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My issue with standing desks is that to me that would not nearly be enough. Physiologically there is quite a gap between standing and walking, the latter being a lot easier and also a lot more effectful. The whole story is much more complicated when looking at body and brain. We can say for sure we do way too much sitting, but standing is not even half the solution. Actual movement is required, for a lot of physiological functions as well as for the brain. Anyone who learned to ride a horse should have learned that you letting a horse stand still for prolonged periods, specially with you on top, isn't so great for the horse, it can carry its weight (and you) much more easily when moving. I doubt that I'm different from the rest of humanity when I say that I can't (just) stand for nearly as much time as I can walk, standing is actually really hard (just for me? I don't think so). I also noticed that even for productivity I need both sitting and walking, I have yet to discover a need for "standing". When I'm looking for inspiration and "to loosen up" after having worked for too long on one problem I start walking, and often find an easy way out of my problem within 15 minutes of walking. But when I need to be "in the zone" and know exactly what I want I need to sit. Walking won't do - too much distraction. Standing won't do - too hard. I see a place for standing, but if I could do a perfect mix of sitting, standing and walking than standing would be the state I spend the least amount of time in. Maybe a little more with those crosses between sitting and standing, and a lot of changing posture. But in the end sitting and walking are my key states. "Yes sitting at work is bad, but is standing actually better?": > “Standing all day isn’t the answer,” said Alan Hedge, a design and ergonomics
> professor at Cornell University. “That’s where we were 100 years ago, and we
> needed to develop chairs to prevent curvature of the spine, backaches, and
> varicose veins.”
The article has a lot more detailed and varied information, as my long text already indicates, the problem isn't black/white and has plenty of nuance.https://www.bostonglobe.com/lifestyle/health-wellness/2014/1... |