My standing desk experiment
blog.liangzan.net
My standing desk experiment
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Re: My standing desk experiment
#2It'll be better if you actually systematically collect quantitative data over a month and upload it to a github repository. You also do it regardless of what experiment you're running. That way you will be able to see your weight before a particular experiment and what's the result of your experiment afterward. Also, if you logged what you eat, you may be able to rule out the hypothesis that you simply ate more.
This is exactly what I have done for my walking 10K steps experiment: http://kibabase.com/articles/self-quantification#data
The data collected are my weight, steps count, blood pressure and pulse rate. The blood pressure and pulse rate are added after 21 days into my logging effort, since it is my policy to add a new set of data every 21 days.(Next will be blood sugar level)
Although, I have yet to analyze or present the data from my walking 10K steps a day experiment.
Re: My standing desk experiment
#3It'll be better if you actually systematically collect quantitative data over a month and upload it to a github repository. You also do it regardless of what experiment you're running. That way you will be able to see your weight before a particular experiment and what's the result of your experiment afterward. Also, if you logged what you eat, you may be able to rule out the hypothesis that you simply ate more. This…
Cool experiment! Have you thought about measuring your waking body temperature as well (as an indication of your basal metabolic rate) ? What are you using to measure your blood pressure?
Re: My standing desk experiment
#4It'll be better if you actually systematically collect quantitative data over a month and upload it to a github repository. You also do it regardless of what experiment you're running. That way you will be able to see your weight before a particular experiment and what's the result of your experiment afterward. Also, if you logged what you eat, you may be able to rule out the hypothesis that you simply ate more. This…
Cool experiment! Have you thought about measuring your waking body temperature as well (as an indication of your basal metabolic rate) ? What are you using to measure your blood pressure?
Cool experiment! Have you thought about measuring your waking body temperature as well (as an indication of your basal metabolic rate) ?
I haven't thought of that and I don't know of a good way of measuring that. Currently, I only count the total cumulative steps roughly in a 24 hours period.
What are you using to measure your blood pressure?
I just use a blood pressure cuff.
If you want to know about my process for selecting tools and using them, see the section on tool on my essay I linked to in the original post.
Re: My standing desk experiment
#5It'll be better if you actually systematically collect quantitative data over a month and upload it to a github repository. You also do it regardless of what experiment you're running. That way you will be able to see your weight before a particular experiment and what's the result of your experiment afterward. Also, if you logged what you eat, you may be able to rule out the hypothesis that you simply ate more. This…
Do you measure these at the same time of the day?
Re: My standing desk experiment
#6Earlier quoted context omitted.
Cool experiment! Have you thought about measuring your waking body temperature as well (as an indication of your basal metabolic rate) ? What are you using to measure your blood pressure?
Cool experiment! Have you thought about measuring your waking body temperature as well (as an indication of your basal metabolic rate) ? I haven't thought of that and I don't know of a good way of measuring that. Currently, I only count the total cumulative steps roughly in a 24 hours period. What are you using to measure your blood pressure? I just use a blood pressure cuff. If you want to know about my process for…
I just use a blood pressure cuff.
I was wondering what kind of cuff. The electronic ones or the old-school ones? (My original question was too vague, sorry about that.)
As for the wake up temperature, measure your temperature as soon as you wake up (keep an electronic thermometer on your bed table.) Some people also measure it 3/6/9 hours after waking as well.
Re: My standing desk experiment
#7It'll be better if you actually systematically collect quantitative data over a month and upload it to a github repository. You also do it regardless of what experiment you're running. That way you will be able to see your weight before a particular experiment and what's the result of your experiment afterward. Also, if you logged what you eat, you may be able to rule out the hypothesis that you simply ate more. This…
Cool experiment! Have you thought about measuring your waking body temperature as well (as an indication of your basal metabolic rate) ? What are you using to measure your blood pressure?
>>measuring your waking body temperature as well (as an indication of your basal metabolic rate)
This would be quite meaningless, since there would be too many other variables to control. The average human body temperature is 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, but fluctuates throughout the day by as much as 0.9 degrees Fahrenheit. Our bodies are cooler in the morning and warmer in the afternoon. In addition to level of physical activity, there are many other factors that affect the body's temperature, such as hunger, level of sleepiness, whether the person is sick, etc.
Basically I really doubt you'd see any kind of measurable change in the body's temperature just from standing up all day.
Re: My standing desk experiment
#8I used a standing desk at work for about four months earlier this year. I didn't like it because:
1. My feet would hurt from standing up all the time, which interfered with my concentration.
2. The desk was a continuous source of questions from coworkers. People would ask me how I built it, how much it cost, what benefits I've observed, and a ton of other stuff. I answered so many questions that I could go and sell stand-up desks for a living if I wanted.
3. It cost me 50 bucks in parts (from Home Depot) and 2.5 hours to build. I didn't have any previous carpentry experience, so I just nailed six wooden legs to a 1.5 x 4 feet board - it was basically a coffee table that I put on top of my existing table at work. While I saved a bunch of money, the end product wasn't sturdy enough to reliably support a laptop, a phone and an LCD monitor (plus my forearms) for extended periods of time. Occasionally it would start wobbling and I would need to hammer in the nails a little bit.
In the end I gave up because I decided that the potential health benefits were not worth the discomfort and the regular interruptions.
Re: My standing desk experiment
#9I concentrate better sitting down, but there really is nothing better for my back.
Re: My standing desk experiment
#10I have a cubicle and a lab area at work where I do hardware/software development, which means a large portion of my work involves a computer. I decided to try a standing desk about two years ago, however, I didn't want to commit fully and we don't have desks that raise and lower automatically. I decided the best solution would be convert my lab workstation to standing. I built something to hold mouse and keyboard at proper height and raised my monitors/docking station to eye level. I also added a 3/4" textured mat to stand on and keep a set of comfortable shoes at work.
My findings are that I am more alert standing up, however, I focus better on documentation while sitting down, so I alternate between the two throughout the day. Having both standing and sitting desks seemed to be optimal since a proper sitting desk chair can be more comfortable than a tall chair at a standing desk.