Those of you with standing desks, how are finding them and would you recommend?

I'm just going to chime in with one comment:

For me a standing desk never clicked until I had wireless headphones that allowed me to be untethered from the desk. That combination made me stand up so much more because I could just take a little walk around my office while thinking, or in less formal meetings.

I got myself a standing desk for at home - I don't typically use it in Standing Mode after work, just because I stand all day at work. But on vacations or weekends I'll use it in standing mode. Since I tend to get very absorbed in whatever I'm doing, I don't really move for hours if I'm sitting. When standing, it's much easier to shuffle around and move my body and stretch.

Depending on the desk, you might also want to look at monitor positioning - I had to get a monitor stand so that the position of the monitor was okay and adjustable, because I was getting terrible neck pain for basically looking downwards all the time.

I use a standing desk at home and I regularly use it to sit and stand. Maybe about 30% of the time standing. I really do feel like it helps me feel less stressed. If I need to really focus on a task, I will however always choose to sit.

I think it makes you look better in meetings as well since at least for me, you can have better posture standing up than you would while sitting.

I recently got this one from Uplift, and I've been really impressed by how sturdy and comfortable it is. I also added a keyboard tray to make it easier to dial in different heights for my monitors and peripherals. It came with a free hammock under the desk which has been surprisingly nice.

It has taken me awhile to actually figure out how to comfortably use a desk while standing. I found that standing on a rocking board did a lot to keep me active and make sure I don't lock my knees.

I have used them in the past, and I think they are great. I never found myself standing nearly as much as sitting, but having the option to do so did wonders for my back.

Had to move and ended up with a bit of a different setup so I no longer have that working, but would absolutely do it again. It's nice to be able to take posture breaks.

I have a standing desk -- one thing that I don't see mentioned here is that in addition to standing, even when I'm using it sitting mode I find it to be helpful to be able to make small adjustments of 2-3cm throughout the day helps my back as it causes me to change my posture in my chair and not slump into the same position. For example, if I feel like I'm slouching too much I can raise it a bit to cause me to sit up a bit more straight.

I started my first office job a couple of years ago (all of my jobs prior to that were more physically active), and I really struggled with it. I am especially prone to lower back pain, and sitting all day proved to be absolutely killer. My previous job was eight years of physical labor on a farm, and that was honestly a lot easier on my body than office work is.

So I placed a high priority on getting the ergonomics right. I got a nice chair, a vertical mouse, a split keyboard, and an adjustable sit-stand desk (along with a balance board, which I highly recommend pairing with your standing desk).

I am extremely pleased with the desk and would get it again, even though I hardly use the standing feature anymore. At first, I used it all the time (always with the balance board, because I find standing still for long periods to be even more injurious than sitting), but now I find I don't need to stand nearly as much. Nonetheless, I am very grateful for it for two reasons: One, it gave my body a chance to ease in to my new line for work. Two, the adjustable height feature means that I can get it just right for my height (I am 5'4, so to sit at most desks, I have to adjust my chair to be too tall for me to sit comfortably), and that has made a huge difference to my sitting posture.

However, for a much cheaper band aid solution in the meantime, I recommend trying some gentle exercise. At my previous job, I found that the best antidote for almost every ache and pain (apart from, say, a sprained ankle) is walking at a comfortable pace for an hour or two. It took me a while to discover this because bad back strain (the kind that would leave me unable to sit up straight, would cause me to miss work for a week, and would take months to heal) made it painful to do anything except lie down; but then one day, events conspired such that I had no choice but to walk home from work, and that walk cleared up the pain so completely that it was like I'd never strained my back in the first place.

Ever since then, I take a walk whenever I notice that my back is starting to hurt, and it completely clears it up. I'm not totally what the mechanism here is, but I suspect that walking functions as a sort of full-body stretching exercise. It doesn't prevent the injury (which is why you still need good ergonomics), but it can help clear it up.

I can't promise walking will work for you as well as it does for me, but it's worth a shot.

I have one at work and highly recommend it. I used it to stand a lot, but even when I don't, I'm 6'3 with bad posture. A part of this is because I spent too much of my life slouching, and having a desk that I can set to a perfect height for me has been great at the slow process of undoing that.

For that reason alone i'd recommend them.

I have an Ergotron conversion and love it. In my 20's I stood all of my 8 hour work day. Now I stand about 4-5 hours of that day. It helps balance the rest of the day that I'm sitting down. Standing desk also has me pace a bit more, so I'm not at attention all day. Unlike when I'm sitting and may be in the same position for a long time.

I totally recommend it. Just remember that screen and keyboard position are key. Top of the screen should be aligned with your eyes when standing straight, chin up. Elbows should be at about 90 degrees when your hands are on the keyboard tray.

I like mine, sometimes I forget to use it as much but I'm working on that. It's nice to just be able to step away and pace if your feet/legs are getting tired.
One thing to note is that you don't necessarily have to go with the big name, big price desks. Most standing desks are just a motor and a desktop, nothing fancy. I got a solid wood one from Etsy and it was more reasonably priced than a Jarvis or some other brand name desk. Just do research and read reviews.

My work offer converting standing desks and I’ve had the opportunity to use one for a few months now. I usually stand for meetings or when I’m writing straightforward code, but sit for complex problems or anything that requires more digestion.

It makes me feel a lot more awake, particularly after lunch, and I find myself standing 80% of the time now. As someone else has mentioned, wireless headphones like AirPods are a game changer as I can go walk from the desk to make coffee, or walk around on a call, and generally stay much more active within the office.

But of a tangential question here, what chairs are people using with their standing desk?

Obviously standing is part of the equation but I think most people would struggle to stand all day. I’ve tried a regular office chair but didn’t like having to adjust the desk up and down (mostly due to poor cable management on my part).

I’ve been thinking about getting a drafting chair or lab stool so I can just step away from it and keep the desk at the same height when I want to stand. Would love to hear anyone’s opinions.

I've used one for years and recommend them to everyone. Even if you only use it a little, you have the option. There are weeks where I sit most of the time and I feel it. I stand for interviews (and have been favored for it), meetings, general work, etc. I usually sit for focus work that I need to think a lot for (reporting, detailed emails, etc), but even some of that works well with standing.

Being able to make small adjustments is huge as well. Sometimes a centimeter or. Two is great, even just to be in a slightly different anglr. Sometimes i sit but force the desk higher than is reasonable just to work for a few minutes with a stretched spine.

I splurged and got 4 wall mounted monitors, a rollermouse red mouse, and a barracco split keyboard. I tried a treadmill, but it's hard to do so i just go on walks or do bodyweight exercise when able.

There is also research that sitting 8 hours per day is equivalent to smoking, so it's worth the change.

As for chairs, i had a fancy chair or two, but found a great one for $375 at a furniture store that works well.

It's one of the best purchases I've made. I don't stand nearly as much as sitting but I alternate every so often. I am also someone who prefers to stand when on conference calls, and I WFH so it is awesome having the option to stand with a press of a button.

I have a standing desk and a stationary bike. I use the standing desk in the morning when I am doing all my administrative tasks. I use the bike when I am watching a video, listening in on a bigger townhall style meeting or playing video games (after work of course).

I've found both to be great ways to break out of the just sitting and has helped my back. I've also been doing a lot of planks, dog pointers, and other strengthening exercises ever since I've hurt my shoulder. I want to stay active and live as long as I can for my little guy.

I bought myself a cheaper model from Flexispot last year year when I decided to build a home office. I only work from home two days a week (Monday and Friday).

I use the standing feature a few times throughout the day. Every day, i start off by standing 15 minutes and same for after lunch, the first 15 minutes are standing up. I then also set myself two other reminders throughout the day to stand up for a few minutes.

I started using a standing desk about 12 years ago. At our office back then, they weren't powered or adjustable. They were fixed height. Now we have sit-stand desks at our office, and I just keep mine in standing mode. I built my home desk to be fixed standing height. I much prefer standing to sitting at my desk.

Two things that really help are comfortable shoes, and a good anti-fatigue mat.

I love my standing desk and would heartily recommend to anyone who was even remotely considering one. I think they’re awesome!

A clever soul above recommended a balance board and I would amend that slightly. You need to have either a balance board or a mat designed for standing desks (mine was peanuts from Amazon) as they ensure you don’t just stand still and make any posture related issues worse!

I stand for at least 50% of my meetings, not because it looks more professional, but because I’m less likely to nod off if it’s a dull one :P

I enjoyed mine. When I was standing it was nice to be able to pace around a bit while solving problems, turn around and sketch on a whiteboard etc.

The only thing I’d recommend is to stay away from the electrical ones. They go up and down far to slow. The manual ones are easy to adjust while you’re standing up or sitting down. Made it way more practical to use.

Absolutely recommend it! Got one for the first time this year and the flexibility is so useful. I got a small used one for $40 that hand cranks. I make myself stand when playing music (guitar) and at other times, and I notice a difference in feeling better when I use it in standing mode for a long time.

Some considerations for buying one:

• I personally think a motorized one is completely unnecessary unless you are going to be switching modes very frequently OR your desk is going to be loaded up with a lot of heavy stuff. Even then, the one I got literally just has a hex head bolt that sticks into the handle. I can remove the handle and attach a drill for an "electric" desk if I ever want. Just have to be careful not to over torque it 😜 If you have to have an electric one, do some research to see if the motor in the one you like is a common motor that you can replace easily.

• Consider the location of the crank if you get a hand cranked desk. Mine is in the front of the desk and sometimes it gets in the way of my arms or hits my stomach or lower. If I could do it again I'd get one with the crank on the side, but given how cheap I got my desk I'm not bothered by it.

Have a “desktop riser”, basically a standing desk top piece that you just plop on top of a regular desk. Like this.

Absolutely love it, I switch positions throughout the workday. Have an exercise bike, my chair, the adjustable desktop riser, and a couch in my office. So I can be horizontal, bike while thinking and answering phone calls/texts, stand at the desk, or sit at the desk.

Of course for intense sessions I’ll typically pick one position and stick to it. Most often sitting or standing. But it’s nice to have options and change things up occasionally. Would recommend. Honestly with the price point you can get these at nowadays, I’d recommend pretty much anyone with an office job give one a try, at least.

I don't use it that much, but I always feel like I'm doing something good for myself when I do. First bonus, which I didn't think of until I had a standing desk: even when you're sitting you can adjust the desk height to exactly the perfect height. You no longer have to live with a nonoptimal chair height that is set to match your desk height because now your desk height is fully adjustable.
second bonus: messing with cables behind the desk is easier when the whole desk lifts, ha. But that does remind me you'll want a good cable management system to affix things to the underside of the desktop.

I see them. I’d say 5% of my workplace uses them and I still think they are freaks :)

I understand the health benefits but it just can’t pass the weirdo level for me.