Reprinted from TidBITS by permission; reuse governed by Creative Commons license BY-NC-ND 3.0. TidBITS has offered years of thoughtful commentary on Apple and Internet topics. For free email subscriptions and access to the entire TidBITS archive, visit http://www.tidbits.com/ Lessons from 14 Years at a Standing Desk Adam Engst After seeing the photo of my new 14-inch MacBook Pro and Apple Studio Displays in '[1]Switching from a 27-inch iMac to a 14-inch MacBook Pro: A Fresh Start' (30 June 2025), TidBITS reader David Price expressed curiosity about my standing desk. Although the standing desk is a significant part of my work life and [2]a topic we've covered in the past, I've said very little about my setup. How I Came to Work at a Standing Desk I couldn't remember precisely when I reconfigured my desk from a sitting to a standing position, but a search on 'desk' in Photos revealed that it changed in October 2011, nearly 14 years ago. Seeing every photo that I'd ever taken of my workspace since 2002 was fascinating, and while the photo quality isn't always great, particularly early on, you might enjoy flipping through [3]this slideshow. Finding photographic evidence prompted me to turn to my email archive, where Gmail's version of Gemini proved an effective way to search, revealing that I first started discussing standing desks in July 2010, when I asked Lex Friedman to write '[4]Your Chair Is Trying to Kill You' (28 July 2010) about the New York Times coverage of [5]health issues associated with sitting. Then, in June 2011, Michael Cohen told everyone working on Take Control at the time that he had bought an IKEA Fredrik workstation to use as a standing desk. By this time, the phrase 'Sitting is the new smoking' had entered the mainstream consciousness. Since I have always been a high-energy person who fidgets constantly and doesn't sit well, I finally put the effort into tearing my desk apart and rebuilding it for standing use. I've long been interested in ergonomics'in the early 1990s, we even created an ergonomics handout with Seattle graphic designer Jon.Hersh (see '[6]Caring For Your Wrists,' 15 March 1993). While that document focused on wrist problems in a sitting position, its core principles about maintaining neutral postures and avoiding repetitive strain still apply to standing setups. These ergonomic considerations guided the configuration of my standing desk, which has undergone slight adjustments over the years. Modifying the IKEA Jerker Desk My current desk setup is highly unusual, and it could only be recreated through places like [7]Craigslist or [8]eBay, as it's a mashup of two discontinued IKEA Jerker desks that Tonya and I purchased in the mid-1990s when we lived in Seattle (see '[9]You Move Me,' 30 October 1995). The Jerker design features two upside-down T-shaped columns studded with numerous holes, to which you can attach multiple shelves at nearly any height. The idea was to have a large desk surface at typing height, a thinner shelf above that to hold monitors, and yet another shelf at the top for books. You could even add swing-out shelves on the sides for a printer or the like'that's what my microphone is clamped to on the right side. It was designed to be a sitting desk, but I'm [10]not the only one who has rearranged the shelves for use while standing. Along with that swing-out shelf, I now use three full-width shelves. The bottom one is a large desk surface that currently holds my old 2020 27-inch iMac on the back side of the desk (facing away from the camera in the photo above) and is configured so I can work sitting down in an Aeron chair I've had for several decades. Previously, I had it set up so I could use my M1 MacBook Air back there, attached to a 27-inch Thunderbolt Display. Although I'm currently comfortable with standing (or perching, as I'll explain shortly) all day long, there are times when I do want to sit down. With the MacBook Air, I also sometimes worked there as a way to reduce distractions from everything happening on my main Mac. I'm still too enthralled by the novelty of working on the 14-inch MacBook Pro to have reconfigured the iMac for distraction-free usage. It's difficult to see in these photos, but I can store my UPS, speakers, archival hard drives, and rat's nest of cable under the main desk surface (at the back of the opposite side's sitting desk surface). That's handy because some cables wouldn't be long enough to reach from the floor, and everything is fairly readily accessible while still being largely out of sight. Back at the standing side of the desk, the second shelf up is the large desk surface that I recently cannibalized from Tonya's Jerker desk. Previously, when I was using the iMac, the second shelf was a smaller offset shelf that extended 12 inches in front of the uprights and 3 inches behind. That was sufficient for holding my keyboard and RollerMouse Pro (still connected to the iMac on the back side), but it didn't provide enough space for the MacBook Pro to be open for typing. The larger desk surface, which extends 21 inches in front of the uprights and only 5.5 inches behind, provides ample space for all my needs. The height of the desk surface allows my elbows to maintain the ergonomically recommended 90º angle while typing. It also features slide-out shelves on each side; that's where my MacBook Air is sitting. I seldom use those slide-out shelves, but they are occasionally welcome for increasing the available space. (The wicker inbox on the left side holds papers for our cat to sleep on. Like our previous cat, she enjoys wedging herself into slightly too small boxes, and it's even better if you get to sleep on the person's papers.) The top shelf'symmetrical, extending 5.5 inches both in front of and behind the uprights'may have been designed for books, but it's perfect for positioning my Apple Studio Displays. The height allows me to maintain proper ergonomic positioning: my eye level is approximately a quarter of the way down the screen, creating a roughly 15° downward viewing angle, and the displays sit at arm's length to prevent eye strain. If I wanted, I could use the 17-inch upright extenders from Tonya's desk to add yet another shelf above the displays. The final piece of my setup is the [11]Varier Move tricorner 'chair,' although I always refer to it as a standing stool. It provides a triangular seat on a stalk with a rocking base'you can see how it works at the Varier site. The seat rotates and the stalk adjusts vertically, making it easy to perch on while maintaining a mostly straight posture'many of the problems associated with sitting result from staying bent at the waist for too long. With the stool, I can take some weight off while remaining mostly straight. Working at the Desk: Standing and Managing Multiple Displays I frequently switch between standing and perching throughout the day. I don't know exactly how my standing versus perching time breaks down because I switch when one position starts to feel wrong. My guess is that I split my time between the two positions fairly equally, but I probably switch back and forth 20'40 times per day. Regardless of the specifics, it's essential to stay active'the human body has evolved to require regular movement. As my physical therapist friends say, 'Motion is lotion.' When I'm standing, I move around quite a bit to pace around my office and look out the window. Although perching might seem more sedentary, I also regularly put one or both feet on the lower desk surface and generally fidget. Although I'm not in a phase where I regularly want to sit down at the other Mac on the back side of the desk, that does happen at times. Sometimes I'm just tired and want to sit down; at other times, I might be dealing with some leg or foot pain that makes standing less comfortable. Various leg injuries have even caused me to move my primary computer to the sitting side of the desk for a few months until I can stand comfortably again. (It takes an hour or two to move everything, clean the accumulated dust, and rationalize the cable nest, so it's not something I do lightly.) When standing, I'm comfortable being barefoot in the summer or wearing running sneakers in the winter. That may be somewhat unusual'a lot of people don't seem to enjoy having to be on their feet for much of the day. When she was trying out the idea of a standing desk, Tonya bought an [12]ErgoDriven Topo pad to cushion her feet and encourage movement but didn't end up liking it. I try it every so often, but it gets in the way of the Varier Move stool, and it hasn't become something I use regularly. The ergonomics of multiple displays requires careful attention'working with your neck turned for long periods can lead to strain and discomfort. A few years ago, Tonya had to stop using two big external displays because being anything but centered bothered her neck and back. I've arranged my two Apple Studio Displays in a slight V orientation on the top shelf. This configuration maintains a consistent viewing distance as I scan across both screens, reducing the need to adjust my focus or posture. The MacBook Pro sits on the main desk surface, with various ambient apps, such as Messages, Slack, Music, BusyCal, TickTick, and 1Password, arranged in separate spaces on its screen. I glance down at it occasionally as necessary, but there's no need to look at it for long. The virtual arrangement of screens matches the physical arrangement, with the right-hand Apple Studio Display serving as the primary screen and housing the Dock. To work, I position myself (and the MacBook Pro) slightly to the right of center, making the left side of the right-hand display my primary workspace in Arc (for all Web-based activities, including writing). From this position, I can easily glance at Mimestream (for email) on the right side of the left-hand display without turning my head significantly. I position the Dock at the far right edge of the right-hand display because I prefer to give it horizontal space rather than precious vertical space. Turning on magnification makes the Dock easier to interact with visually at that distance. If you're forced to use a pair of mismatched displays, there are two ergonomically sound approaches: * Center both displays vertically (this works well with a laptop and external display setup). * Position your primary display directly in front of you and angle a secondary display toward you from the side. The key is to minimize neck rotation while maintaining comfortable viewing angles for all screens you use regularly. David Price's Questions I felt a little bad that the description of my standing desk didn't address some of David's questions, so here are answers to the rest. He asked (paraphrasing slightly): * What are the benefits of your setup? The primary benefit was the ability to repurpose existing desk pieces to create a highly customized setup that was ergonomically sound without incurring any additional cost. I probably wouldn't have purchased a new desk just to see if I liked working while standing. In fact, after undergoing back surgery in 2021, Tonya bought a [13]Jarvis Bamboo motorized sit-stand desk, along with a Varier Move stool. The stool didn't work out for her'its foam is stiffer than mine for some reason'and although she likes the desk, she keeps it in a sitting position nearly all the time. I would probably opt for something similar if I had to give up the Jerker, given that no one seems to manufacture anything as modular as the Jerker anymore. * Are there any problems with your setup? The main thing I dislike is that it's tough to adjust, so I don't experiment with alternative configurations much. I have to break down my entire computer setup and use an Allen wrench to remove the four to eight screws that hold each shelf in place. Then, when reinstalling the shelves, trying to get everything aligned on either side is devilishly difficult. My only other complaint is that I can't position the swing-out shelves where I'd like because other shelves occupy some of the necessary holes. * Were power and other cables a problem? They weren't, but as I noted, I attribute some of that to positioning my UPS on the back of the lower desk surface to reduce the distance some cables need to go. The Thunderbolt cables with the Apple Studio Displays are just barely long enough; I could imagine other setups that would require a Thunderbolt dock to accommodate all the cables. * What should others look for in a standing desk? I'm not an expert in this area and can't recommend any particular brands or vendors, but based on my experience and helping Tonya buy and build her desk, I'd say it's essential that the desk be stable, sturdy, and able to hold sufficient weight. (Good ones will be heavy and require non-trivial time to build.) The motor should be durable and provide at least two preset heights, allowing you to adjust the desk to the desired standing and sitting heights easily. I'd also emphasize the fact that displays will often need to be raised above the surface that holds the keyboard to be at the correct ergonomic height. You can use books or printer paper to help. If you're interested in evaluating the ergonomics of your setup, check out the[14] Cornell Ergonomic Workstation Advisor, a 35-question worksheet. * Are there any extras you would like? I have long wondered about monitor arms, which seem like a potentially better way of holding displays in highly adjustable ways. Unfortunately, they're relatively expensive, aren't compatible with all desks, and require displays with VESA mounts. Apple sells its displays and iMacs with VESA mounts, but only as a build-to-order option at the time of purchase, and there's no way to convert them back to regular stands. There seems to be no easy way for an Apple user to experiment with VESA. Realistically, I suspect most people have long ago settled on their preferred working position and furniture, with only a move to new quarters encouraging a change. So let's do a [15]quick poll to determine which positions TidBITS readers use when working on their Macs. IFRAME: [16]https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeYWodwxGAAbJiko5DacQ_DjB6 Pd_F6qEVbFNOAy3i4bZNXjQ/viewform?embedded=true Loading'¦ References Visible links 1. https://tidbits.com/2025/06/30/switching-from-a-27-inch-imac-to-a-14-inch-macbook-pro-a-fresh-start/ 2. https://tidbits.com/series/standing-desks/ 3. https://tidbits.com/2025/07/21/lessons-from-14-years-at-a-standing-desk/#:~:text=enjoy%20flipping%20through-,this%20slideshow,-. 4. https://tidbits.com/2010/07/28/your-chair-is-trying-to-kill-you/ 5. https://archive.nytimes.com/well.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/phys-ed-the-men-who-stare-at-screens/ 6. https://tidbits.com/1993/03/15/caring-for-your-wrists/ 7. https://ithaca.craigslist.org/search/sss?query=Ikea%20Jerker%20Desk#search=2~gallery~0 8. https://www.ebay.com/b/Ikea-Jerkers-For-Home-Office-Desks/88057/bn_7023264373 9. https://tidbits.com/1995/10/30/you-move-me/#:~:text=furniture%20%E2%80%94%20we%20took%20the%20opportunity%20of%20moving%20to%20refit%20our%20offices%20with%20good%20desks%20that%20can%20be%20adjusted%20to%20proper%20ergonomic%20heights. 10. https://www.aptdeco.com/product/ikea-jerker-standing-desk 11. https://www.varierfurniture.com/en/move 12. https://ergodriven.com/products/topo?variant=41558466068598 13. https://store.hermanmiller.com/standing-desks/jarvis-bamboo-standing-desk-contour/100438921.html?lang=en_US&sku=100438921 14. https://ergo.human.cornell.edu/ErgoTools/CornellErgonomicWorkstationAdvisor2018.pdf 15. https://forms.gle/sdKZL2iYvroJyS4t6 16. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeYWodwxGAAbJiko5DacQ_DjB6Pd_F6qEVbFNOAy3i4bZNXjQ/viewform?embedded=true Hidden links: 17. https://tidbits.com/uploads/2025/06/Adams-Setup-scaled.jpg 18. https://tidbits.com/uploads/2025/07/Back-of-standing-desk-scaled.jpg 19. https://tidbits.com/uploads/2025/07/standing-desk2-scaled.jpg 20. https://tidbits.com/uploads/2025/07/Arrange-dsplays.png .