A very sore lower back has reminded me of an article I wrote several years back on that seemingly innocent piece of office equipment, your chair. Simply put, too much sitting, in spite of your regular exercise and healthy eating, can still cause your butt and waistline to expand their horizons. This is not to mention the harm sitting can inflict on your back. At the time, solutions seemed pretty pricey. Now, with more awareness and research, some pretty creative solutions can be had. Why pay several thousand, or more, when you can solve the problem for as little as fourteen bucks?
Necessity is the Mother of Invention
Several weeks back, whether it be via skiing, weightlifting or simply bending to fix my bed, I put my back out. I could not sit without a lot of pain so I’ve had to stand ever since to do my work. This has meant some quick improvising. Needing something immediately and not wanting to spend several G’s on a new standing desk I set out on a search for some alternatives.
Fortunately for me, I have a filing cabinet that is precisely the right height for a keyboard. All I needed was a shelf on which to put my laptop in order to raise the screen to eye level. I eventually found a foldable step stool that did the trick neatly. It cost me $14. Presto. Job done.
If you who are feeling flush with cash, there’s a brilliant $22 solution from blogger Colin Nederkoorn using several bits from Ikea. One only needs to be vaguely handy to put this one together. For yet a more expensive, but still reasonably priced solution, you could pick up one of these standing desks from Autonomous. It’ll set you back about $250.
Still not convinced of the benefits of working standing up? Give this recent, aptly titled study a read, “Confirmed: He Who Sits the Most Dies the Soonest”.
I’d be interested in hearing about your own creative solutions to finding a stand up desk. Do you have any other ideas? What things do you do to avoid sitting too long?
