Ergonomic Standing Desk Position: What You Need to Know
Work Wellness

Ergonomic Standing Desk Position: What You Need to Know

|Dec 17, 2020
10,808 Views

Standing desks can improve your work experience in many ways. They are fun to use and can keep you more active. To maximize the benefits of a standing desk, you need to have the correct standing posture at your desk. An ergonomic standing desk position is easy to achieve. This article guides you through why this is so important as well as the finer details of how to find the right desk height and find a great standing position.

What Is Ergonomics?

Ergonomics is all about designing products, processes, and workstations to cater to the people who make use of them. After all, the most beautiful product is only as good as its ability to perform its function. A stylish office desk, for example, has limited value if it is too small, too low, or too uncomfortable for the user to work efficiently.

Office ergonomics is important because it makes you more comfortable and at ease while working. The end result is that you find yourself better able to focus and get things done. The more ergonomic the office, the higher the

To improve the ergonomics of office space, a range of changes may be required. You might need to rearrange the furniture, repack your office materials, and even swap out some of the older furniture that no longer meets your requirements. More or less time, money, or effort is required to create a more ergonomic office space, but it is well worth the investment. 

What Is Ergonomics?

Effects of Poor Standing or Seating Position

When you don’t pay attention to how you stand or sit at your desk or anywhere else for that matter, you can quickly feel the discomfort. Sitting for too long has negative health effects and can also decrease your output at work.

Here are the main effects of standing or sitting in an incorrect position:

  • Spine curvature- Over time, this can worsen your posture and impact your body’s ability to absorb shock.
  • Back pain- When you put too much strain on your lower and upper back by slouching, for example, this causes pressure on your body, leading to back pain.
  • Neck pain and headaches- Poor posture adds pressure to your posterior, which affects your neck and can lead to tension headaches.
  • Poor sleep- When your posture is bad, and this affects the whole body and impacts your ability to find a comfortable rest position and experience good sleep.
  • Poor digestion- Sitting in the wrong position for an extended time can lead to digestion issues.
  • Poor motivation- The effects of poor posture compound quickly. When your body is uncomfortable, your muscles tense, and your sleep poor, you can experience a lack of motivation.

Effects of Poor Standing or Seating Position

Pros and Cons of a Standing Desk

Standing desks are becoming very popular, and this is large because of their incredible functional uses. A standing desk looks like a normal desk but can be cranked up to different heights, giving the user the freedom to work at their desk while they stand. The lift mechanism may be manual or electronically operated. For the range of Autonomous standing desks, the user can preset their top height levels. With just the push of a button, the desk moves to the chosen height level very smoothly and quietly.

Pros and Cons of a Standing Desk

Standing desks are modern, stylish, and very versatile. Before you choose to purchase one for your office, it’s a good idea to learn about the pros and cons of such a decision. Here are the major benefits of a standing desk:

  • Because a standing desk is adjustable, it is easier to find and achieve an ergonomic desk position. Families that share this desk can make use of the different height levels to suit the needs of each family member.
  • There are short and long-term health benefits associated with standing at your desk, rather than only sitting. The sedentary lifestyle has been linked with many long-term health and wellness challenges, including poor posture, backaches, obesity, heart disease, and even depression and anxiety.
  • When you set up an ergonomic standing desk position, you can experience increased focus while you work, which means you're going to get more done.
  • Using a standing desk can break up the monotony of an ordinary day. You can switch it up as you need to keep your motivation and attention up.

The Correct Standing Posture at Standing Desk

With all the many benefits of a standing desk, you could miss out on some of them if you don’t learn about the ergonomic position for standing desk use. How you stand determines your comfort level and affects your posture and output.

To stand correctly at your standing desk, you have to get into position. The ideal position can also prevent injuries to your arms. The first step is to pick the right height to move the desk up to. Experts recommend that you bring your standing desk up to the height of your elbows. Your elbows should be bent at a right angle, and you should keep your neck relaxed and in a neutral position. You want to have your wrists positions straight in front of you.

Once your elbows and arms are in this position, you can proceed to raise or lower the desk using the lift mechanism. Position the desk so that the surface is parallel with your forearms. Once you have your keyboard on your desk surface, you should be able to float your hands over it easily. Your hands should be straight, and your wrists relaxed. While your fingers can drop down to reach the keys on the keyboard, it is essential that your wrists remain straight rather than inclined.

The Correct Standing Posture at Standing Desk

Once you have found this ideal position, make a note of how you feel and where things fit. It takes some time to learn a new habit, and good posture is one of those things that can only be mastered through repetition. As you work at your standing desk, pay attention to your posture, and make adjustments as necessary.

1. Be sure to keep your neck straight and to maintain relaxed shoulders

You should not be slouching or leaning over, but you also don’t want to stand up too straight. We recommend that you keep your knees slightly bent while you stand at your desk. This prevents them from getting overextended or having your joints lock.

2. A good posture is all about keeping your spine neutral

You want your muscles to stay balanced and provide equal support to all parts of your body. If you keep this relaxed posture, you can avoid back pains and bad posture.

3. Be sure to keep these straight and aligned parallel to the surface of your standing desk

Another area that might slip out of alignment as you adjust yourself to an ergonomic posture for standing desk usage is your wrists. Once again, you want to achieve a neutral and relaxed position. If you find that you continue to incline your wrists up or down, then you need to work on mastering the ideal wrist posture. This repeated action can affect the wrists negatively, and even increase your risks of developing carpal tunnel syndrome.

Be sure to keep these straight and aligned parallel to the surface of your standing desk

The Correct Sitting Posture at a Desk

A standing desk allows you to work while standing, and due to the adjustable height feature, you can also choose to sit at the desk. Having the correct sitting posture is equally important. So many people who do deskwork, be it at the office or remotely, do not sit in the right way. If you're at your desk for hours on end every day, this can soon cause back and neck aches as well as poor posture.

There’s a correct way to position your computer, chair, and desk during sedentary work to maintain proper ergonomics. Having an adjustable desk and chair is a big advantage because the proper seating position is largely dependent on your own height. You may need to play around with the position and height of your chair and desk to find an ergonomic desk position and set yourself up for optimal productivity.

There are many tips available to help you get into the best ergonomic sitting posture. To get into the correct sitting posture at a desk, you must choose a good chair. Ideally, this should be one where you can adjust the height and tilt angle of the chair. This allows you to customize the chair to your body.

The Correct Sitting Posture at a Desk

For chairs without these options, you are left with no choice but to use extra features like cushions to customize the chair. In many cases, you might have no other option than to suffer through a poor sitting position. It is also important that the chair is made of comfortable and breathable materials that suit the climate of the region where you live.

1. How to get into the best sitting position 

When you choose to use the standing desk this way, you can start by sitting up in the chair with your back straight. Keep your shoulders. You should be sitting squarely with your rear touching the back of your chair. While you are sitting in this position, all your three normal back curves must be present and engaged. If you need to, you can make use of a lumbar roll or rolled-up towel to help you keep the normal curves in your back.

2. How to find the correct sitting position

You can sit at the end of the chair and slouch completely. From there you can raise yourself up and exaggerate the curves of your back as much as you can. You want to hold this position for a few seconds and then release the position by about 10 degrees. At this stage, you are in a good sitting posture.

It is important that you avoid sitting on one side. Be sure to keep your weight evenly distributed on both of your hips. As for your knees, they should be even and positioned slightly higher than your hips. Many people opt to use a stool or a footrest to get their knees in the right position. Do not cross your legs. Your feet must stay flat on the floor.

How to find the correct sitting position

3. Take a break and shift your weight every now and then 

Even if you find the correct sitting posture, you don't want to stay there for more than 30 minutes. Your chair height should be adjusted so that you can sit up close to your desk. You can tilt your workstation towards you. Your elbows and arms should be rested on your chair or desk. Your shoulders should stay relaxed.

If you have a chair that is mobile, remember not to twist your waist as you sit. If you have to move or rotate in your chair, move your whole body. When you want to get up from your chair, move up to the front of the chair. Straighten your legs to get yourself in the standing position. Bending forward at your waist is something you want to avoid. Once you are up, remember to stretch your back immediately. Standing backbends are a great light exercise to do for this, and you can do 10 of them. 

Take a break and shift your weight every now and then

Autonomous Standing Desks

Adding a standing desk to your life can make your office work more enjoyable. You can also benefit from all the great health effects that come along with this. Autonomous offers high-quality, ergonomic office furniture, including a range of top-notch standing desks. These cater to different user requirements and can be easily assembled. You also benefit from a trial period to help you decide if a standing desk is a good choice for you.

Autonomous Standing Desks

The SmartDesk 2 Home Office is one of the best desk options if you are looking for a desk that can easily be adjusted to an ergonomic position for a standing desk. It is designed to boost your productivity and is easy to assemble, adjust, maneuver, and use. It comes in a range of frame and top color options to suit your style preferences.

Having an ergonomic posture for standing desk usage is a vital necessity. This article showed you just how to adjust your desk and your posture to achieve this ergonomic standing desk position.

Spring special offer 2024