Something Practical – How To Build A Standing Desk

I thought I’d take a little break from the soul searching to share something practical.

I LOVE to build things!

If you have a flat pack that needs seeing to or a shed that needs putting up or anything event remotely Crafty or DIY-ee, then give me a shout.

So standing up is the thing now, it’s healthier and keeps you fit while your working!

I have been hearing lots of things about the benefits of a standing desk and let me tell you there are loads.

I read somewhere that standing can burn something close to 50 calories an hour, so if you were to stand for say 6 hours a day, 5 days a week thats nearly 70,000 calories in a year!!

Couldn’t give a hoot about how many calories it burns. I think it’s important not to get caught up in the obsession of these things, but still it’s interesting right?

It’s a great corrector for bad posture too.

I recently had a bit of a shock when I went to the chiropractor, having been advised by a masseuse to get my neck checked out. Turns out the top of my spine is bending the wrong way. Win! 🙁

I’m having to do a lot of things to correct it, but something she said to me was that human bodies aren’t really designed for all the sitting we do. We are meant to be up and about, running, jumping, climbing trees! Not sitting on our arses in front of a computer screen.

It also saves space!

If you are anything like us, living in London in what is quite a small, albeit beautiful flat, working from home can be complicated and crowded on living space. Whatever you are doing, I really believe it is important not to mix your life environment with your work environment where possible.

It’s difficult in a 3 room flat, not including the bathroom, but I try not to take meetings in there.

Well, we have discovered a great way to create a working area and save a little space at the same time.

Ladies and Gentleman…

I give you…

Our double-sided, standing room only, office!

We discovered this design on the Internet and I would like to share the genius of it with you.

This table itself cost about £17 to make and was sourced from IKEA.

You will need:

1 x LACK side table £5 (some fancy colours cost £8)
1 x EKBY OSTEN shelf £8
2 x EKBY VALTER brackets £4 (£2 each)

(If you’re making a double-sided one like ours, double the number of shelves, brackets and screws.)

Here is how you make it:

You will need:

•  A drill and drill bit
• 2x long nut and bolt (if, like mine, the bracket for the shelf sits a little lower on the leg of the table. The legs are hollow so to ensure a secure shelf, it’s better to drill all the way through and bolt it, but it can be done with screws if at the top of the leg.)
• 2x two small screws around 1 inch
• Screwdriver, or driver head for drill/adjustable spanner if using nuts and bolts

How To Build:

1. Assemble LACK side table
2. Sit the new LACK side table on the existing table where you plan to work.
3. Using a pencil, mark on one of the legs facing you, the height for the SHELF BRACKET. The shelf should sit just below where your elbow bends so that your arms are close to 90 degrees when typing. Take into account the thickness of the shelf and your keyboard. (see diagram)
4. Once you have marked the leg, measure that distance from the bottom of the leg to the mark and then mark the same place on the adjacent leg.
5. Mark holes for the bracket screws and drill a hole for the bolts. (You will also need to widen the screw hole on the bracket to allow for the width of the bolt)
6. Screw in the brackets
7. Place shelf on brackets and screw in. (The shelf is a lot wider than the table. In the picture you will see that I have placed it to one side, to allow for mouse or note pad space, but the positioning of this is down to personal choice)
8. If, like us, you are using both sides of the table, then repeat steps 3-7 on the opposite side.

The desk is now complete! BOOM!

Simple easy DIY 😀

Now you have a perfect typing shelf to keep you posture.

The next thing to be considered is your monitor height.

Your eye level should be hitting the monitor at just below the top 3rd of the screen. This is to ensure perfect posture throughout your body.

A straight and confident neck, how wonderful!

If you have a monitor, then this can be achieved simply by placing it on some books.

But if you work on a laptop than you may want to consider getting a stand.

The stands we use are amazing, we found them on Amazon for around £30 (at the time of writing). You can fold the legs into any position you like and they have a built in USB fan to cool your computer down if it starts to overheat. Mine does that a lot and is so much happier since we got the fan. (Makes staying in bed with the laptop so much easier, without risk of overheating, just saying)

It also folds flat and fits nicely in a medium size suitcase without taking too much room, doubling up as mini travel work desk.

Click here to check them out, as there are some knockoffs on other sites which have been known to fall apart.

On another important note, while standing, it is important to stretch out your calf muscles and Achilles tendons regularly and remember not to lock your knees. Keep your feet cushioned too by wearing comfortable shoes or investing in an anti-fatigue mat.

I hope I have inspired a little DIY space-saving magic and if you have a go, I’d love to see how you got on. I’d also love to hear anyone else’s DIY space-saving magic ideas, just leave a comment below.

Lets Get Building People!

(the diagram was sourced from the original blog http://iamnotaprogrammer.com/Ikea-Standing-desk-for-22-dollars.html)