Burning Calories While Working: Standing vs Sitting Dilemma

Its common sense that if you are physically active, then you’ll burn more calories than staying still, or sitting down. But the question is, how much calories can you really burn if you convert from a sit to stand work environment?

The truth is, you’ll burn more calories on your feet than resting in a chair, even if you’re just standing around. This is why the American Council on Exercise recommends that you work standing up than sitting down, or whenever possible so you can increase your daily calorie burn.

For a 150-pound person, you can burn about 114 calories per hour, or 912 calories in eight hours if you stand quietly. However, most people won’t stand quietly for eight hours straight. Studies have shown that you only need to stand for eight minutes every 30 minutes is enough to get the benefits of standing while working.

But if you’re doing it to burn calories, then a better option is to stand while using an anti-fatigue mat. Anti-fatigue mats helps you move constantly as well as increases your blood from in your legs.

Burning more calories with an anti-fatigue mat

Because the anti-fatigue mat helps you constantly move, you’ll be burning more calories throughout the day.

A 150-pound person can burn about 147 calories per hour, or 1,176 calories in eight hours. This gives you about 33 more calories per hour than standing quietly.

Staying active during work hours

If you don’t want to rely only on using an anti-fatigue mat and sit-to-stand desk converters to help burn calories, you can invest in some office work out equipments that you can set aside in your office and do some aerobic exercises during your break time.

Another great option is to purchase one of those under the table cycling machines which can another way to help you burn calories while working. And this even allows you to sit while working instead of standing.

But if you want to go the extra mile and perhaps you want to shed a couple of pounds off, you can buy a slim under table treadmill.

How to work while standing, and what do I need?

If you’re looking to stand and work at the same time, we recommend you checking out one of these office desk converters that we’ve reviewed. These are great office converters that you can simply place on your current work desk and change from a sitting position to a standing position, and vice versa.

Some of these converters can be a little pricey, but if you’re on a budget, we suggest start with one of these four budget friendly alternatives, here.

Conclusion

Standing can help burn calories while you’re working throughout the day. We recommend you only stand a short period of time every hour, but if you’re willing to stand majority of your work office, we recommend purchasing a mat to help with fatigue on your feet.

There are also numerous workout and exercise equipment built for the office that we suggest you take a look. Researches says that sitting is the new smoking, and that experts recommend you work standing up rather than sitting down, which can help not just with daily calorie burn, but with increase in productivity as well.

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Desk Advisor

Desk Advisor

Our team covers many categories to help you hustle better, from ergonomics to productivity, and technology. We are willing to ask questions (lots of them), seek experts, and dig deep into conventional wisdom to see if maybe there might be a better path towards the healthy workspace. We apply what we learn not only to our company culture but also how we deliver information to our readers. Ergonomic and productivity research is changing all the time, and we are 100% dedicated to keeping up with breakthroughs and innovations. You live better if you work better. Whatever has brought you here, we wish you luck on your journey towards better hustle.

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