A height adjustable writing desk, also known as a sit-stand desk, lets you shift quickly between sitting and standing, as its name suggests. These desks promise users a healthier, more productive, and more comfortable workspace.
For the past several years, sit-stand desks are no longer mere office novelties as they have now started finding their space in modern workplaces and even in homes.
But wait, are these desks as perfect as they seem? Are these investments worth it? Here are some pros and cons of writing desks with adjustable height to give you a good idea.
The Ups of a Height Adjustable Writing Desk
Height adjustable desks have been found to offer the following notable benefits:
Allows Better Control of Work Setting
During the pandemic, people experienced the work-from-home setup and its autonomy. As a result, they have also realized the importance of completely controlling their working environment. It’s also discovered to be one of the five essential factors that employees believe improve their feelings about their workplace once appropriately addressed. Workers with better control of their work experience tend to be more engaged and satisfied with their workplace.
A height adjustable desk can give workers total freedom in adjusting their workspace to suit their preferences and needs during the day. Some desks also allow users to save their preferred settings to save them from the need to fiddle with them whenever they shift from standing to sitting or vice versa.
Improves Health and Wellbeing
Sit-stand desks have well-documented health benefits. Research has shown that users of these desks claimed they experienced a substantial reduction in neck, shoulder, and upper back discomfort. Others also backed up their claims that using these adjustable desks positively affects their health outside the workplace.
If you use this kind of writing desk, you know you experience less fatigue and stress than workers who spend their whole day sitting at work. Some even said that they felt much more energetic in general.
Paying close attention to physical well-being is a crucial aspect of workplace design, where workers can think, move, and feel better. Using sit-stand desks can be essential to a strategy designed to address and promote holistic well-being.
The COVID-19 pandemic also increased people’s awareness of their need and demand for comfort. For this reason, they expect and hope that their employers will address this concern in the workplace. Introducing height adjustable desks is one of the best ways to do precisely that.
Enhances Productivity Levels
Aside from the benefits for a person’s health, sit-stand desks can also help boost employees’ productivity levels. Just so you know, staying fixed in a single position can slow down your brain function, making you lose your productivity over time.
However, if you alternate between standing and sitting, the largest muscle groups of your body can get to work, thus increasing the flow of blood to your brain. Workers usually report having less fatigue and more energy from using height adjustable desks, making them much more productive.
People Do Use Them
A height adjustable writing desk can reduce your time sitting in your workplace. Users of these desks noted that they tend to sit less, which has become a trend that lasts.
Some of these desks are also integrated with technology, making them more efficient and effective for users. These tech features can sync with the desk and remind the user to stand, sit, and move during the day with gentle desk movements set at intervals according to the user’s preferences.
Encourages an Agile and Dynamic Work Setting
Height adjustable desks can also support and encourage agile working as they help create a more collaborative and dynamic work setting. More movements and increased setting can result in more engagement and interaction within the workplace. It will also encourage users to return to the office, especially now that they crave and demand more flexibility than before.
The Downs of Sit Stand Desks
The downsides of sit-stand desks only occur if people have yet to learn how to get the best out of them. This can be because the desks don’t meet the users’ needs or weren’t given the proper direction for using them.
They’re Not Always a Priority
Let’s face it: it’s not cheap to furnish a workplace. If the current workstations work well for the business and the employees, getting a sit-stand desk might not be a priority yet.
While business owners can buy a height adjustable desk for just a few employees, it may create tensions among the workforce. Those who plan to try out these desks might want to buy two or more for the office and set up a hub where workers can come to try and check them out. The best time to buy more is once the workers love the desks.
Letting People Use Them Without Giving Instructions
It is risky to let someone use a height adjustable desk without giving any instruction or guidance on their proper usage.
Some basic concepts of ergonomics are often taken for granted. Many buy a height adjustable writing desk and use it immediately without directions. The right way of using these desks may vary from one person to another. The good news is that these desks are very convenient and easy to use.
The Bottom Line
A height adjustable writing desk is a crucial aspect of the trend to enhance employees’ overall health and well-being. However, the main advantage of these desks is that they allow users to gain better control of their workspace, which they need.