When the Bronco office got standing desks

As you know since April the Bronco office has gone on a health kick: a gym was installed in the Broncoplex, we stopped buying as many biscuits and we have had a few #FitFridays instead of #FatFridays. As we have been working hard in the gym, the positive benefits have filtered into the office.

Dave explains a little more about the transformation:

“I remember when we created this beautiful little office which is home to 16 specialists we supplied any drink the team wanted with biscuits and fruit aplenty to name just a few perks.

But something was amiss for me, and when Becky and I started a 2Inspire Leadership course in March, the penny dropped, being overweight had always made me uncomfortable with myself, so if I were going to choose Positivity over Negativity then maybe I should get fit because I didn’t choose fat.”

The feeling was the same for the staff, many of us who have worked for Bronco for a number of years are, well, not as svelte as were when we started. Not that it’s the fault of Bronco, more of a sedentary lifestyle and getting older.

Everyone has taken up using the gym almost daily and we have become a fitter, healthier and happier office, through the wonders of exercise. However there was always one problem for us, as a business our work is pretty much all computer based so all the staff spend the majority of the day sat down.

There have been many studies showing how sitting for long periods of time can have negative effect on your health, from back and neck pain which can be from poor posture and not sitting correctly, to loss of brainpower from not moving your muscles. When your muscles are active, they pump fresh blood and oxygen to the brain, triggering the release of brain and mood enhancing chemicals.

You can damage your organs and find that your muscles can also degenerate if you sit over long periods of time. This is because your muscles are not burning as much fat and means your blood is running slower causing fatty acids to clog your heart, this also leads to weight gain. A study from 2012 comparing people who sat the least compared with people who sat the longest revealed that those who were sat longer had:

• 112% increase in risk of diabetes
• 147% increase in cardiovascular events
• 90% increase in death caused by cardiovascular events
• 49% increase in death from any cause

So in addition to getting the company moving in the gym, it was decided that we should trial a standing desk to see if it would be something we would all use. You have the option to sit or stand at the desk; not everyone could manage standing all day long so it’s good to have the option to switch it round. The health benefits gained from not sitting all day long include: a reduced risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes and other metabolic problems, cardiovascular disease and cancer. Also your posture will be improved and should suffer less neck and back pain, in addition to lifting your mood and productivity at work as your muscles work to pump blood around your body.

After two weeks of moving the standing desk around the office with everyone having a go an order was made for most of the staff to have their own. Only time will tell of the benefits we will see, but so far feedback from everyone has been positive with most people standing at their desks for over half of the day.

How the Bronco staff feel about this change.

Becky’s thoughts about using a standing desk:

“Having a Varidesk enables you to alter your working position really easily, and being able to stand up at your desk is really beneficial for posture. It took me a few days to get used to how I was going to work, making sure I had space for my paperwork, but we had chosen specific Varidesks for different members of the team and mine has a larger raised working area which is perfect. I find that I am comfortable standing for the majority of the day and I’m definitely feeling the benefits of it.”

Adam listed the benefits he has seen:

• Helping with my posture and could feel my core strengthening.
• Much more of a sense of freedom losing that chained to the office desk feeling I despise.
• I feel more energetic and less sluggish throughout the day.
• Obviously burning more calories so fighting that office belly.
• Only down side for me is heel pain but that’s more of a personal gripe and an anti fatigue mat may help ease that.

Sian’s comments on using a standing desk:

“I feel like when I started working at Bronco (first time sitting at a desk to work all day long) my body shape changed so any fat I gained started going to my stomach – maybe just because of the slouching posture I have when I sit. But already with the new Varidesks, I’ve started feeling a bit more strength in my core and noticed I’m not slouching so much when I do actually sit down. And I haven’t even noticed my legs aching that much! Weirdly it also helps to wear slightly heeled shoes rather than flat ones, but I’m looking forward to testing out no shoes on the gel mats too!”

Craig listed the benefits he has seen using the standing desk:

• Energy levels are higher, I feel more productive
• Easier to interact with other team members due to already being on your feet
• The leg ache makes you feel alive!

The standing desks Bronco purchased were from VariDesk.com