Summary

The author shares their positive experience with using a standing desk for over a year and a half, detailing the health and productivity benefits, as well as their personal preference for standing over sitting while working.

Abstract

The author, a personal trainer, has found that using a standing desk significantly enhances their daily energy, mood, and fitness levels. Inspired by bus drivers in Singapore and ancient Greek philosophers, they have adopted a standing work posture. The article outlines seven reasons for preferring a standing desk, such as increased freedom of movement, improved energy and mood, comfort, contribution to daily step count, and reduced need for dedicated exercise time. Conversely, the author lists five reasons why they dislike sitting, including discomfort, the mindfulness required to avoid prolonged sitting, and its association with depression and anxiety. The author's standing desk setup is minimalistic, with an inherited desk modified with a wooden plank and leg rests. They also mention their role in leading a BootCamp column for new writers and invite readers to subscribe to their Medium stories.

Opinions

The author believes that standing desks are an excellent fitness and productivity hack.
They find standing desks comfortable and conducive to maintaining high energy and mood levels.
The author values the freedom of movement that standing desks provide, allowing them to walk around and even stand on one leg.
They associate sitting with negative effects such as sleepiness, discomfort, depression, and anxiety.
The author uses leg supports to rest one leg while standing, enhancing comfort.
They view the standing desk as a contributor to their daily step count and a way to minimize exercise time, especially after having to give up sports training due to COVID-19.
The author appreciates the historical precedent for standing while working, citing Dmitri Mendeleev and ancient Greek philosophers as examples.
They note the irony of being asked to sit during waiting times, despite their preference and comfort in standing.
The author extends gratitude to David Perlmutter for his contributions, though the specific context of this gratitude is not detailed in the provided content.

I Use a Standing Desk to Keep Skyrocket Energy, Mood and Fitness Levels Every Day

My 1.5 years of amazing standing desk experience

Standing desk of Mendeleev, the inventor of Periodic Table of Elements. Wikipedia Commons

So all we could do was to Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit! And we did not like it. Not one little bit. — Dr. Seuss. The Cat in the Hat

A standing desk is one of my best fitness and productivity hacks.

The first idea of standing during work? I observed bus drivers when I lived in Singapore. My subway (MRT)station was a bus interchange. Bus drivers always stood during their resting times.

Ancient Greek philosophers used to walk during discussions and lessons. They believed it stimulated the brain.

7 reasons why I prefer standing

My job as a personal trainer is standing. I spend several hours every day on my feet. I demo exercises and watch my clients during workouts.
A standing desk means freedom. I walk around a lot. Front, back, side to side. Stand on one leg, change. I start walking when I want to.
I enjoy great energy and mood. I remember one of those sales books I read in my early corporate years. They advised you to stand up when you made phone calls. It was a little tricky as phones had wires back then.
It’s so comfortable! My hands rest at my chest level. My laptop’s screen is a little below my eye level.
I use leg supports to rest one leg most of the time. Check out the photo below.
Standing desk contributes towards 10,000 steps a day. No, I don’t measure them. It was a part of my Long COVID recovery.
Standing desk minimizes my daily exercise time. I had to abandon my sports training when I got COVID from my training partner. I struggled to replace the training I love.

5 reasons why I dislike sitting

Sitting makes me sleepy and uncomfortable. I tried so many times to get a comfortable sitting position.
It’s mindful to avoid sitting. We sit most of the time without realizing it.
Sitting causes depression and anxiety in many people.
You need a conscious effort to take breaks. Get up from a chair and stretch.
My longer sitting intervals during the day are breakfast, lunch and dinner. I rarely drive more than half an hour. It’s not every day either.

My actual standing desk

I’m a minimalist and believe in simplicity. I inherited my standing desk with the house. I added a wooden plank to widen the surface and simple leg rests on the sides. One of my leg rests is on the photo.

My standing desk with leg support. Photo by the author

It’s funny that…

People always ask me to sit down during waiting time. When I bring my kids to see a doctor, I have to explain that I feel more comfortable standing. My usual excuse is a joke that I’m like a bus driver. They stand when they rest.

Have you tried a standing desk before?

Connect

I lead a BootCamp column at the New Writers Welcome publication. Perfect if you want to get healthier at your own pace.

Like my stories? You can subscribe here.

New to Medium? You can get full access if you join here. I will receive a small portion of your membership fee. The price for you is the same, $5 a month or $50 a year.

Thank you for reading! Thank you David Perlmutter for everything you do.

David Perlmutter

for everything you do.

Andrey Pilipets — Medium

Read writing from Andrey Pilipets on Medium. I’m a passionate online personal trainer for 10+ years. I love to create…

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