The standing desk starter kit
Marina Terteryan
You are $200ish away from comfort right now.
Are you interested in using a standing desk but have no idea where to begin?
Here is a summary of the best standing desk setup that is effective and convenient for those of us with desk jobs but without a standard corporate office and desk. There are hundreds of other articles about standing desk equipment or set ups. Keep in mind that my recommendations are based on the needs of people with varying workday habits/locations, and that my priority is to make it easy for you to adopt standing desks into your day to day.
Please note that these recommendations are completely my own and not paid promotions. I do, however, use an Amazon affiliates link, so I get a tiny tiny percentage of each sale from any of the links here (at no cost to you). It helps me pay for this site and some crackers for ducks that I meet. Actually, that’s not true… I don’t like disrupting wildlife ecosystems. The crackers are for me. I eat them while watching the ducks.
Also note that you HAVE to use this combination of items together (at least items 1-4) in order to get the full benefits of standing desks, and to prevent new injuries.
The standing desk, itself.
There are so. many. options. for standing desks these days. Most of what you will see are large and/or electronic desks with many features. I think those are fantastic if you’ve got a dedicated office space that you always use - and I will review some in a future post. But for the purpose of this starter kit, I actually recommend a temporary desk because I know that a larger and more expensive item can be a longer purchasing decision.
My goal is to get you using a standing desk as soon as possible, so that you can get the benefits immediately. Instead of purchasing an actual desk right away, I suggest you purchase a desktop addition, which can be used with your existing desk.
Spark by Ergodriven
The Spark is a cardboard desktop addition that you can use with any desk. This is actually what I use permanently, instead of a bulky stationary standing desk because I like to move around throughout the day. It has tons of space for your mouse and keyboard and has different sizes based on your height. You can disassemble this desk for storage, but I don’t recommend doing so daily. The Spark is my favorite standing desk option on the market.
I have also tested different brands while looking for one that is collapsible and portable, so here’s one more option. However, I found this brand to be too short, requiring additional stacked items to match my height. It also doesn’t have enough room for my keyboard and trackpad to be used comfortably (it’s best used for Macs because the external keyboard is smaller). BUT, if you need your standing desk to be portable or disassembled every day for storage, it’s a good option.A rubber surface to stand on.
Never ever ever ever stand for hours at a time on a hard surface or in uncomfortable shoes, or even worse, barefoot. You might have heard of anti-fatigue mats for tasks that require standing for long periods. They are usually long rubber mats that one can stand on while washing dishes or cooking, to avoid back and leg pain from standing for long periods. The same goes for standing desks. Several years ago, there was even a study that came out about the benefits of anti-fatigue mats.
This is your next most important purchase after the desk, itself. There are a lot of great options for this. Here are a couple of my favorites.Seriously, never try to standing desk without a rubber surface.
BONUS: I no longer use an anti-fatigue mat because I found an amazing life-hack of wearing fancy Crocs. That’s right, you heard me. They’re fancy now. Read my love story about Crocs to find out why they are a great ergonomics aid.An external keyboard and mouse if you are using a laptop.
Remember when I said you should never just stand and work at a laptop with your neck craned down? Your keyboard should always be at a different height than your monitor. This requires getting an external keyboard and mouse or trackpad.
For Apple users: My personal preference is to use the official Apple keyboard and an Apple trackpad. Admittedly, using a trackpad (instead of a mouse) has changed my life. It’s taken the pressure off my wrist and allows me to tap instead of click. I’ve even started using a lot of shortcuts for click and drag on the MacBook, which has also helped. I think my right hand would have fallen off by now if not for this trackpad.Mouse (if you insist… but seriously, try the trackpad)
For PC users: Back before I became an Apple-only person, I swore by these two items: a split keyboard and a trackball mouse. They look insane, but I promise they are super comfortable once you get the hang of it.Funny-looking but comfortable trackball mouse for PC
A squishy wrist-rest (try saying that five times fast).
This trend actually came from the standard office ergonomics movement and it’s one of my favorites. When working at any computer (not just at standing desks), you should always have a cushion for your wrists, at your keyboard and at your mouse or trackpad. My favorite is this beanbag looking one because it’s malleable and fun to fidget with. Get separate ones for your keyboard and mouse.Some books to prop up your monitor/laptop.
If you are using a laptop like me, you will find that you may need to further elevate your laptop to get it to eye level. I recommend you buy some interesting books, so that you can read them when you take your breaks. I will recommend these books as much for their content as for their size, so your laptop doesn’t tip over.This is Service Design Doing - No matter what field you’re in, it’s an incredible book about design thinking, from a services and experiences perspective.
Antoni Gaudi - inspiration from one of the greatest architects in the world.
Marc Chagall - one of the most brilliant artists of the 20th century.
I could go on all day with books. Just use as many as needed to get your monitor at eye level so you don’t strain your neck.
An Ella Fitzgerald record.
Remember when I said that you’ll have to move around while you’re standing? My favorite way to do this is to put on some of Ella’s swing music and dance. You are welcome to dance to anything, of course. But Ella’s record sales actually go to the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation, which helps music and literacy programs around the world, so I encourage people to listen to her any chance I get.One of Ella’s best live albums.
Get these items (together) and enjoy your standing desk experiment. Try it for a few days and watch your back, neck, wrist pains go away. I recommend alternating between sitting and standing for 30 minutes to an hour. It will take some time to get used to. And if you’ve got any fun hacks, please do share them. I once interviewed someone whose standing desk was a mini fridge. I love that! One of the many benefits of working from anywhere means that you can use new surfaces to be comfortable.
How to set up your standing desk
I can’t recommend products to you without telling you some important factors of how to use them.
The standing desk should be tall enough that your elbows are at 90° while you are using the keyboard. This goes for both sitting and standing. This creates the least amount of stress on your arms.
Make sure that your hands are parallel to the keyboard and mouse and resting on something. Tilting your hands up while you type, or floating them in the air, puts strain on your wrists. The keyboard and mouse cushions that I mentioned are the best way of doing this.
Make sure your neck is not craned down or tilted up to look at your screen. That’s why I recommend stacking books under your monitor to get the screen to eye level – other positions will hurt your neck big time in the long run.
Happy Standing Desk-ing to you, my dears!
And of course, if you have time to read this, you have time to stretch.
Come on, everybody is doing it.
Wait, actually everybody is not doing it. That’s why they are all going to die of sitting-related illnesses.
But if YOU end up being the one to do it, you can live long enough to see if the robots take over and if their human accents are realistic.