Also curious about people who enjoy it and say it helps with back pain etc. :
What's your age and how active are you?
Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
151–160 of 174 posts
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#152I encourage everyone to buy a DeskCycle or equivalent with an ergonomic chair and appropriately positioned table. Once you get into the groove you should be able to average 10mph for approximately 4 hours. I feel healthier doing that than standing or sitting all day.
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#153I got mine a couple of years back as I find that sitting down I hardly move, I just stare at the screen like a motionless zombie. Standing at a desk I pretty much dance about and find myself doing much more. My main issue was height/weight as I am 2metres tall and 110KG, I found most desks do not go high enough.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/catcameron/albums/721576482809...
The setup has slightly evolved since then and the cable management is much better.
Anyway, a last year I finally became a father and in the past few months I have found that little arms are talented at pulling any cable in sight...being able to keep the desk up has 'baby-proofed' my working area.
I think making sure you are not looking down when standing, even by a few degrees, is key to being comfortable, that and standing on something squishy like sneakers or a floor mat/carpet.
At work I have one of these
https://varidesk.co.nz/
it is surprisingly quick to use but I find myself sitting more at work.
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#154Standing hurts my feet within 10-20 minutes, but I found a treadmill/walking desk to be something I could do all day long. It helped a lot with back pain, and as a side-effect it cured post-lunch sleepiness. Coding while walking was never a concentration problem for me, so I can only offer that as an anecdotal data point. It might be me, but maybe walking rather than standing makes it easier to concentrate? There wer…
Were you using a good mat at the standing desk? Without one most people will have foot pain.
Yep, good question, I should have mentioned it. I even tried a really thick one. It definitely helps, but standing still is what kills my feet, I have to shift my weight so often to keep my feet from hurting that it starts to feel like walking in place.
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#155Earlier quoted context omitted.
Did you use a standing mat too? Like this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A64ERKY
No, I don't. My understanding is that the mats are for reducing foot pain? I don't really have any foot pain. Standing for long periods is just generally uncomfortable and exhausting for me. I find that I end up resting my weight on one leg, because it's less fatiguing than standing. I know what I would be thinking if I were you - This guy must be so out of shape if he can't even stand at a desk for a few hours! That…
I got a few coworkers into balance boards for standing desks. The FluidStance works well for this. My Goofboard is fun for surf training, but too distracting to use while trying to GSD. https://fluidstance.com we just ended up doing a group order for a few more interested coworkers.
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#156Standing hurts my feet within 10-20 minutes, but I found a treadmill/walking desk to be something I could do all day long. It helped a lot with back pain, and as a side-effect it cured post-lunch sleepiness. Coding while walking was never a concentration problem for me, so I can only offer that as an anecdotal data point. It might be me, but maybe walking rather than standing makes it easier to concentrate? There wer…
Do you have collapsed arches, and if you do have you looked into rebuilding them? Assuming you look into it i know Kelly Starrett has discussed it so he probably has good resources (e.g. in Ready to Run, no running required) and there are likely other good sources as well. My feet have "much" more of an arch in my feet than two years ago and the difference is noticeable.
Not that I know of, but I can't say I've ever had my arches evaluated. Maybe it's time! I do hike & run a lot and don't have any issues there. I used running shoes with good insoles & arch support when using the standing desk & treadmill desk. Would there be other symptoms that indicate collapsed arches?
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#157Standing hurts my feet within 10-20 minutes, but I found a treadmill/walking desk to be something I could do all day long. It helped a lot with back pain, and as a side-effect it cured post-lunch sleepiness. Coding while walking was never a concentration problem for me, so I can only offer that as an anecdotal data point. It might be me, but maybe walking rather than standing makes it easier to concentrate? There wer…
"I was working in games, and testing a 3d game while walking was often disorienting and would cause me to trip on myself or walk off the treadmill." I chuckled when I read that! I hope you didn't get hurt, of course, but it must have been quite funny for your coworkers. Cheers for the post-lunch laugh :)
No injuries thankfully, but yes the people that witnessed me walking off the treadmill quite enjoyed it. I learned pretty quickly to step off or turn off the treadmill before launching a build.
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#158Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have a Varidesk ( https://www.varidesk.com/ ). It is solid, no frills, and easy to use. The price point is reasonable too.
How sturdy are those? I tried using an ikea standing desk at my old office and it wobbled way too much. Also do you think it will last 3-5 years?
The only time I experience any wobble at all is at the highest height, and even then it's minimal.
My second one was purchased used on craigslist. It is more than 3 years old, and still "like new".
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#159I've been using a standing desk in various forms[1] since 2009. I've also been using dual vertically stacked monitors for a long time and love it when using a standing desk. I wrote my thoughts about how to be successful 4 years ago[2] which break down to.
1. Get a padded mat or soft shoe inserts 2. Don’t force yourself to stand 100% of the time 3. Always start your day standing
I also wrote about how to modify your existing desk[3] or build/buy[4] a standing desk. I haven't taken pictures of my standing desks since ~2014 but my setup hasn't changed much.
[1] https://goo.gl/photos/cUuQvoguMoz7Czj7A
[2] https://medium.com/@rothgar/how-to-be-successful-with-a-stan...
[3] https://www.howtogeek.com/99961/how-to-modify-your-existing-...
[4] https://www.howtogeek.com/100748/15-ideas-to-buy-or-build-yo...
Re: Ask HN: How is your standing desk working for you?
#160> My problem is that I find it much harder to concentrate while I am standing
similar experience. i find sitting with good posture more comfortable and better on the knees