Standee Classic -The Sustainable Bamboo Standing Desk

When the Standee team set out to create a new benchmark for the Standing Desk market, two things were important to our mission.

We set a goal to make whatever we could here in America and secondly, offer a sustainable version of a Standing Desk that offered a high value item built to last.

Bamboo became an object of our affection as we learned more about it. It became clear early on that our entry round of products needed to be a simple solution crafted from sustainable Bamboo and made in America.

The Best Height For My Standing Desk

The Best Height For My Standing Desk

Legs going numb? back sore? lack of energy? overall fatigue after a day of sitting around at work?

Perhaps it's time to explore a standing desk option and try your luck spending most of your day standing to increase your productivity.

Many of our customers are thrilled with the Standee Standing Desk product and we contribute that satisfaction to a few factors.

1. Standee Standing Desks are easy on the eye

2. They require no tools to assemble

3. They are by far the best value in their price range since they are 100% bamboo (Very strong)

4. They come in a variety of heights to accommodate just about any height of person.

#4 is important! The correct height of the desk is critical to the overall comfort that the desk provides, sort of like really good running shoes or underwear! 

Check out the graphic below to get an idea of the proper sized standing desk for you. While this chart references the Standee Standing desks, the overall ergonomic positioning of the stick figure can be applied to any desk (given that there is some adjustability).

Three Reasons You Know You Need a Standing Desk

Often the first reaction people have when they hear about standing desks is that their use is apt to make people tired. After all, don’t people who are on their feet all day get tired? Yet just consider for a moment the fact that exercise both energizes and rejuvenates the body. Sure—one may feel tired after a workout, but it’s a healthy kind of tired. In contrast, have you ever experienced the physical drain that comes from sitting all day? Sitting for long periods not only causes aches and various other ills, it also leaves one feeling lethargic—with nothing good, physically speaking, to show for it the way that exercise and movement does.

Consider the following three scenarios. If you’ve ever experienced any or all of the following, it may be time for you to consider  a standing desk.

Lack of Energy

Many people who sit all day long wind up of feeling lethargic and that feeling doesn’t ultimately translate well into work. Many fans of standing desks find that using one increases their energy, helps them focus, and leads to a more productive work day. Not only does standing burn more calories than sitting, it is associated with a more active platform to produce work. If you opt to stand at work, according to the New York Times, you will be in the company of greatness. “Leonardo da Vinci, Ben Franklin, Winston Churchill, [and] Vladimir Nabokov” preferred to work on their feet! 

Aching Back

From a medical standpoint, sitting all day long increases one’s risk for backache. If you’re already aching at a young age, you might want to consider standing up at your desk sooner rather than later to spare your back from a long-term complaint. If you’re a career veteran and have been experiencing back aches for years from too much sitting, consider standing up for genuine relief from back pain. Christ Hospital Physical and Occupational Therapy Centers assert that sitting all day long can lead to back and neck problems—especially if you slouch for any of that sitting time. Standing, on the other hand, can reduce such aches and pains. 

Numb Legs

Numb legs are a common complaint among people who sit at their desk all day long. While it’s always important to check out these types of symptoms with a healthcare provider to make sure there’s no other medical reason to consider for the numbness aside from inactivity. If your numb legs are caused by sitting at your computer all day, for example, you can certainly decrease such feelings by standing up to work. Considering all the benefits associated with standing desks, it’s a good idea to give one a try!

If you’ve experienced any of these scenarios or simply want to enhance your fitness while working, consider making the switch to a standing desk. If you’re nervous, just keep your old sit-down model around and compare the two. Most people find that the standing desk lives up to its promises in every respect!

Standing Desks in the Classroom

Education on Your Feet: Standing Desks in the Classroom

By J. A. Young

Every teacher knows them—the fidgety, can’t-sit-still kids, the kids with energy to spare.  As many parents would argue, all of them have energy to spare.  Is this energy being wasted while children are forced for hours throughout each school day to sit still?  Can this energy be rechanneled in a direction that enhances learning?  Enter the standing desk—a simple design whereby people stand up to work.  Many educators have discovered that it helps their most “energized” students remain focused on school work.  Yet the design of this novel desk appears to have many other benefits as well.

Standing Allows a Body to Breathe

One of the first benefits of standing desks is about giving the body something to do so the mind can concentrate on educational tasks.  Many students feel trapped in their desks and those with energy to spare wind up fidgeting and scrunched into their seats.  Often, they find it difficult to accomplish assignments in their seats when they’re preoccupied with “stretching out.”  The standing desks, for those students who are in need of them, allow the body to have that stretch and freedom to move, at least in place, so that the mental focus can do what it needs to do.

Stand at Attention

People often say that exercise makes them feel more alert and gives them more energy.  Could it be that sitting at a desk makes people feel more lethargic?  Standing at attention may actually be a great support for “paying attention.” While standing desks are still new to the classroom, the idea that they can promote better focus has many schools looking to offer them—at least as an option for interested students.

Burning Calories

Standing around burns more calories than sitting around.  Advocates for curbing the increase in childhood obesity have a new friend in the standing desk.  The Chicago Tribune recently reported on a pilot study involving first graders that “showed that using a standing desk significantly increased caloric expenditure in first graders” (articles.chicagotribune.com/2012-08-07/health/chi-standing-desks-the-classroom-of-the-future-20120807_1_desks-standings-classroom). 

More Health Benefits

While standing up at desks burns more calories than sitting at them, it may also be good for children’s health in other ways.  For decades now, healthcare providers have warned about the dangers of sedentary lifestyles.  Workers who sit all day long at desks have increased health risks for conditions like heart disease and diabetes.  According to a recent report in Forbes, excess sitting has also been linked to increased risk for colon cancer and breast cancer (forbes.com/sites/robertglatter/2013/02/09/why-sitting-increases-your-risk-of-dying-sooner/).  Standing all day, therefore, can help diminish these increased risks.

Switching it Up Makes Students Feel Comfortable

Many standing desks come with stools as well as swinging foot rests.  Students then have a choice when it comes to posturing their body as they do schoolwork.  This kind of freedom, while unusual, supports what a Mayo Clinic physician refers to as the “activity-permissive” classroom, according to a New York Times article (nytimes.com/2009/02/25/us/25desks.html).  Having the freedom to choose what feels right for their bodies is certainly different, but as educational practices evolve, this scenario is standing to gain support among innovative educators.

Many educators support the standing desk idea as do many employers. Standing desks are still in their infancy when it comes to education, but more research will certainly be forthcoming as this exciting trend spreads. 

Are you using a standing desk? we want to hear your story! Please comment below.

The Amazing Benefits Of Bamboo

Why Bamboo Is A Great Building Material

By J. A. Young

Versatile, durable, and easily renewable

—bamboo is a tremendous building material that has a long history of use in many parts of the world.  While bamboo is grown throughout the globe today including East Asia, Northern Australia, the Southern United States, and various regions of Central and South America, it is often associated with China where the earliest use of bamboo was recorded. While it has been used as a highly effective construction material for thousands of years in Asia, it has become the darling of the sustainable movement in the west due to its strength and ability to replace hard woods—which are not easy to renew.

History of the Toughest Grass on the Block

People who aren’t familiar with bamboo are apt to associate it with panda bears as their cuisine of choice.  Yet there are natural bamboo bridges in China that have stood for centuries; one of Qian-Xian’s bamboo bridges is believed to date to the third century B.C.  The fact is there are more than 1,400 species of bamboo on the earth and myriads of bamboo farms today that harvest bamboo specifically for construction purposes.  While bamboo, being a grass, does not have bark, it contains lignified fiber cells that give it its woody characteristics. 

Benefits of Constructing with Bamboo

When harvested bamboo is used as a natural composite material for building, it demonstrates a strength-to-weight ratio comparable to wood.  Moreover, engineers have discovered that bamboo has more strength than various steel alloys and has more compressive strength than several mixtures of concrete.  As a wood substitute, bamboo has no knots so it is not vulnerable to similar stresses that affect knotty wood.  This may be one reason why so many bamboo structures have been able to withstand high-magnitude earthquakes.  The bamboo fibers allow for incredible flexibility without snapping and because bamboo is rich in silica, it’s not on the termites’ menu!  Additionally, bamboo is incredibly moisture resistant which is just one reason it has become so popular as a flooring alternative to hard wood. 

Renewable and Reliable

Bamboo is simply one of the greenest material options people have today.  While trees that are harvested for similar purpose can take as long as fifty years to regenerate after being harvested, a single bamboo pole can shoot back up in six months!  Continuous re-harvesting, however, is best done over a period of three years to optimally protect the plant’s system and the regional environment.  Various species are known to grow a few feet within a single day.  This fast rate of regeneration makes bamboo one of the earth’s most sustainable materials.  Moreover, bamboo groves can produce 30% more oxygen than a comparable stand of trees.  So not only is bamboo a reliable building material, it’s the world’s fastest growing grass and is a major component of the earth’s sustainable future.

Environmentally Friendly and Beautiful Too!

There’s no arguing that bamboo is extraordinarily eco-friendly, yet many people simply favor it because it’s visually attractive.  While beautiful in its natural state, bamboo is frequently produced to mimic the look of hard wood.  This versatility makes it a great option for designers who want the look of wood but the sustainability and durability of bamboo.  For these reasons and more, it’s no wonder bamboo use is increasing around the globe. 

These are a few of the reasons that we build our Standee Standing Desks from Bamboo.. Ohh plus it's great to work with! :)

Standee The World's Strongest Standing Desk

We're not sure if we now make the world's strongest / toughest standing desk, but it could be possible.

While working on sizing the desks for our own use here at Standee HQ, we began to notice that the BamTuff Bamboo that we were building the desks out of was unusually durable and strong.

This lead us to the idea of putting our standing desks to the test with heavy stuff. First we stacked books on the desks until we could fit no more books on them. Then we had our shop foreman (not a small guy) jump up on down on a Standee Classic, the Classic took the abuse and remained intact.

Frustrated because we couldn't figure out how to test the load durability to the breaking point, we scratched our heads and then came up with an idea.

Why not park a vehicle on the desk?

We used a 3600-4200lbs? (Estimated) Toyota Tacoma 4 x 4 V6 and placed four Standee Classics under it. One under each tire.

While it's still unknown what the truck actually weighs, it's certainly a bit more than what we expect the average customer may place on the desk.... by about a few thousand pounds. So it's safe to say that your Standee Classic standing desk should hold up to years of use.

Now for a quick slide show.  ( By the way - Don't try this at home.. we're pretty sure there are safer ways to test the weight baring ability.. but none with such a Wow factor)

We built four Standee Classics from left over parts that we had in the shop.

Using a forklift, we raised the rear of the vehicle first and placed the desks under the rear tires, then repositioned the forklift and placed the Standee Classic standing desks under the front.

Now for the true test.

So that's that.. The Standee Classic Standee Desk is the little desk that could. :)

The Best Standing Desk For Under $200

A Standing Desk Solution For Less Than $200.00?

Yes and it is made here in California!

When it comes to standing desk choices, there are no shortage of them.

Standing Desks can range from $50 - $2000 plus.

But what if you have never tried one and aren't sure that a standing desk is the right fit for you? Making a hefty investment in a standing desk that you will not end up using the long run doesn't make much sense.

At Standee Co. We know exactly how that feels. Instead of replacing our expensive office desks while making the transition, we opted to build a line of desks that allows us to try out standing at our desks on the individual basis. Because we all vary in size, we ended up making a few different sizes to sit atop our 29" standard office desks.

It is crucial that our standing desks be movable so that the user can take it down if they change their mind. It is also vital that the standing desk can easily fold away for storage, so now the Standee Classic can be assembled and collapsabled with no use of tools.

Our goal is to create a high quality standing desk for less than $200 so that anyone can try it to see if standing while working fits into their lifestyle.

Unlike other standing desks in the sub $200 range, our Standee Classic desk is made in California from imported and renewable Bamboo.
We're not easy on our equipment and have chosen a material that can truly stand up to some abuse - Bamboo is amazing stuff!

If you are considering other standing desks for less than $200, we encourage that you read the user reviews on sites like Amazon. If you are going to drop $200, make sure you are getting a quality product that will take a beating and fit into your lifestyle.

Have questions about Standing Desks? Please feel free to comment below.

5 Amazing Facts About Bamboo

Why Bamboo is perfect for a standing desk

When our team first considered what materials to build our line of standing desks out of, we had a lot of options. To begin with our team wanted to explore a material that was durable, available, affordable and offered an exceptional value to the costumer. Bamboo seemed to be a natural fit (pun intended).

While researching the benefits of Bamboo, we ran across 5 amazing facts that our inner nerd wanted to share with the world.

5 Amazing(ly) geeky facts about Bamboo -

1) We love Bamboo because it is an efficient producer of oxygen and everyone knows Oxygen is awesome. Bamboo is 35%-40% more efficient at processing carbon dioxide and releasing O2 than similar sized woody plants, trees, and shrubs.

2) Bamboo is low maintenance and grows quickly. In the right environment, most Bamboo can be harvested in less than three years. Compare that with trees which can average 120 years. Bamboo can grow up to 4" per day!

3) Bamboo is more closely related to grass than it is woody trees.

4) Bamboo has no knots, so it's structural integrity is higher than that of other organic building materials.

5) Termites cannot eat Bamboo. While scientists say this is the result of a high silica content, we say it's because Termites are fans of the Atkins diet and Bamboo isn't on the list.

Standee Standing Desk Joins The Ladies at HeraHub

Standee Standing Desks

In a show of support, we recently placed two Standee standup desks at a hip workspace for Women in San Diego. HeraHub is a first class operation, and we're proud to bring a standing desk solution to a workspace where we know that it will be appreciated by entrepreneurs and startups that literally think on their feet all day.

The two standing desks that Herahub received are part of our Standee Classic line up. The standing desks are amber and natural color and 10" and 12" variants which should provide comfort for folks from 5'4" to approx. 5'8". We also included two Standee Anti-Fatigue Mats.

If you are considering purchasing a Standee standing desk and Standee anti-fatigue mat, do take into consideration that the mat is about two inches thick, so pick your desk height accordingly. You will want your desk height to be at about your elbow level for comfort.

Questions about standing desks? Contact Us Today!

My Standing Desk Comfort Level

If you are looking for the whole backstory on my recent move to a standing desk including, but not limited to the health benefits that I have noticed since I started standing at my desk - click here.

I started my standing desk journey just over a month ago. It's been a terrific month at the new job which includes adjusting to a type of lifestyle that has actually increased my productivity and made me look forward to coming work. A big portion of the lifestyle change is that I am standing most of the day at what traditionally would have been a desk job and creaky office chair setup.

The Standing Desk Setup

For my standing desk, I'm using a bamboo standing desk that we make here in Oceanside, California. I can say with certainty that if we didn't make standing desks, there's no way I would have every tried one. But we do, and so I have.

Not that I am an expert, though others here are, I have discovered that the right size desk makes all the difference in the world.

I've tried a variety of set ups, some with our Standee Anti Fatigue mat, some without. Some with 10", 12" and 14" models of our bamboo standing desk.

I'm 6'3" - so I'm quite used to hunching over to fit into office furniture. To have something that accommodates my height is a god send. I only wish Disneyland had the same flexibility.

My Standing Desk Discoveries

What I have discovered is that the ideal standing / working position for me is to have my standing desk desktop at approximately elbow height so that my hands can rest on the platform while I type away and mouse around. The elbow height helps take the pressure off my neck and clavicle area that the weight strain of my arms may cause in any other position.

An added benefit of standing most of the day while working is an increase in the lower back muscle strength. I've struggled with back pain most of my life since I have somewhat of a long torso and slim frame which leads to a lot of strain on what muscles that I do have in my lower back. My achy / hunched over mornings seemed to have gone away, but it's still too early to point to a reason as to why.

I'll update this blog as my journey continues.

If you have any questions about the standing desk experience, please comment here on the blog or email me directly at ccurrie at richltd.com

Happy Standing!