipes together would stand up when we were pressing them to hurry and crank out the showers due to a large order. Not sure if them standing did anything besides show us managers that they were hurrying but we always met our deadlines.

Standing is good

[Vorlath]

Standing usually means you're moving around. I used to do this all the time when thinking about a problem. It gets the blood circulating and really does improve mental abilities. Thinking on your feet. It's not just a good idea!

trying to picture it

[Beuno]

I am trying to picture myself working all day in front of the PC standing up, but something just doesn't quiete click.
It feels the other way around, like I wouldn't be able to concentrate that deeply.
Being able to relax seems to be important to concentrate on something specific, even lying down sounds like I'd be more concentrated.

I'm already a convert...

[johnthorensen]

I have worked standing up for the last 3 years. It all started when I began to outfit my new office; my work requires me to look at a lot of plans and hence I built a drafting table, which are traditionally at standing height. To make matters simpler, I decided to also build my regular workstation at the same height. To make things just right, I hung my dual LCD flat panels at eye level.

I ordered two nice Hon drafting chairs and expected to wind up sitting in them as I had a regular desk chair in the past.

I soon found though, that it was much more convenient and comfortable to just forego the chairs and work standing up. I discovered that I didn't get tired from standing at all, and in fact felt more awake and alert as a result. There's also the nice side benefit that without chairs, people don't really tend to come and camp out in my office :)

Last year, I was diagnosed with a herniated disc in my lower back. This is where the working-standing-up plan really pays off. I quickly discovered that when I sit, the pain is worse. After sitting awhile, it's a *lot* worse. The doctor explained that this is because sitting puts the more pressure on your disc than laying or standing. In fact, standing seems to be the most neutral position for your back and relieves more pressure on the disc than other positions. So if you have back problems - working while standing could mean the difference between working or not. I know it has for me on many days.

So to those who haven't tried working while standing up - I highly recommend it. I believe the health benefits are strong and the impact on your mental processes is positive.

Walking

[Lambticc]

At uni whenever I was doing research or trying to solve a problem, I always found it best to walk around for a bit. I would usually after making a few rounds of the room have a solution.

Re:My job.

[Anonymous Coward]

I've noticed this, too. Since I began to exercise more, I've noticed that I'm actually more tired and easily-distracted while sitting down than while moving around.

It actually sucks somewhat, because I sit and write code for a living. I've been fighting the sensation with coffee, but I have a feeling that's not the best long-term answer. I wonder if I've altered my glucose metabolism or something...?

(OT: Slow Down Cowboy! It's been 43 minutes since you last successfully posted a comment)
How about fixing that stupid bug, CmdrTaco? It's been, what, two years since you last successfully edited a line of Slashcode?

Overall it is effective

[mrpaco18]

I work for the Geek Squad (let the flaming commence). My job requires me and everyone else with whom I work to stand for almost the entire duration of our shifts. For 4-6 hour shifts (I'm a part-time employee), I do find that I am more productive than I would be be sitting. I am able to efficently work up and down the bench of computers in repair as opposed to working on just 3 or 4 on a KVM. However, on shifts that last longer than 6 hours, I end up being more concerned about my feet being sore than actually fixing units, which does adversly affect my productivity (and I do wear comfortable shoes with good insoles). I just want to sit down and work. On the longer shifts, it turns out to be something of a wash. It would be nice to have a chair or stool around, but overall I prefer working while standing.

Re:And...

[PresidentEnder]

I'm a cashier, so I stand all day at my job, and I have mild scoliosis. I'm very much looking foreward to finishing my degree so that I can have a sit-down job at my computer, thank you very much.

Walking Desk

[dubl-u]

Standing sounds like a good idea, but walking? I keep getting this hamster image in my head.

It's surprisingly good for some things. I bought a treadmill off Craigslist and added a sheet of wood where I can put my laptop. I really like it for reading and replying to email and reading stuff on the web. For things where I have to type a lot, 1.5 mph plus or minus seems good. For pure reading, I'll go up to 3.3 mph if I'm feeling peppy.

It's specially nice first thing in the morning when I'm still a little groggy. I'll put on one of the Run to Cadence [kk.org] albums, pop open Google Reader, and do two or three miles of news and email.

For some reason, though, I usually can't walk and code at the same time. (I can chew gum while coding, though.) For coding I just stop the treadmill and use it as a standing desk. If I do that continuously for a couple of hours, I'll switch between the standing position and sitting at a table with a regular chair or an exercise ball.

I took a stand

[blueforce]

I'm a software engineer. I recently made my own stand up desk for work in my woodshop at home (then expensed the desk of course). I don't think it's healthy to stand for 8-10 hours straight every day either - at least that's what I've read - so I also have a drafting stool in case I want/need to sit.

I'm definitely more alert and not so sluggish during the day, especially after lunch. The first couple of weeks after I transitioned from sitting to standing I realized how many muscles there are in my back and legs. Actually, the first few days were brutal since I didn't get my stool until about 3 weeks after transitioning. I'm not grossly out of shape or anything and I work out as often as I can, but I had no idea how many muscles it takes to actually stand up for long periods like that. Of course I'm acclimated now so it's no big deal. If you can get over those first few days without giving up then it's great.

The biggest beneift that I've noticed is that my neck and back don't hurt anymore. I've been sitting in front of a desk for 7+ years and the main reason I started thinking about a stand-up desk (aside from the other 6 people here that have them now) was the aches and pains I had from poor posture. I had a comfy oversize leather office chair and I got lazy and had terrible posture. I would slouch during the day, rest my head on the back of the chair and work, etc. To make matters worse, I had to keep the chair rather low to get the arms to fit under my desk that was already elevated on blocks. I'm tall, about 6-4 so all of that added up to bad posture and pain.

After moving to the stand-up desk, I haven't had any shoulder, neck, or back pain - none. The key to that I think is that I took custom measurements of myself. Since I made my own desk I was able to custom make it to fit me. I took measurements so that I would be in a natural, comfortable position when I was typing and working. The downside to that is that the drafting stool is ever so slightly short when I do try to sit and work, but it's not for long periods so it doesn't bother me. People ask me if I find it hard to code or type for long periods while standing. I haven't had any trouble, but again I custom fit my desk to me.

Overall, I feel much better physically and I'm not as tired and sluggish as I used to be throughout the day and even at home. For me it works - I definitely notice healthful benefits. I don't think I'd ever go back to a sit-down desk for work.

The best advice I can give to someone moving to a stand-up desk is this: Wear comfy shoes, get an anti-fatigue mat, and have the desk custom fit if at all possible. If you can make your own then do it.

SORRY SORRY SORRY, Typo.

[DrYak]

Walking does? That seems very strange to me.

NOT for the muscle, sory. Was tired. Puts strain on your *joints*.

If you must walk the whole day non-stop for your job, your knee may get worn more quickly. (medical nurse and some military personnal come to mind). But then, again that's in the perspective of a job composed of non-stop working.
For the typical /.er adding some small walks to their usual job isn't bad.

From a biomechanic point of view, laying is the less stringent position. But you still need to move from time to time and also, you don't burn enough calories. (But is still a good solution to read your books for your exams. Just take in account that you need correct lightning in order to avoid injuring the eyes)

Walking is less damaging than running (you're right). On the other hand, bicycle riding puts *less* strain on the joints than walking (your knee don't have to support all the weight. The bicycle does). Note that using a bicycle to move between home and work is a good solution. At least here in europe were it is still possible to do it. My remembering from USA is that there it is a lot harder.

Swiming is in an interesting sport : almost weighlessness in water so no strain on joints. But on the other hand good effort and good sport. But no way to incorporate it in a normal work day.

Standing is less good than walking, because of blood flow problems I mentionned in previous post.
Sitting without moving is bad too (hemorrhoids, back pain in case of bad position, blood flow problems too although lesser).

So the best is to alternate situation.
If you have a "Sitting-in-front-of-a-computer" job as most of the rest of /. readers, keep in mind to try to variate positions.
Just stand up and walk to your coworker if you have to say something to them, instead of phoning/emailing/IMing them.
Don't take the elevator unless you have to go from 1st to 23rd floor, or have a big wheight to move.
If you apply this, you both burn more fat AND variate your position. Which is all good. As with anything diversity is good. There's no single miracle solution.

I've been told all my life that we're designed primarily to walk

Note: the main problem is that we've evolved from 4 legged animals to a bipedal hominid, but we aren't 100% optimal yet. Joint strains (knee and lumbar vertebrae) and blood flow problems (bigger height difference between lower extremity and hearth) are the main problems that are still happening.
So in a way : we're designed in a weird way that's still not good for anything. It's not anymore good for quadripedal stature. But it's not good for upright position either.