Thinking on your feet

I have been away from my blog past few weeks. Most of my weekends have been very busy. But I want to keep the momentum going in contributing towards my blog, so decided to write a product review instead. It addresses an integral part of our code, the posture we take while keying away our creations.
I am talking about standing desks if any one of you were wondering. Couple of years ago I dismissed it as a fad. But then heaps of research started surfacing indicating the benefits of standing. Let me rephrase it, indicating the horrors of sitting for long durations.

This intrigued me. But before jumping and investing in a standing desk, I had to test it out first. Will I like standing and working? These desks don’t come cheap. Would I be really using it and find it comfortable? I knew it would be very difficult to judge any immediate health benefits by using the desk. I am not sure how this can be determined after continued use also. But what I needed to know was how comfortable would it be in using it.

I scoured the internet and came across a few hacks and Ikea hacks. I even came up with a design to build a frame using PVC pipes to support a laptop and a keyboard, when placed on a table. All required new material purchases, time and effort. Then it hit upon me to simply use cardboard boxes already lying around which were sturdy enough to support a laptop and also high enough to provide ergonomic viewing of the screen. I used shorter box to place my external keyboard and mouse on. This way my forearm was comfortable and parallel to the floor. With this setup I was able to very comfortably work standing on my laptop without any strain or discomfort. I could easily stand and work for 2 hours at a stretch. And all for zilch. This is what I would call a good POC.

I had a similar setup at office and tried out standing and working for more than a month. It was much easier at work since I would use my desktop while sitting and switch over to laptop while standing. I just had to clear the boxes whenever I felt like reclaiming my desk space.

Conclusion. Standing and working rocks. I absolutely loved it. One thing I observe is that each time I switch to standing mode, it gives me a fresh boost of energy and focus. It definitely gives you a psychological advantage.

Now for those who plan to research further, there are basically 2 categories of standing desks. One which sits on top of your existing desk. This involves least rearrangement of your existing furniture and you could get to use your existing cubicle desk or table. The other variety is where the entire desk moves up or down with the help of a motor. These type of desks are more expensive, but also offer you greater flexibility and more usable space.

When I was ready for a more serious desk, thanks to my company, I settled down with a brand new VERIDESK PRO.

It is very convenient to transform it from sitting to standing and vise versa. You can easily pull up the desk using the hand slots and lock it at any height. It does use up some desk space and you might have to rearrange your desk items to suit the new furniture.

I also love using multiple monitors while working. This desk accommodates two large ones very easily. You also can keep few small items while using it in standing mode.

Taking it down to sit is even more easier. But I have to warn you! Always ensure there is nothing under the lower platform. It is going to crush it. Be it cables, pen or ear phones. Yes, during the first lowering excersice I crushed my favourite ear phones. Sigh! Now I always look underneath to ensure nothing is going to get crushed. I also stop at the lowest possible level and pull out the keyboard and mouse cables out of the way before lowering it all the way down. You need to push down until it clicks to lock in.

Motorised desks obviously won’t have this drawback of having to clear or rearrange your desk. Whether down or up, it is the same.

Whichever standing desk you choose, here the end is more important than the means.