Treehugger.com recently published an interesting article on the concept of the standing desk, focusing on the offices of Herman Miller as a case-study. The article looks at Herman Miller both as a designer of such workspaces (Herman Miller’s Action Office, 1964) and as a potential user group (looking at the Herman Miller’s offices today)… The Standing Desk: Why Hasn’t It Caught On?

Over the years, there have been many purported benefits of using a desk that allows one to stand, beyond the obvious increase in choice and freedom of movement it provides:

• Improved productivity
• Increased energy
• Better circulation
• Reduced wrist strain
• Reduced back and neck pain
• Greater mobility

While the vast majority of my own work time is still spent at my main desk, in a traditional seated position, I really value the ability to break up the work day with other options. I’ve long enjoyed the option of a standing workspace, and even found it to be helpful in breaking creative blocks. I built a small, secondary desk at standing height in a little corner (photo at right), which I primarily use for hand illustration. I also use it in combination with a BioFit lab stool as a quiet place to write with a laptop.

Man’s physical machine has evolved to do many things well but no single thing continuously…Proportioning some of our work to standup work stations would do more than anything else to overcome sedentary decline. The office can be a kinetic, active, alert vigorous environment. Robert Probst, The Office: A facility based on change, 1986

I’d love to hear what works for others. What’s your workspace like, and is it working for you?