Take A Stand

For 5 1/2 years I’ve worked at the same cancer center and had the same routine. I rotate between two offices and have four exam rooms, each equipped with its own computer workstation for charting and treatment planning. In total I have 6 different workstations and not a single one of them was designed with ergonomics in mind. By the end of the day I felt like a pretzel, with my neck and back taking the brunt. But after 5 1/2 years of this sub-optimal workplace environment I decided to take a stand. No, I didn’t quit my job or picket. I got a standing workstation!

As a physician, I don’t have the most sedentary work but I do spend a lot of time in front of the computer or sitting in front of a patient in an examination room discussing their cancer treatment. Understandably, some of these discussions are quite long and standing before them can be an intimidating process, so I learned early on in my career but it is best to sit during those encounters.  But by the end of the day, unless I was very proactive, I would end up spending most of my time with my butt planted firmly in a chair and my hand on the computer mouse.

Until recently. I have been using the VariDesk (with accompanying VariChair) for a few weeks now and I can say it’s really made a huge difference. I no longer feel lethargic or sedentary when I get home, my average steps and “active minutes” on my Fitbit have gone way up, and my back and neck are less tight by the end of the day. This is all great, but its just the tip of the iceberg. When you consider that the average worker spends approximately 2000 hours a year at work, the impact of spending all those hours on your butt can really add up. In fact, studies have shown that sitting for prolonged periods of time adds up to increased all-cause mortality and cadiovascular disease. That’s right: just sitting can literally kill you.

In a major study published in 2018, researchers found that both total “sitting time” and “TV viewing time” are associated with greater risk for several major chronic disease outcomes. They found that sitting for more than 6-8 hrs per day statically increased your risk for cardiovascular disease and death. What’s even more intriguing is that the study was controlled for overall physical activity; that is, subjects who sat around all day at work but still remained physically active were tested against similar subjects (not against true couch potatoes). This should really give you pause if your are the “weekend warrior” type. Physical activity does NOT offset the harm of an overall sedentary lifestyle, and that’s profoundly important for most Americans today.

So maybe it’s time for you to take a stand. In my case all it took was a quick call to the office manager. At many companies standing workstations are standard or available upon request, while others might require you to be evaluated by employee health. If you work for yourself these products aren’t really too expensive–mine is listed for about $400–and could be tax-deductible in many cases. Most larger employers realize the benefit of taking care of their employee’s health— after all a happy, healthy employee is a more productive worker.

So how about you? Anyone else out there have experience with a standing workstation? Do you see it as a net positive or is it starting to become more of a “pain in the butt” as time goes along?

~Brendan