Sitting vs Standing at Your Desk

A sedentary lifestyle can do more than simply cause your body to weaken over time due to lack of movement. Sitting too much can actually increase your chance of serious health problems. This is a scary statistic considering how many office workers (and remote workers) are working at a desk for most, if not all, of their workday. 

How do you counteract this potential problem? Is standing at your desk during your entire workday better than sitting at your desk for eight or more hours? 

Naturally, many offices are taking the advice from ergonomic experts by investing in ergonomic workstations, but are they using these ergonomic workstations properly?

Continue reading to learn the answer to this question: Is it better to sit or stand at work?

Why stand for work? The answer is simple. We completely understand that standing can sometimes be inconvenient or painful if done too long, especially while you are sick or when you are sore. However, sitting at your desk for prolonged periods of time every single day can be bad for your health. 

When workers incorporate standing while working, they are likely to see an immediate improvement in mood and level of productivity.

Over time, getting work done while standing at an ergonomic workstation may even help reduce the risk of heart disease and other health problems. Standing can even help you to relieve neck and/or back pain that is associated with sitting for too long. 

Benefits of Sitting at Work

A sedentary lifestyle is bad for your health when you make a habit of sitting for several hours each day without getting up and moving around (or even standing!) for part of your shift.

However, as long as you aren’t sitting through the entire workday, it won’t hurt to sit down for a portion of your shift. You’ll want to take a ten- to twenty-minute break from standing for every hour that you are on your feet anyways.

It’s not just that sitting too long is a bad idea, but more that doing anything for too long can be negative for your body. For example, certain issues can stem from standing for too long.
Occupations that require constant standing for several hours have shown to cause pain and swelling in the feet along with certain vascular complications. Standing all day can also add unnecessary strain on your hips, ankles, and knees, which is why it is important to also sit while you work.

Conclusion: Is It Better to Sit or Stand at Work?

There is no right answer to this question: “is it better to sit or stand at work”? It’s all about balance.

By incorporating a routine that involves both sitting and standing while working, workers will be able to improve their health and productivity throughout the workday.

In fact, whether to sit or stand while working is just the tip of the iceberg in ergonomic office design. Our ergonomics experts at Solutions Northwest Inc. recommend investing in an ergonomics assessment to ensure every aspect of the office is designed to prevent injury and improve efficiency in the workplace.

Related article: “Why Every Business Needs an Ergonomics Assessment”

Stay Proactive to Prevent Workplace Injury and Improve Worker Productivity

We’ve discussed how sitting too much can cause health problems, but we also showed how standing for too many hours at a time is also not good for your overall well-being. In the end, it turns out balance is key and you should mix in both sitting and standing while working.

For an in-depth consultation and best practice recommendations, contact an ergonomics experts and perform a professional ergonomics assessment for best results. Solutions Northwest Inc. would be happy to help you figure out if your current workstation is the right setup for you or your employees. Contact the ergonomics experts at Solutions Northwest Inc. to find out how you can have a professional ergonomics assessment performed. And be sure to check out our new virtual ergonomics assessment, designed for remote workers (all they need is access to e-mail or a smart phone).

Have questions? Contact us at SolutionsNW.com, we will be happy to help you!

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