Definitely some benefits of standing all day long. But nothing like sitting down and not getting up till the problem is solved. Standing does not do that for me...
8
I guess this was supposed to be a fluff piece, but it puts on enough quas-scientific airs so it begs a response.
The author is conveniently conflating two entirely entirely different trends.
The standing desk, the officeless office (re Bloomberg's City Hall) are examples of a more dynamic workplace environment, that may or may not have its merits.
The exhortation to get up every ten minutes, which begins paragraph 3, is a health issue, invariably directed towards people who are not in the new kind of workplaces.
There is no doubt, as a whole we have become more sedentary. Isn't that what the obesity epidemic is about?
And her comments about fidgeting seem to be in ignorance of the recent studies (featured in Gray Lady herself) that fidgeting is actually a benefit.
I'm sorry Ms. Paul. Your predecessor at the Book Review, Sam Tannenahaus, could straddle the Book and Weekly Review sections handily. It seems you are not ready for this yet.
The author is conveniently conflating two entirely entirely different trends.
The standing desk, the officeless office (re Bloomberg's City Hall) are examples of a more dynamic workplace environment, that may or may not have its merits.
The exhortation to get up every ten minutes, which begins paragraph 3, is a health issue, invariably directed towards people who are not in the new kind of workplaces.
There is no doubt, as a whole we have become more sedentary. Isn't that what the obesity epidemic is about?
And her comments about fidgeting seem to be in ignorance of the recent studies (featured in Gray Lady herself) that fidgeting is actually a benefit.
I'm sorry Ms. Paul. Your predecessor at the Book Review, Sam Tannenahaus, could straddle the Book and Weekly Review sections handily. It seems you are not ready for this yet.
11
Everything old is new again.
"Kierkegaard apparently did his best writing standing up, as did Charles Dickens, Winston Churchill, Vladimir Nabokov and Virginia Woolf. Also put Ernest Hemingway in the standing desk club too. ...
"Popular Science ... first began writing about the virtues of standing desks for writers back in 1883. By 1967, they were explaining how to fashion a desk with simple supplies instead of forking over $800 for a commercial model — a hefty sum in the 60s, let alone now. Plywood, saw, hammer, nails, glue, varnish — that’s all you need to build a DIY stand-up desk."
http://www.openculture.com/2013/10/ernest-hemingway-standing-desk.html
"Kierkegaard apparently did his best writing standing up, as did Charles Dickens, Winston Churchill, Vladimir Nabokov and Virginia Woolf. Also put Ernest Hemingway in the standing desk club too. ...
"Popular Science ... first began writing about the virtues of standing desks for writers back in 1883. By 1967, they were explaining how to fashion a desk with simple supplies instead of forking over $800 for a commercial model — a hefty sum in the 60s, let alone now. Plywood, saw, hammer, nails, glue, varnish — that’s all you need to build a DIY stand-up desk."
http://www.openculture.com/2013/10/ernest-hemingway-standing-desk.html
4
"All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone."
Blaise Pascal
Please note that the infinitive is "to sit" rather than "to stand".
Blaise Pascal
Please note that the infinitive is "to sit" rather than "to stand".
11
How very superficial, self-congratulatory and glib to overlook the majority of Americans who are living sedentary--and shortened--lives. This piece doesn't gyve with any reality I see at home or in the workplace where at least half of the people are obese if not morbidly so, and derive most of their exercise from dipping into a candy bag or playing with their two cell phones on Government time while they "do their job."
4
Why can't we sit still anymore? Because sitting is equated with laziness and obesity. That seems pretty simple.
My grandma used to sit by the window and knit, probably for hours at a time. It brings a piece of comfort to my mind just thinking about her and picturing her doing that.
Nowadays that's hardly acceptable - even for grandmas. By the way, she was neither lazy nor obese, and lived a good, long, happy, content life. And we all still have the afghans she made us - while she was sitting.
My grandma used to sit by the window and knit, probably for hours at a time. It brings a piece of comfort to my mind just thinking about her and picturing her doing that.
Nowadays that's hardly acceptable - even for grandmas. By the way, she was neither lazy nor obese, and lived a good, long, happy, content life. And we all still have the afghans she made us - while she was sitting.
10
Love Pamela Paul's writing style and perspective. I laughter through tears after clicking on the link for the executive sandbox. I'm searching for any other writings by the author, excited with anticipation.
4
Turpitude Base or shameful character; baseness, vileness; depravity, wickedness.
Torpidity The condition or quality of being torpid; torpor, sluggishness, numbness. (Both OED)
I hope my torpidity is not yet seen as turpitude.
Torpidity The condition or quality of being torpid; torpor, sluggishness, numbness. (Both OED)
I hope my torpidity is not yet seen as turpitude.
9
Sitting hurts my back. I'm glad that my constant up & down now fits in the culture.
5
What matters is getting the work done, whether it's learning at school or producing something for your employer or for your own business. The silly rules about superficial decorum gave an advantage to people's whose personalities they suited. Now people are finally at a least a little more free to adopt their own working styles that suit their personalities and give them a chance to flourish as well.
6
If you can't stand or sit still, you cannot use your mental and physical faculties to efficiently observe what's happening around you. If you can't observe - thoroughly and carefully - what's happening around you, you cannot focus on what's really important, what's less important and dismiss what's absolutely nonsense. Without that ability, you can never make effective decisions. You might still be efficient, but never effective.
Ever see a fidgeting sniper? or a fidgeting hunter?
Ever see a fidgeting sniper? or a fidgeting hunter?
9
This is a poorly informed article, and I'm surprised that it was published by the NYT. Its lack of evidence, dismissal of a profession (occupational therapy) and condescending, holier-than-thou good-ol'-days tone is perfect for Fox News. Half-rate journalism, at best.
10
The reason the sitting-will-kill-you movement has gained such momentum is simple.
We live under a system of consumerist capitalism. Unless we all keep buying, our economy will grind to a halt. Nothing fuels the system like the emergence of a new complex problem with health implications: sitting still.
What to do? Why, buy stuff, of course: standing desks, treadmill desks, sandbox desks, wobbly stools.
And who's the market? Why nothing less than corporate America and the American educational establishment. What a bonanza~! See the dollars flood the production and distribution channels.
The hullaballoo this piece so aptly describes is just the sound of consumerism at work - standing up, of course.
What makes this latest episode of consumerism more frenzied than usual is that more and more Americans are being forced into becoming entrepreneurs as the wage economy disappears. Many of us are being forced into flogging ideas, products, fears, ourselves - anything! - directly on the Web as evangelists of the latest fad in hope of a solid cash reward that will keep the creditors at bay. They will either join or defect from the ranks of the instant experts who are vying desperately for our attention by pushing products and programs that are alternatives to gluten and dairy.
Just thinking about it all makes me antsy.
We live under a system of consumerist capitalism. Unless we all keep buying, our economy will grind to a halt. Nothing fuels the system like the emergence of a new complex problem with health implications: sitting still.
What to do? Why, buy stuff, of course: standing desks, treadmill desks, sandbox desks, wobbly stools.
And who's the market? Why nothing less than corporate America and the American educational establishment. What a bonanza~! See the dollars flood the production and distribution channels.
The hullaballoo this piece so aptly describes is just the sound of consumerism at work - standing up, of course.
What makes this latest episode of consumerism more frenzied than usual is that more and more Americans are being forced into becoming entrepreneurs as the wage economy disappears. Many of us are being forced into flogging ideas, products, fears, ourselves - anything! - directly on the Web as evangelists of the latest fad in hope of a solid cash reward that will keep the creditors at bay. They will either join or defect from the ranks of the instant experts who are vying desperately for our attention by pushing products and programs that are alternatives to gluten and dairy.
Just thinking about it all makes me antsy.
21
Why we can't sit still anymore has virtually nothing to do the healthy exhortation to get off our duffs every once in awhile. Sitting still is something lovely, implying reflection and relaxation. Sitting like a toadstool at our desks in front of our computers, sitting like a potato in front of the television are unlovely and unhealthy. Posture suffers, the body suffers, the mind gets sluggish.
But what the author describes as the "frenzy of dynamism" is not result of an attempt to correct the sedentary aspects of work and home, but is the result of the workaholic atmosphere in which no one but the fastest, smartest, and driven will succeed. The screen culture contributes to the mania. It's not a happy energy. It's smacks of desperation, of the failing middle class, of a whole generation of educated young people with no hope of attaining the lifestyle of their parents and grandparents unless they run non stop and work double time.
That frenetic pace is not healthy is obvious, but to extol the virtues of plopping down in your stationary chair, eyes glazed on screen in turpitude and to imagine it has anything to do with the quietude and relaxation of actually sitting still is ludicrous.
But what the author describes as the "frenzy of dynamism" is not result of an attempt to correct the sedentary aspects of work and home, but is the result of the workaholic atmosphere in which no one but the fastest, smartest, and driven will succeed. The screen culture contributes to the mania. It's not a happy energy. It's smacks of desperation, of the failing middle class, of a whole generation of educated young people with no hope of attaining the lifestyle of their parents and grandparents unless they run non stop and work double time.
That frenetic pace is not healthy is obvious, but to extol the virtues of plopping down in your stationary chair, eyes glazed on screen in turpitude and to imagine it has anything to do with the quietude and relaxation of actually sitting still is ludicrous.
22
Sorry copied and pasted without checking. Torpitude and turpitude are different animals. One is lassitude, the other depravity. Thanks to Grady Ward above.
4
I've been standing while working for about 2 years now. Yes, I'm tired at the end of the day. I have a few varicose veins. Feet are a bit bloated from fluid. Can I blame the standing? Not sure. I am almost 64. Probably should not have sat on my butt for 35 years. Back used to bother me, but not in a long time. It used to be a problem to think while standing but no more. It feels more natural than sitting because if I have to do something I'm already up and ready to go. I do not and cannot listen to music when I work. I've also been working from home for about 3 years. The corporate office I came from didn't have any standing desks and was totally open plan which meant you had to be really unnaturally quiet on the phone or talking with coworkers. As to schools, I believe that normally active children (mostly boys) are misdiagnosed with ADHD or worse because they cannot sit and draw all day.
1
Sitting at work isn't killing us, our increasingly sedentary lifestyles and unhealthy diets are. Just go to the gym before or after work, eat moderately healthy, and manage your stress in life, the rest of this is just corporate nonsense trying to squeeze even more production out of the worker
1
What a cranky person. I really don't believe people were meant to sit still 8 hours a day in front of a computer screen. Give me an adjustable desk and a short walk at lunch and I'll stay focued and productive all day. I'll go home with energy to burn and without an aching back.
2
Treadmill desk - better than sliced bread slathered with penicillin served on a PC. Gotta get me one of those so I can work until I'm 150! Life is good.
I must disagree with the conclusion of this article ! In my country such new (for us) ideeas about working while standing in office jobs of course are in practice ! My job requirement is a desk job and I must say I can't work otherwise ! To say that sitting down makes you fat it's eronious ! It depends on your demographic area !
When my brothers and sister and I got too rambunctious as children and were unable to go outside to play, my grandmother used to call us together and say softly but firmly "Be still". The words seemed so odd at the time, as we were more used to being told by our parents to "be quiet " or to "settle down". I don't remember if it calmed us down, but I do remember the words very clearly. In my mind's eye I always see her cooking or sitting quietly. She passed away peacefully at 105.
1
Part of the cult of "busyness" in which the best replies to 'how are you?' are 'busy, overworked, too much to do, etc." Being overextended and bursting with energy makes one seem important. It reminds me of Don Delillo's 1991 novel "MAO II" in which a future society lives in "hurry-up time." Now we're there. Hurry up!
As far as the "standing desks" my feeling is that with the great Nabokov, knowing about the lectern and the index cards is fascinating. For everyone else who wants to talk about their desks: who cares? A few years ago a wonderful esteemed novelist in his 70s - considered one of our very best - was speaking to a friend of mine about their mutual love for Nabokov. My friend commented he was driving to NY to hear Philip Roth read and the esteemed writer said "He's no Nabokov."
As far as the "standing desks" my feeling is that with the great Nabokov, knowing about the lectern and the index cards is fascinating. For everyone else who wants to talk about their desks: who cares? A few years ago a wonderful esteemed novelist in his 70s - considered one of our very best - was speaking to a friend of mine about their mutual love for Nabokov. My friend commented he was driving to NY to hear Philip Roth read and the esteemed writer said "He's no Nabokov."
3
Strange how knowledge and common sense is easlly forgotten, and surprising that the ones who know don't jump in with information. Anyone acquainted with people who have worked standing for years (shops, counters, reception desks, etc.) knows of their resulting health issues with varicose veins.
4
I think when you return back, you should settle in Southern California, or Hawaii, and soak up the Sun and do outdoor things.
Most of us can't sit still because most of us watch tv. And tv shows are interrupted every five minutes for commercials.
We are conditioned.
Watch NFL football and see what percent of the "game" is action, and what percent is "a word from our sponsor."
We are conditioned.
Watch NFL football and see what percent of the "game" is action, and what percent is "a word from our sponsor."
2
Hmmm. Let me think about this...
1
This too shall pass. It seems like some new form of torture that might have been thought up by the nuns at my parochial grammar to punish me for whispering in class. They made you kneel on the floor for that offense.
Why can't we have happy exercise? Personally, I'd rather see roller disco make a comeback.
Why can't we have happy exercise? Personally, I'd rather see roller disco make a comeback.
3
This reminded me of Edward VIII , later Duke of Windsor, saying: "Never miss an opportunity to sit down or to go to the bathroom." I guess all those royal duties take their toll.
1
And I feel like almost all I do is sit down, recline or lay down.
3
People must be encouraged to move because passive activity has been entirely eradicated from most lives. We are currenlty spending this academic year in Paris where walking and climbing steps has become an unavoidable component of the day. At a minimum, my ten year-old walks thirty minutes per day and climbs (or descends) 360 steps. Many days she does far more than this. One particularly busy day early in the school year, I calculate that I climbed FIFTY flights of steps. We don't need to fidget here. But in the States? Good Lord, move your body, wiggle your toes, do anything you can. Entropy is everywhere.
6
I was eating at a famed local pub in the west village popular amongst the wealthy neighbors and ambitious youngsters aiming to be them. I was lucky the staff knows me and graciously found me a seat at the bar upstairs. I ordered dinner and wine. There was one seat open next to me, and many parties of 2 or more waiting for an opening. A young couple stands next to me, negotiating something or other, then the woman sits on the seat, he stands, and they order dinner! Not a snack, or a drink, full dinner. I thought, where is he sitting? Who orders dinner standing? I, nearly finished with my dinner, hear her loudly question whether he is okay standing for dinner. It's directed toward me. I think to myself, if I were sipping a drink for an hour, or nearly finished with a drink, I'd gladly give up my seat for someone who wanted to eat dinner. But I wasn't finished. The bartender saw I wasn't thrilled and he placed a desert in front of me and filled my glass with wine. The woman whispered something to her boyfriend. They were attempting to guilt me out of my seat, but 100 bucks into dinner, I'm not going anywhere. Behind me, three young woman interrupted me to ask, "Will you be leaving soon?" They just arrived. I said no. I'm astonished at the lack of manners, the hovering, the pushiness. One can see that I have just had dinner and I'm having desert and a drink. I'm in my forties. Young people are a lost group.They are completely clueless in social etiquette and manners. Unreal.
29
I didn't see any reference to a compromise approach.
Why not have an adjustable-height desk and adjustable-height stool with small back support?
That way you could adapt to different conditions of work throughout the day instead of being forced into one format.
Why not have an adjustable-height desk and adjustable-height stool with small back support?
That way you could adapt to different conditions of work throughout the day instead of being forced into one format.
2
Are we moving more because of new mobile workstations and such, or are we getting those things because we can't hold still? From where I've watched, the hyperactivity epidemic came first.
1
Whatever, the bottom line is that life kills you.
1
I think it's just because we used to have to move a lot more when we weren't sitting still. We didn't have elevators or remote controls, or riding lawnmower a. Sitting still was a luxury. Now it's a default,
2
talk about missing the forest for the trees. equating sitting with stillness?
3
What unadulterated nonsense!
Siting is unnatural and harmful. People in tribal societies with no chairs have as frequent back problems as people in societies with no smoking or industrial pollution have lung cancer. In both cases it is the rarest of the rare afflictions close to absolute zero while in modern society more than 50% of the people have experienced severe incapacitating back pain.
In fact seating on chairs mangles the human body as grotesquely as feet-binding destroyed the feet of traditional Chinese women. Anyone with a healthy modicum of body awareness would instinctively avoid immobility in a similar fashion as anyone with sensual consciousness of their lungs would avoid inhaling carcinogenic putrid tobacco fumes.
Seating on chairs is much more harmful than yoga or jogging that the New York Times saw fit to publish exaggerated warnings about the dangers of these immensely healthful activities.
The human body is a perpetual moving machine that experiences pain when not moving. Only rigor mortis puts an end to the pleasure of movement.
Siting is unnatural and harmful. People in tribal societies with no chairs have as frequent back problems as people in societies with no smoking or industrial pollution have lung cancer. In both cases it is the rarest of the rare afflictions close to absolute zero while in modern society more than 50% of the people have experienced severe incapacitating back pain.
In fact seating on chairs mangles the human body as grotesquely as feet-binding destroyed the feet of traditional Chinese women. Anyone with a healthy modicum of body awareness would instinctively avoid immobility in a similar fashion as anyone with sensual consciousness of their lungs would avoid inhaling carcinogenic putrid tobacco fumes.
Seating on chairs is much more harmful than yoga or jogging that the New York Times saw fit to publish exaggerated warnings about the dangers of these immensely healthful activities.
The human body is a perpetual moving machine that experiences pain when not moving. Only rigor mortis puts an end to the pleasure of movement.
4
This was a this article was absolutely pointless.
3
I started using a stand-up desk 3 weeks ago and love it. Part of my job involves lots of walking around my classroom helping students so I get a great mix of standing, while I'm working at the computer as I teach, and moving around as well.
At the end of the day (I do sit at my desk to eat lunch) my feet may be a little tired, but otherwise I've found that I feel more energized than before I started this. I've also lost a few pounds in the process from the near-constant movement much of the day.
And if I can do it, anyone can....I'll be 64 in a couple of months.
At the end of the day (I do sit at my desk to eat lunch) my feet may be a little tired, but otherwise I've found that I feel more energized than before I started this. I've also lost a few pounds in the process from the near-constant movement much of the day.
And if I can do it, anyone can....I'll be 64 in a couple of months.
I wonder about sitting in cars. For a few millennia it seems everyone stood up while driving or riding in chariots, but at some point they decided to put chairs in them. When was that? I know that that in English a carriage was sometimes called a "chaise" which means chair, I believe, as if the fact that you can sit in it is a defining feature. This would indicate that sitting and driving is a fairly recent concept. I haven't seen even one stand-up and drive car yet. Auto designers need to wake up!
And what about airplanes. Maybe all the problems in coach, and a lot of dead weight would go away if we were just sorta strapped to poles. Then when the seatbelt light goes off you can just mill around like it's a party.
And what about airplanes. Maybe all the problems in coach, and a lot of dead weight would go away if we were just sorta strapped to poles. Then when the seatbelt light goes off you can just mill around like it's a party.
1
I teach 75-minute college classes, and I'm surprised how often students need to come and go. I'm not proud to admit this, but I have stopped class to ask them, "If this classroom were an airplane waiting to take off, what would you do? Tell the flight attendant to make an exception for you?" I mean, of course we all have emergencies from time to time, but I can't help myself: I truly believe, based on experiences in high school, college, and grad school, that better students somehow almost always manage to remain seated for 75 minutes (or, heaven forfend, more!)
4
Who needs peer-reviewed medical studies when we have cranky old people to tell us what is right? My foremothers got their exercise from household chores, but I'll take an interesting job plus a standing desk, thanks.
1
I'm not a fan of the sort of humor that blandly mocks progress. The two biggest killers in our culture are obesity, and its companion/substitute diabetes. But, sure...let's use column inches to say how silly those gosh darned exercisers are. It's a good thing "jogging" proved to be such a passing fad.
3
All stand up! Let's have stand up toilets, too, like they have in third world places. Republicans are taking us headlong into the third world so two skid plates bestride a hole in the ground will be very de jeur.
1
Just a few days ago, I read a review of “The Martian” that described a two-hour movie as “long.” This is hard for me to understand.
With a 110-inch projection screen at home, I visit theaters only when I anticipate something of an event. If a movie breaks the 3.5 hour mark, I might begin to entertain the notion that it qualifies as “long.”
When a movie is high-quality and engrossing, it passes in a flash, no matter what the running time may be. Have we become a short-attention-span society of rodents pressing the lever for our next hit of cocaine solution? Perhaps that explains why Donald Trump gets the slavish press coverage he does.
With a 110-inch projection screen at home, I visit theaters only when I anticipate something of an event. If a movie breaks the 3.5 hour mark, I might begin to entertain the notion that it qualifies as “long.”
When a movie is high-quality and engrossing, it passes in a flash, no matter what the running time may be. Have we become a short-attention-span society of rodents pressing the lever for our next hit of cocaine solution? Perhaps that explains why Donald Trump gets the slavish press coverage he does.
and we don't allow children to be bored either.
Boredom is what leads to imagination, creativity, possibilities of what could be ...
No, we instead schedule them to a 'full day' much as adults must always be 'doing something'
Bring back quiet time for heaven's sake! we would all benefit. You know what, a cat nap is better than all this busy-nothing things.
Boredom is what leads to imagination, creativity, possibilities of what could be ...
No, we instead schedule them to a 'full day' much as adults must always be 'doing something'
Bring back quiet time for heaven's sake! we would all benefit. You know what, a cat nap is better than all this busy-nothing things.
Moderation in all things...even in the practice of moderation. That is all I have to say.
2
My principle for physical activity: If you can walk don't run. If you can stand don't walk. If you can sit don't stand. If you can lie down don't sit. If you can sleep don't just lie down.
This is nothing new. More than 350 years ago, Blaise Pascal said:
"All human evil comes from a single cause, man's inability to sit still in a room."
I think we need balance with it goes to movement and sitting still. Kids in school need it. We all need it.
www.SavingSchools.org
"All human evil comes from a single cause, man's inability to sit still in a room."
I think we need balance with it goes to movement and sitting still. Kids in school need it. We all need it.
www.SavingSchools.org
3
I love to sit still. I want to sit still. And my work wants me to sit still.
But I've reached an age where I can actually feel that it's killing me. My legs are falling apart, but walking seems to glue them back together a little while.
But I've reached an age where I can actually feel that it's killing me. My legs are falling apart, but walking seems to glue them back together a little while.
1
I stand at my desk for 6-8 hours a day and I am not moving around the entire time. I shift weight from leg to leg - that's about it. I stand because sitting for that amount of time is very bad for one's health.
1
I once thought about designing a PC mouse that weighed 35 pounds so that people could exercise while working. But I'm lucky, I walk 3 to 5 miles a day on the job.
I'm confused. Isn't sitting called "the new cancer"? Isn't sitting, usually in front of a screen, for 14 hours a day considered a reason for the obesity epidemic today?
Isn't the loss at school of recess (where kids played in the school yard) or phys ed classes, often to make room in the curriculum for more sedentary screen classes, a reason teachers have trouble with classroom control (the kids don't burn off their natural energy)?
I never felt better than at those times in my life when my heart pounded like a pile driver, regardless of the reason.
Now, it doesn't, and every joint in my body aches.
Isn't the loss at school of recess (where kids played in the school yard) or phys ed classes, often to make room in the curriculum for more sedentary screen classes, a reason teachers have trouble with classroom control (the kids don't burn off their natural energy)?
I never felt better than at those times in my life when my heart pounded like a pile driver, regardless of the reason.
Now, it doesn't, and every joint in my body aches.
1
I got a standing desk a little over a year ago when I started having muscle spasms from sitting at the computer. I don't equate that with "not being able to sit still."
1
There is rarely a moment when both of my feet are not in the air. My socks never get holes.
1
What's your point? This seems kind of tone-deaf, or maybe like it can't quite find a sensible point of view.
2
Pamela, you need to realize that some people 's backs hurt if they sit all day, or even for an hour without walking about. Someday yours might too, and then you'll be glad for standing desks and other options.
1
omg why am I paying $15 a month to read this drivel ??????
BTW go to spine health.com and read about Spondylolisthesis. A very nasty back problem that
Can happen in later life if you sit too much!!
BTW go to spine health.com and read about Spondylolisthesis. A very nasty back problem that
Can happen in later life if you sit too much!!
2
SITTING DESKS? Recently, my wife was hospitalized. So I got to see the nurses and other medical technicians walking around pushing standing desks in front of them along with other medical equipment. For the most part they looked relatively comfortable, but tired. Being a floor nurse is grueling work. I think that before buying into a standing desk I'd want to do some research on occupations that already require a lot of standing, such as dentists, surgeons, food servers and hair stylists.
A part of me says, yeah, the standing desk is the right thing to do--the healthy thing to do, but I also want to be able to sit down when my feet are tired.
Also, I've studied a lot of music--mainly keyboard instruments that require being seated. I've not heard of the health of keyboard players being more problematic than that of other instruments that can be played either sitting or standing.
Some orchestras and small ensembles choose to play standing up.
My choice right would be to modify my sitting desk to a standing desk.
A part of me says, yeah, the standing desk is the right thing to do--the healthy thing to do, but I also want to be able to sit down when my feet are tired.
Also, I've studied a lot of music--mainly keyboard instruments that require being seated. I've not heard of the health of keyboard players being more problematic than that of other instruments that can be played either sitting or standing.
Some orchestras and small ensembles choose to play standing up.
My choice right would be to modify my sitting desk to a standing desk.
1
Sit? Reflect? Or, heaven forbid, actually think? In our headlong dash toward peak productivity, a premium has certainly been placed on motion for motion's sake ("Look at me! Look at me!!"). And there may be no symbol more fitting than a hamster in a wheel.
2
I too came to this after reading the "Stop the Meditation Madness". What struck me there was the writer's connecting meditation with boredom. As a therapist this has become a red flag. I seem to be seeing an increasing number of people who cannot tolerate boredom. (Was't it Dunbar in Catch 22 who thought boredom was great because it made your life longer in a way?) So is it a need for exercise that drives the stand up while working crowd? Or are we in fact encountering further evidence that our culture is driving us toward ADD like behavior?
1
Virginia Woolf sometimes wrote at a desk especially designed so that she could stand at with pen in hand. It is, though, a myth that she took to this as her sister, Vanessa Bell, was an artist and worked while standing at an easel.
It is vital to get up from a desk and walk every so often. This also provides ideas, solves problems. Indeed, the words "walk" and "learn" share an Indo-European root.
It is vital to get up from a desk and walk every so often. This also provides ideas, solves problems. Indeed, the words "walk" and "learn" share an Indo-European root.
1
I see little evidence that chronic restlessness has come to pass. Perhaps the author might have been more specific regarding location, class, and workplace. From where I sit, obesity and diabetes statistics seem to tell a different story. The young people I work with have definitely not gotten the memo, unless it arrived on the cell phones they are all glued to every waking moment.
2
It seems the author is unable to appreciate scientific investigation and the implications of the findings. She cites the CDC work and other scholarly studies -- but then seems to dismiss them as not fitting with her world view, which dates to Queen Elisabeth's youth. If the author has a valid critique of the science, she should share that with us. Strikes me as similar to those who dismiss man made global warming claims. Why is it that so many people can't -- or don't want to -- accept scientific findings?
10
Too many screens. When we are very young, we have to train ourselves to be physically still while being exquisitely alert mentally. The activity that creates the environment for this seeming contradiction is reading. But here is the catch: we have to read on paper. Reading on a screen actually interferes with the mental alertness while promoting a short attention span and mindless activity. I learned this recently when, after years of doing all my writing on a computer (that includes web copy, nonfiction and fiction) I had a difficult time with a short story and I decided to start over and write on paper. It completely changed the experience and eliminated the difficulty, while promoting the kinds of unexpected and sometimes miraculous connections that all good fiction requires. I am not going back.
Can you imagine a boss in the 19th century telling his employees they should get stand-up desks? Now that is a funny idea.
Can you imagine a boss in the 19th century telling his employees they should get stand-up desks? Now that is a funny idea.
2
I used to have a terrible problem with writer's block back in college where I had to write everything by hand. I would often take me hours to write a single paragraph as the pile of wadded-up sheets of paper would grow in the waste basket. The computer has completely cured this problem, and I wouldn't dream of going back.
2
I hope that I am not the only person to whom the discussion of treadmill desks and executive sandboxes brings to mind the wonderful scene in Bananas when Fielding Mellish, a consumer products demonstrator, is pummeled with basketballs by the executive exercise system he is demonstrating to visitors.
2
Here's the problem: The world is a complicated place, and thinking absorbs me, fills my head, takes me over. So I prefer sitting while thinking, reading, composing, writing -- lying down if I can manage it, because I don't want to walk into a wall, a person, a door, or accidentally smack into and upset the coffee of my worst enemy; because I want to focus, to see deep, to turn the idea, whatever it is, over and over in my head; because even the constantly moving illustration to this article on-line, clever as it is, distracts me and is not fun (I want to turn it off), and because if I were so foolish as to read this on my phone while walking down the street, I might fall in a pothole. Thank you Pamela Paul, for allowing me still, even in these mobile days, to sit.
3
The real issue is that humans were not designed to sit for 8-12 hours a day in one position, much less doing so while staring at a glowing screen for 8-12 hours (sitting or standing, we were not designed to do that). The modern work environment, and increasingly, home environment, requires almost constant connectivity via glowing screen. This is unhealthy, physically, socially, emotionally. Shifting to a standing desk is treating only the symptom, not the disease. Bring back the face to face meetings, the luxury of concentrating on one project for a couple of days while waiting for a response on another project, the ability to focus, uninterrupted, on solving a complex problem. Oh, to curl up for hours with a good book -- fiction or non -- without the nagging sense that emails, texts, social media posts are piling up.
I fear there is no solution but wholesale abandon of The Glowing Screen!
I fear there is no solution but wholesale abandon of The Glowing Screen!
3
Every doctor worth his or her salt will tell you to get up and move periodically. Sedentary lifestyles kill, according to all the data.
So the standing up while working makes imminent sense. As does moving around as much as one can during the day.
For people suffering from chronic pain (from accidents, for example) this medical advice makes us (I'm in this category) suffer twice: from the enforced inactivity (I can't stand for more than one hour at a time) and from the prejudice against those who sit more than they should as if such sitting were willful rather than necessary.
So the standing up while working makes imminent sense. As does moving around as much as one can during the day.
For people suffering from chronic pain (from accidents, for example) this medical advice makes us (I'm in this category) suffer twice: from the enforced inactivity (I can't stand for more than one hour at a time) and from the prejudice against those who sit more than they should as if such sitting were willful rather than necessary.
3
A strange impact of the vogue for standing desks, walking meetings, and other forms of physical exercise unrelated to the task at hand, is that the definition of "disability" expands. I have arthritis. I can work sitting at a desk just fine and don't consider myself "disabled" for my customary employment. If I were compelled to stand, walk, or jog while working at a desk, I would need to apply for "reasonable accommodation".
3
People who can sit still for lengthy periods of time have no concept of what it's like to be a addicted to physical movement - Perhaps during Queen Elizabeth's time sitting still was a virtue, but perhaps in other times, in other cultures, it was not seen as such. I'd hardly like to go back to the times when physicality is so closely tied to lack of morality or virtue.
1
This seems a bit an overreaction. How about 'everything in moderation' - including sitting. And learning to sit still so often is not really moderation.
Most of the literature on this issue suggests more movement - but not abstaining from sitting, just get up every once in awhile. And if the health benefits - both perceived and demonstrable through research - don't appeal to you, then why sweat it? There are a reasons that some traditions are left in the dust, and we should always be questioning our 'normal' - if we didn't we would be a pretty backwards world (well, at least more than we already are).
As much as I was taught to sit still as a kid, it put me straight to sleep and played a part in my developing a terrible posture that I have to work at every day to try to fix. The day that I did not nod off during a lecture in college, high school or even secondary school was a rarity, and I never pulled all nighters and averaged 8 hours of sleep a night. I don't think it's natural to sit so still for so long - you can learn to concentrate while not being nearly immobile for hours straight. I alternate between sitting and standing while working (mostly standing) and no longer feel like tired garbage by 11 am.
Most of the literature on this issue suggests more movement - but not abstaining from sitting, just get up every once in awhile. And if the health benefits - both perceived and demonstrable through research - don't appeal to you, then why sweat it? There are a reasons that some traditions are left in the dust, and we should always be questioning our 'normal' - if we didn't we would be a pretty backwards world (well, at least more than we already are).
As much as I was taught to sit still as a kid, it put me straight to sleep and played a part in my developing a terrible posture that I have to work at every day to try to fix. The day that I did not nod off during a lecture in college, high school or even secondary school was a rarity, and I never pulled all nighters and averaged 8 hours of sleep a night. I don't think it's natural to sit so still for so long - you can learn to concentrate while not being nearly immobile for hours straight. I alternate between sitting and standing while working (mostly standing) and no longer feel like tired garbage by 11 am.
3
For me, the issue is not about sitting vs. standing. The issue is that it is very hard to get eye contact and attention from a lot of people glued to their screens, with ear pods further cutting them off. Each person is in his/her own universe, with few real personal interactions. In turn, I no longer reach out to such people, whether they are sitting or standing, because they look like they don't want to be bothered.
Others think Steve Jobs was great. I think he invented fiendishly clever ways to cut us off from one another - kind of like he cut himself off from his family and "friends." Let's focus on the real problem, rather than its accoutrements. If people are plugged in with their fellow humans, great whether they stand or sit. If they are instead plugged into their own screen world, not so fine.
Others think Steve Jobs was great. I think he invented fiendishly clever ways to cut us off from one another - kind of like he cut himself off from his family and "friends." Let's focus on the real problem, rather than its accoutrements. If people are plugged in with their fellow humans, great whether they stand or sit. If they are instead plugged into their own screen world, not so fine.
5
What this really boils down to is that "educated" people have deemed it harmful to expect any type of behavior from children or adults. I am sure the past generations are split between laughing themselves silly over how "stupid" we have become and how the other half is 100% certain that America will cease to exist in less than 50 years.
1
I am 62 and work FT at a desk job. I developed chronic pain 8 years ago and if it were not for the adjustable stand up keyboard tray that my employer bought for my desk, I would have had to retire on disability years ago. I cannot sit for more than 10 minutes without excruciating pain. I have had back surgery, and tried every form of therapy imaginable. I do yoga, ride bikes, walk and keep active in order to manage my pain. But sitting and standing in an office all day is very difficult. The human body was not designed to sit for hours. I am convinced that both adults and children do better in intellectual pursuits when their bodies are not constricted into immovable positions. I just read an interesting article about 3rd graders being given large rubber exercise balls to sit on instead of desk chairs and apparently their concentration skills are actually better when their bodies are allowed to gently move while performing cognitive tasks. Makes sense to me!
4
'She seems to never have found a chair that she likes' is a thought when I listen to the extraordinary schedule of a friend. An enforced work schedule that not many people could manage. When finally able to come home after being on the road for two weeks, exhausted, she is up and about, dressed and out taking care of five errands.
We are opposites, and I am able to manage to attend a party for two hours before caving in, in need of recharging my batteries. While I admire with some awe the energy of my friends, I find it slightly alarming at times, but I have a feeling that it would not sit well with them, if they had to sit still for long. They are driven, we are all driven in some way, and I have reached the point of turning off the TV, music and radio, while my sense of hearing is becoming extremely acute.
The most curious job I had was working in a small office by myself all day and doing essentially nothing. There was no typewriter, no computer, and for some reason I didn't feel comfortable reading. It was an 8-hour day of sitting and musing and when I came home, I would sit exhausted in front of the TV.
'Why can't We sit Still Anymore?' is a question that I often ask myself and is not the same thing as sitting quietly. Where are we going? Why is our schedule so rushed? Our plates are overflowing. We have trouble assimilating what we are reading, and one keeps hearing 'got to go, got to dash, skip, hop'. Children today? Wonderful but 'Attention-Deficit'.
We are opposites, and I am able to manage to attend a party for two hours before caving in, in need of recharging my batteries. While I admire with some awe the energy of my friends, I find it slightly alarming at times, but I have a feeling that it would not sit well with them, if they had to sit still for long. They are driven, we are all driven in some way, and I have reached the point of turning off the TV, music and radio, while my sense of hearing is becoming extremely acute.
The most curious job I had was working in a small office by myself all day and doing essentially nothing. There was no typewriter, no computer, and for some reason I didn't feel comfortable reading. It was an 8-hour day of sitting and musing and when I came home, I would sit exhausted in front of the TV.
'Why can't We sit Still Anymore?' is a question that I often ask myself and is not the same thing as sitting quietly. Where are we going? Why is our schedule so rushed? Our plates are overflowing. We have trouble assimilating what we are reading, and one keeps hearing 'got to go, got to dash, skip, hop'. Children today? Wonderful but 'Attention-Deficit'.
3
According to my own personal observations, unscientific though they be, the two groups that seem to remain active in their professions longest, and farthest into old age, are: orchestra conductors and barbers. What is their secret? 1. they spend most of their time standing; 2. they spend most of their time waving their arms around at chest level or higher.
Just sayin'
Just sayin'
4
Pamela Paul writes a thoughtful essay about the restlessness that is rising in contemporary society.
Yet, what she is seeing may be a departure from the broader picture. For most of our history as homo sapiens, people had no alternative but to be active much of the time. This is not to say they did not know how to be still (or "steady"); adults and even young children learned to wait patiently for hours for a bird within range of their weapons. But this was the exception.
The idea that children can stay still is very recent and mainly post-industrial. Meaning out of the last 100,000 years of our history of homo sapiens there has been at most a few hundred years of ideas that ordinary children or adults would ever sit still for hours.
Fascinating then, that in our current moment we are feeling history to be a tide pushing people away from the inherent stillness into motion (as the beautiful illustration shows).
Yet, what she is seeing may be a departure from the broader picture. For most of our history as homo sapiens, people had no alternative but to be active much of the time. This is not to say they did not know how to be still (or "steady"); adults and even young children learned to wait patiently for hours for a bird within range of their weapons. But this was the exception.
The idea that children can stay still is very recent and mainly post-industrial. Meaning out of the last 100,000 years of our history of homo sapiens there has been at most a few hundred years of ideas that ordinary children or adults would ever sit still for hours.
Fascinating then, that in our current moment we are feeling history to be a tide pushing people away from the inherent stillness into motion (as the beautiful illustration shows).
1
Recently I listened to a CIO speak about some educational programs her firm has developed for its employees. Explaining why each video tutorial was no more than 10 minutes long, she said, "People don't have the attention span. They don't want to sit and watch a webinar for an hour or spend an hour reading a document."
She was matter of fact about it, but I was stunned. These are new grads and millennials, and despite their crippling attentional deficits, they all managed to get degrees somewhere.
There must be an explanation for the twitchiness. I'm no scientist, but suspect the focus-fracturing effect of the media on which the young were reared, as well as too much caffeine and other stimulants.
Oh, and for many of us, sitting is the best position for deep thought, contemplation, serious writing (and serious reading), and weighty communication. I don't think the Great American Novel is going to be written by a multitasking hamster.
She was matter of fact about it, but I was stunned. These are new grads and millennials, and despite their crippling attentional deficits, they all managed to get degrees somewhere.
There must be an explanation for the twitchiness. I'm no scientist, but suspect the focus-fracturing effect of the media on which the young were reared, as well as too much caffeine and other stimulants.
Oh, and for many of us, sitting is the best position for deep thought, contemplation, serious writing (and serious reading), and weighty communication. I don't think the Great American Novel is going to be written by a multitasking hamster.
5
There are people that work at jobs such as cashiers, security guards or poultry workers where they have to stand all day. Many end up wearing special shoes and have health problems from standing or performing repetitive motions as in the case of workers in poultry processing. Are there any studies on health issues from standing all day? On another note, it seems that people cannot be quiet or sit still at movies. They either talk as though they are in a personal movie theater or check their phone every 15 minute. Why is it a hard concept to grasp that talking is disturbing to others or the light from the cell phone is bothersome in a dark theater?
4
I think that this article is misguided, but there are a couple of legitimate concerns that I can recognize:
1) Popular discussion about standing desks is pretty over-the-top, regarding the health and productivity benefits.
2) There's a sort of strange push in workplaces (and schools) for people to stand sometimes, especially in social situations.
That said, these issues seem pretty mild to me. It's worth saying that:
1) As this article mentions, not everyone is able to sit still and do work for hours at a time. Requiring everyone to do so didn't just "look" unenlightened, it was actually somewhat cruel. Given that ADHD, autism, and other disorders that affect "fidgeting" are so common, it is depressing that so many still don't recognize the simple truth.
Some people are less distracted when moving. Please try to understand that not everyone's brain works the same way. E.g. people with ADHD fidget specifically because parts of their brains can't stay alert enough to think without some "background noise".
2) Sitting in one position for hours at a time really can be
bad for you, due to burning fewer calories overall and more direct risks like deep-vein thrombosis. Moving around is not just a health fad. Sitting still for hours is a somewhat anomalous behavior associated with modern bureaucracy.
3) Different people can coexist! I've shared offices with less active people through careful use of headphones, earplugs, and simply facing away from each other...
1) Popular discussion about standing desks is pretty over-the-top, regarding the health and productivity benefits.
2) There's a sort of strange push in workplaces (and schools) for people to stand sometimes, especially in social situations.
That said, these issues seem pretty mild to me. It's worth saying that:
1) As this article mentions, not everyone is able to sit still and do work for hours at a time. Requiring everyone to do so didn't just "look" unenlightened, it was actually somewhat cruel. Given that ADHD, autism, and other disorders that affect "fidgeting" are so common, it is depressing that so many still don't recognize the simple truth.
Some people are less distracted when moving. Please try to understand that not everyone's brain works the same way. E.g. people with ADHD fidget specifically because parts of their brains can't stay alert enough to think without some "background noise".
2) Sitting in one position for hours at a time really can be
bad for you, due to burning fewer calories overall and more direct risks like deep-vein thrombosis. Moving around is not just a health fad. Sitting still for hours is a somewhat anomalous behavior associated with modern bureaucracy.
3) Different people can coexist! I've shared offices with less active people through careful use of headphones, earplugs, and simply facing away from each other...
8
Actually sitting for hours, and not exercising one's legs is not good for the legs, (arteries become narrowed and less functional) and therefore not good for the heart. Heart disease is accelerated by much sitting and lately it has been shown that even in children this process can get a start by too much sitting. If one must sit for work or school, it is important to take many breaks. For children, it's especially important. I will try to either post a link to the studies which have recently shown how important it is that we walk, or otherwise exercise our legs often during the day. The article might be right here on NYTimes, in the health section.
1
What a confusing little essay, trying to combine the health implications of too much sitting with societal commentary on fidgeting, attention management, and screen time. At the end I was left with unsatisfying insights and conclusions about them all.
6
As one who was raised "the minister's kid" in a household where television was strictly rationed -- and even in the 70s was only black and white (no cable) -- I grew up in an environment where wiggling and squirming was all but forbidden and reading was a natural outlet for escape. It was perfect preparation for school and higher ed., where I excelled, and for the working world as a lawyer and judge, and later as a college professor and administrator.
As a supervisor of 400+ staff and faculty in my last collegiate position, I noticed that those who spent a great deal of time and energy rushing about, having meetings over all manner of topics (whether in their purview or not) were usually my least productive workers. Their students were the least happy, and reported that these instructors came to class unprepared, gave disorganized lectures, etc. They were not available to students during office hours because they were so rarely in the office. Their grades were late; there were frequent errors. Reports were chronically late and poorly done.
My sense was that people who could not sit down and sit still were essentially unable to perform the essential functions of their position, which required actual time in a setting conducive to thought, reflection, and organized output -- a setting much like the offices they so assiduously avoided. It may be fashionable in some places for the go-getters to stand, but I'd rather have employees sit and deliver.
As a supervisor of 400+ staff and faculty in my last collegiate position, I noticed that those who spent a great deal of time and energy rushing about, having meetings over all manner of topics (whether in their purview or not) were usually my least productive workers. Their students were the least happy, and reported that these instructors came to class unprepared, gave disorganized lectures, etc. They were not available to students during office hours because they were so rarely in the office. Their grades were late; there were frequent errors. Reports were chronically late and poorly done.
My sense was that people who could not sit down and sit still were essentially unable to perform the essential functions of their position, which required actual time in a setting conducive to thought, reflection, and organized output -- a setting much like the offices they so assiduously avoided. It may be fashionable in some places for the go-getters to stand, but I'd rather have employees sit and deliver.
34
The description reminds me of so many worker bees, constantly in motion, moving to and fro and without the respite that comes when insects rest when it's cooler, it is all pretty frenetic. And insects typically don’t have very long lives.
The Times recently reported on the incidence of far higher levels of anxiety in open space workplaces with literally no privacy, with the square footage of areas for each worker bee, that is employee, being halved in many corporate environments from a decade or two ago.
Striving to be or to become a Type A type person also brings many health risks, one which is becoming more prevalent is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which is not just about being tired but for some, severely limited by pain and constant exhaustion. Many modern maladies are directly related to stress.
Contrary to popular belief, we really aren't machines, our bodies need to destress from constant and endless stimulation. Sit down, enjoy some relaxing music, watch a nature program, meditate or go for a walk, but please, take it easier.
The Times recently reported on the incidence of far higher levels of anxiety in open space workplaces with literally no privacy, with the square footage of areas for each worker bee, that is employee, being halved in many corporate environments from a decade or two ago.
Striving to be or to become a Type A type person also brings many health risks, one which is becoming more prevalent is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which is not just about being tired but for some, severely limited by pain and constant exhaustion. Many modern maladies are directly related to stress.
Contrary to popular belief, we really aren't machines, our bodies need to destress from constant and endless stimulation. Sit down, enjoy some relaxing music, watch a nature program, meditate or go for a walk, but please, take it easier.
28
Have you actually seen wild bees take over an area? All the biting flies suddenly quit biting, and the bees build a temporary sanctuary, bigger than your thigh, surrounding their queen. The "to and fro" bees are gathering nectar while pollinating flowers. Bumble bees are especially good at pollination necessary for even the most Frankenstein developed GMO crops.
Hardly frenetic, bees' movements have purpose. It's irrelevant to say they "typically don’t have very long lives." They've evolved to keep their one life alive.
Hardly frenetic, bees' movements have purpose. It's irrelevant to say they "typically don’t have very long lives." They've evolved to keep their one life alive.
1
This article went over my head. But it reminded me that vast numbers of people everywhere are incapable of tolerating silence -- or feeling unsatisfied hearing nothing more intrusive than the rustling of leaves or the gurgle and splash of water lapping at a shore. I have no idea how anyone can concentrate in the presence of constantly thumping bass and drums or resist listening -- to the exclusion of any thoughts supposedly arising inside their own minds -- to melodies playing in their earbuds.
65
It's definitely not silent at my desk. The constant barrage of telecons and other assorted meetings in which I do not participate yet get the pleasure of hearing half of are much harder to concentrate through than any music I play. I am pleased our leadership doesn't have an issue with headphones. It's far less distracting and better for productivity to put my noise cancelers on than focus through half two disparate half conversations at once.
1
Your talking about people with audio visual dependency disorders
Sometimes I reach back into memory to my days as a computer systems analyst, many of which were spent sitting uncomfortably stationary at a desk in front of a computer.
What I recall most vividly was the fundamentally unproductive nature of the the "work". Ironically, the results of my "work" obviated the need all sorts of jobs. My unproductive "work" was sufficient to do away with these jobs, because those jobs did not entail any real wok, either.
America, as a society, is using a highly sophisticated set of rituals to parse resources. It calls these rituals work but such rituals are really little more than simulacra.
Shuffling papers, tapping into computers, talking on the phone, sitting in luncheon meetings, filing reports, traveling, making presentations, doing reviews...
Sorry to be the one to tell you, folks, but that is not what I call work.
Real work is productive...
Something has to physically happen or it is not work.
The reason people are "working" so much today is that their productivity tools have deluded them into thinking they're productive when in fact no one is doing much of anything except sitting around staring at screens.
Do less and you'll get more done.
Seriously...
If you're simply sitting around adding and subtracting numbers on a spread sheet, the world can get by without you.
Illusions...
Money and status points are parceled out based upon nothing but illusions.
What I recall most vividly was the fundamentally unproductive nature of the the "work". Ironically, the results of my "work" obviated the need all sorts of jobs. My unproductive "work" was sufficient to do away with these jobs, because those jobs did not entail any real wok, either.
America, as a society, is using a highly sophisticated set of rituals to parse resources. It calls these rituals work but such rituals are really little more than simulacra.
Shuffling papers, tapping into computers, talking on the phone, sitting in luncheon meetings, filing reports, traveling, making presentations, doing reviews...
Sorry to be the one to tell you, folks, but that is not what I call work.
Real work is productive...
Something has to physically happen or it is not work.
The reason people are "working" so much today is that their productivity tools have deluded them into thinking they're productive when in fact no one is doing much of anything except sitting around staring at screens.
Do less and you'll get more done.
Seriously...
If you're simply sitting around adding and subtracting numbers on a spread sheet, the world can get by without you.
Illusions...
Money and status points are parceled out based upon nothing but illusions.
61
Well, Taopraxis, you have given this reader something rich to think about. I like your statement that 'real work is productive'. As the world passes me by, and I decide to become more physically pro-active and take a stand, I will look forward to an increasing amount of calls on a global basis from colleagues asking for the status of their pension fund.
Should there be any complaints that I am rarely to be found at my desk, while colleagues are calling in for emergency requests, I will tell them that it is office policy that one has to wait for a few days before getting a security pass.
One of the things that makes people interesting is how we interpret life differently, and I believe Pamela Paula is asking why we appear to be running faster and many of us are agitated. A relation of mine, an intellect and a sport, calls it 'The Big Hamster-Wheel of Life'. I call it the 'Big Stress Factor'.
Either way, what is important is what makes you feel comfortable. Looking forward to reading the comments from other readers and what they have to say.
Should there be any complaints that I am rarely to be found at my desk, while colleagues are calling in for emergency requests, I will tell them that it is office policy that one has to wait for a few days before getting a security pass.
One of the things that makes people interesting is how we interpret life differently, and I believe Pamela Paula is asking why we appear to be running faster and many of us are agitated. A relation of mine, an intellect and a sport, calls it 'The Big Hamster-Wheel of Life'. I call it the 'Big Stress Factor'.
Either way, what is important is what makes you feel comfortable. Looking forward to reading the comments from other readers and what they have to say.
1
Have felt likewise for a long time and bailed from office work, went to truck driving school, and combined driving with janitorial/housekeeping work for the rest of working life. No regrets! In order to tolerate office "work" and its mundane boredom and lack of challenge, trained for marathons, which released physical energy.
We are made to move.
We are made to move.
1
Writing an appellate brief, or a motion for summary judgment, is "work." Believe me.
2
What's funny about this is that it appears on the same day as a piece called "Stop the Meditation Madness," whose comment section (which closed quickly) is chock full of missives taking the author to task for dissing meditation. Meditation, of course, is simply socially acceptable, trendy, hip, politically correct sitting still.
100
Nonsense - meditation is best practiced siting cross-legged, swimming, or walking, but never siting on chairs. In fact meditation brings the kind of mindfulness and body awareness that makes siting on chairs disdainful.
Attacking meditation while criticizing the rejection of the tyranny of the chair has the same reactionary cultural underpinnings. It is insulting and wishful thinking to call meditation a fad and it comes for deep ignorance.
At least this article recognizes that at this rate seating on chairs will become recognized as the abnormal crippling activity harmful for work or play that only a shrinking minority will practice with the fear of being looked down as many now look down on those who still smoke.
What is next in the New York Times Trumpian attack on Political Correctness? Maybe publishing articles arguing the need for carrying concealed guns to protect ourselves from gun violence?
Attacking meditation while criticizing the rejection of the tyranny of the chair has the same reactionary cultural underpinnings. It is insulting and wishful thinking to call meditation a fad and it comes for deep ignorance.
At least this article recognizes that at this rate seating on chairs will become recognized as the abnormal crippling activity harmful for work or play that only a shrinking minority will practice with the fear of being looked down as many now look down on those who still smoke.
What is next in the New York Times Trumpian attack on Political Correctness? Maybe publishing articles arguing the need for carrying concealed guns to protect ourselves from gun violence?
1
Wow. No. Only to those who still believe being 40 pounds overweight makes you look "healthy," and that psychotherapy is for the "weak of mind."
1
What's really funny about the "Can We End the Meditation Madness?" piece is thinking about the comments they wouldn't publish.
1
I'm afraid I'm still of the old school where learning to sit still is part of growing up. And I'm still convinced that you can't concentrate, intellectually, when you are moving around. When I was a child, we had no TV, and I read about two books a week — reading that prepared me well for advanced education. I see an inability to sit still and concentrate as a *big* obstacle to learning — and to getting work done.
141
I tend to agree. Just sitting still, being quiet, and concentrating seems to be rare these days.
When I was in the first grade (in NYC public school, in 1969), I was taught to sit perfectly still, hands folded on the desk in front of me, feet flat on the floor, eye straight ahead, whenever I had no specific work to do. It wasn't fun, but it was valuable.
When I was in the first grade (in NYC public school, in 1969), I was taught to sit perfectly still, hands folded on the desk in front of me, feet flat on the floor, eye straight ahead, whenever I had no specific work to do. It wasn't fun, but it was valuable.
These are good points, and you are correct to point out that sitting can improve concentration. "Work" and "learning" are of course distinct from pure concentration, and what you choose to do with your body while your using your brain does make a difference. I wrote a short article about the various trade-offs if you're interested: http://www.quittingsitting.com/when-your-standing-desk-might-actually-hu...
"For many children, of course, an issue with nervous regulation, a sensory processing disorder or simply a passing stage in neurological development can make sitting still a physical challenge, if not an impossibility." What makes you think sitting still is impossible just for children? Yesterday afternoon at Symphony I had the ill luck to sit behind a ±50ish woman who simply could NOT keep her head still. Her bobbling head occasioned body shifts every couple of minutes. Squirmers, in my experience, are becoming almost endemic.
39
People fidget because they do not get enough exercise. If they structured daily vigorous exercise into their lives, the fidgeting would cease. Same with children and animals.
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Sandy, I agree with you about how annoying it is for someone sitting in front of you to be bobbing around, most especially if you don't have a seat with the greatest view. Just when you find a place to keep your OWN head to see as much as you can, the person in front moves. My worst experience with this was at a ballet - incredibly irritating since so much of the enjoyment of a ballet is visual. Of course it is also lovely to be able to see the musicians in a symphony, though at least the sound is the main attraction.
Perhaps she she had a neurological disorder or god forbid, some other issue You are unaware of, or better yet, maybe she was physically responding to the music in a way You didn't understand. If You don't like experiencing live performance, where the expectation is a live audience, world class performances are available on iTunes for $.99 a piece.
-Symphony Musician
-Symphony Musician
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That thing you said about the digital world turning us into sloth like creatures? That's here. Adults spend about 8 hours a day in front of screens. Faulting people for wanting to exercise while doing so comes across as cranky and naive.
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Try having a conversation with someone who has been trained to be a jumping bean(let's not blame Mexico for our ADD veggies.) In every rom com there's that great scene where boy realizes how he can't live without girl and spends 60 seconds gazing into her eyes, touching her face before finally kissing her in a non verbal declaration of love. The reality is he'd probably text her an emoji laden missive while he scootered to the gym.
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My back aches,if I have to stand in one position for a long time.Better to have a mix of sitting,standing and moving.
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Not long ago I read up on standing desks and the consensus seemed to be that the best option is a sitting and standing work combo. My favorite is fidgeting while sitting and getting up to move around briefly every 20-30 minutes but except for a job where my work tasks required me to do this it isn't typically practical. I believe the more and varied movement the better but it's gotta work for the individual. I have back problems and tried sitting on one of those inflatable balls but found the experience really uncomfortable.
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And not just my back aches--my hips and feet, too! In fact--a mix of sitting, standing and moving was prescribed by my orthopedist for hip health. And it helps a lot. But that's me and my body. Other people, well, they live in their bodies. I do know a lot of people who use exercise time as think time. One professor I know "writes" her lectures in her head while running. However, it will be interesting to see how things look in the longer run for the people using standing desks--if it will still work for them as the years go by.
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