It’s funny how your body can speak volumes to someone without even saying a word.
Case in point: Every time I go in for a massage lately, my therapist gets stuck on my back. Or, rather, my back gets itself stuck, and then my massage therapist has to spend an hour convincing it to loosen up.
You see, working from home is a double-edged sword. Now I’m not complaining — my commute rocks, my workout-wear attire is comfy and my four-legged office-mates are pretty chill (unless they hear a knock at the door, then all bets are off). But the drawback is that sometimes the lack of ergonomics can be a pain in the neck — like, literally.
Some scary facts:
- The moment you sit at your desk each morning, your calorie-burning rate immediately drops to one calorie per minute
- Sit for six hours a day, 14 days straight: Muscles stop burning fat, blood sugar rises and maximum oxygen consumption drops.
- After a year of sitting six hours per day, weight gain would be noticeable, as would higher cholesterol levels and loss of bone mass.
But the real kicker comes 10-20 years down the line. Us desk jockeys may need to augment retirement savings to account for medical bills. Sitting affects almost every part of our bodies from head to toe, raises risk of death by nearly 50 percent and creates a stunning 125 percent increase in the risk for cardiovascular disease.
So I’ve decided I’m not taking this sitting down. In fact, I’m taking a stand…as in, using a DIY standing desk.
Why? Well, our budget is zilch, and we’re lucky enough to have a bar-height butcher block table in the kitchen that works, so I’m trying that out for now. But Plan B is to “hack” our space using the specs and ideas below to create something that’s cheap, comfortable and won’t undo all the good I try do by way of exercise.
So, athletes, consider this my little PSA: We talk about the benefits of recovery because that’s where the body bounces back and the real gains happen. But if you’re sitting at a desk all day, you’re still doing yourself a disservice.
Get up, stand up. Stand up for your life.
Kinetic Fix 
I came to a similar conclusion a few weeks back. I couldn’t justify the cost of another desk, so I rigged by desk with various objects. It was not ideal, but it was close. Within half an hour of standing in front of it to do class discussion and reading, I’d already had enough. I’d LOVE to see your follow up with what worked/works for you.
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Great idea – I’ll have to do that follow up…still (after 7-8 mos after moving) in the process of setting up our apartment, so I’m rigging stuff together, too (have yet to invest in an actual desk), but I’ll let you know what I end up using – or piecing together!
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This. Post. Is. Awesome. It’s a light read but informative, and I love the budget-friendly tips for a standing workstation. Thanks for including some stats, too!
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