This $340 adjustable standing desk saved my back—and looks great too

I spend 8-10 hours a day sitting behind my computer at a desk. That’s not counting the 2-3 hours a day I spend cradling my phone or laptop while sitting on the couch, scrolling through TikTok and online shopping, feeling my body slowly recede into itself like an armadillo.

When I worked in a newsroom, I saw standing desks as a special kind of annoying virtue signaling—up there with those balance-ball chairs and coworkers who inform you of their daily step count. I never thought I’d be one of those people. Until my doctor announced she was sending me to physical therapy to unlatch my perpetually hunched self.

Transpires, sitting is harmful. So doing it 12+ hours a day, 60+ hours a week is extremely harmful. With the added stress of the pandemic, undefined hours, and makeshift workspaces, the desire to find a solution or suffer the long-term consequences was real. So I broke. I got a standing desk. And I’m never going back.

The FlexiSpot Kana Bamboo Standing Desk is made from honey blonde wood with sturdy metal legs. It’s by all means quite ordinary looking, but its details are where it truly shines.

The wooden top is made from naturally renewable, mature bamboo and can hold up to 275 pounds. It’s coated in an anti-scratch, water-resistant finish, protecting the surface from the dragging of my metal laptop, my cat’s claws, and coffee cups without coasters. I have the curved edge, so I can sit as close as humanly possible to my screen (do not recommend), but a straight edge is also available if that’s your speed. The Kana quietly glides up and down with the tap of a keypad, and you can upgrade to more advanced versions that allow you to program height presets.

I am about 5-foot-3 when barefoot and programmed my desk height to 45? when standing to keep my screen at eye level. The first few days of standing were jarring. Despite being fairly active, I was uncomfortably aware of how my back hurt and how tired my legs felt after an hour. The science on prolonged sitting versus standing and your health is . . . uh, murky, but it seems too much of either isn’t ideal.

My gripes with the Kana are self-inflicted and trivial. It was heavy AF (a collective 90 pounds in two boxes) and took a lot longer than anticipated (plus an electric drill) to assemble. I wish there was a center desk grommet for cords rather than where they’re positioned on the far left and right, because that’s where my monitor sits. I’d prefer if its legs weren’t thick Brutalist pegs, unnaturally contrasting the rustic light wood grain of the bamboo top. But I suppose they house the electronic mechanisms that make the desk elevate with ease.

I currently do hour-long sit-stand increments with the Pomodoro method. The Kana Standard and Advanced keypads have a built-in timer that beeps when it’s time to switch over. I’m on the market for a standing mat, but for now, I wear rubber-soled house shoes, which also help with making me feel a little more like a composed human during the workweek.

I’d say I’m a full convert at this point. I wouldn’t go as far as adding a trampoline to my routine, but I find myself wanting to layer another outlet for fitness, such as an under-the-desk treadmill, during my 9-to-5.

I can’t wait to tell you all about it. Yes, I’m one of those people now.