After I quit smoking back in 2011, I just wasn’t taking breaks and getting out of my chair as often as I had done before, and I was starting to feel the effects of the prolonged sitting and bad posture in my ankles and back. So, when I came across this interesting IKEA standing station hack, I was intrigued and decided to give it a try for a while.

The basic components are:

1 Lack side table

1 Ekby Viktor shelf

2 Ekby Valter brackets

4 3″ bolts and washers from Home Depot (the Lack legs are hollow so screws won’t work well)

I picked the black-finish to match my workstation hardware. Some of the stuff was on sale and my total ended up slightly south of $23 USD, and it took me about 15 minutes to do all the measuring and drilling and assembly.

Here’s the finished product:

I also picked up a soft foam rubber anti-fatigue mat from Home Depot.

I’ve used the standing desk for two months now. It took a little bit of getting used to, but I ended up really liking it. I alternate between sitting and standing, and I no longer have any back pain or other issues. I also find that it helps my energy level throughout the day, and I’m glad I made this change.