Overhauling a Sedentary Tradition

Overhauling a Sedentary Tradition | Risk & Insurance In designing the "office of the future," researchers from the Mayo Clinic completely re-examined the layout of the traditional office desk.

By JOSH CLIFTON, editor of Workers' Compensation Report, a newsletter covering the field of workers' comp and ergonomics published by our parent company, LRP Publications

The new desk, designed by James Levine, an endocrinologist at the clinic, and his colleagues, stands vertical and can be used with a treadmill, exercise bike, standing or with a chair. It is modular and mobile, so persons can work where and how they wish. It costs half the price of a cubicle, is more flexible and can easily be personalized. It can also be used at home or in school. The see-through panels let in the light and allow a person to stay visually connected with the rest of the room.

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How many calories will the walking desk burn? Using the desk at 1 mph will burn about 100 calories per hour, Levine said. So, walk-working from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. burns 800 extra calories per day. If food intake stays the same, researchers said this could be a loss of more than 50 pounds a year. However, Levine recommends starting slowly, walking 15 minutes every hour and during all phone calls and for the rest of the time sitting at the desk.

November 1, 2008

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