Sitting or Standing?
Sitting Ugly
Training consistently is the key to improvement in endurance sports. Avoiding injury is the holy grail. Those of us tied to our desks for a day job are at a disadvantage, especially if we have trained prior to work. There’s nothing like stiffening up into that Z posture, walking like C3-PO as you head for coffee during your break. There is so much research on physical issues caused by prolonged sitting that I will not bother going into it here. Use Google (always great for shady medical advice!)
If you can, hover.
What I can say is that I do not believe standing desks are the solution for athletes. We train too much and you need to sit to help your legs recover. I tried standing at my desk all the time, it was great for creating some different knee issues to that which I already had.?My body eagerly found different ways to adopt bad posture whilst standing (weight on one leg, lean on the desk!). I also found that I needed some soft runners – no surprise that they add those padded floor mats for checkout staff or anyone who works standing at a station.
I do not believe sitting down is the solution for athletes. You need to stand to help recovery. So, don’t sit, don’t stand. I am a firm believer in the concept of hovering as the ideal scenario for us endurance bunnies. Some form of weightless existence in between training session. Bliss!
Some of you may not have evolved the ability to hover yet; I don’t recommend sitting at a desk and nor do I recommend standing at one. So … do both. I have an adjustable desk, I raise it up and stand for 5 to 10 minutes an hour. If you don’t have that luxury then get up and walk around.
Di2 Secrets – Electronic shifting just got smarter
Winter Power – It’s not always racing season.
App for that
This is easier said than done when I get mentally dialed into a project and the computer starts to warp space and time. I use a handy little app to remind me. Stand Up! The Work Break Timer. It is effectively an alarm that goes off but with some parameters. It will ‘jingle’ on the days you want, between the times you want, as often as you want.?You can even set it to go off only at a specific location. Mine goes off every hour, every day excluding Sunday and only when I am at home.
I don’t do woo! I hate plastic health ideas. Unfounded scientific claims bug the hell out of me. But here is my N=1, something that would appear to be backed by research. Get up, move about, you’ll be surprised at the difference it makes to mobility on top of the claimed health benefits.?Take a break, stand up, walk, jog, dance. Get that blood flowing and some elasticity in that creaky, stiff endurance frame. This app is a free recovery tool, you just need to use it.
If you have any questions on stand up desks or alternatives, please feel free to CONTACT me.
