This year I’ve given up sitting & I couldn’t be happier or more annoying. I’ve become one of those evangelical people that wants to now spread the word as far as possible. I bought a standing desk and it’s radically improved my energy at the end of every work day and, as a result, how I feel about and interact with my work.
I’m sure you’ve heard that ‘sitting is the new smoking’, so ask yourself… who on earth would still be smoking in this day and age right?! Or sitting all day, right?!
So…the good news is that standing desks are no longer the exclusive domain of ‘arty Apple users’ who live in lofts, work in graphics and have $ to burn (or was that just my impression?)…Standing desks are so mainstream & accessible they have made it even into an Officeworks near you!!
I see so many of us taking such good care of others – helping people to minimise their health risks and yet there are still things that we as practitioners struggle to do for ourselves. Given the amount of computer based work I do, being sufficiently active was a real weak spot for me. I am a mover (& shaker 😉 lol). If you’ve ever seen me present live you’ll agree I am not good at being still. I mean, I’m never going to win any track and field medals but I love to be active.
The first week of my standing desk foray was hard going – I’ll be honest – about 2/3 of the way through every day I would start to look longingly down at my cast aside office chair, craving its leathery contours, salivating at the thought of the comfort it had offered me just the week before. But at the end of each work day that week, I experienced the novel sensation of physical fatigue… not just mental and I thought, wow this is fantastic, now my body can keep pace with my brain a bit more – they’re both going to have an equal workout.
In the second week, it was only by day 3 the leg ache started to kick in. By the third week I could stretch it to 4. Now I comfortably stand all day every day for work and I simply would never go back. Speaking of which, it’s never felt better either…thanks for asking 😉
So next time we talk, maybe during a meeting or a mentoring session, if you hear noises that sound like I’m limbering up to do the grape vine…well I just might be! 😉
Have you seen Rachel limber up live? Rachel is an acclaimed presenter, and is often travelling around Australia and New Zealand to speak at conferences and seminars. Stay up to date with Rachel’s live appearances (in person and via the web) by simply clicking here.
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