After working for 3 months from my old desk + chair, my back pain was getting worse and worse. So I finally ordered a standing desk from Rocky Mountain Desk co and I must say, it's been one of the best purchases I've made for my work setup.

It took me a while to justify the price (as standing desks hover around the 1000$ mark for decent brands and reliability (from what I've researched so far in this space)

Here's a little snippet of my reasoning, and my review of the Vantage Plus Standing Desk by Rocky Mountain Desk co.

Before telling you about it, I am writing this review out of my own will and desire to share. I'm not affiliated with the company. While researching I didn't find much about this company so I thought I'd put this together for everyone to see.

What made me get a Standing desk?

• I was willing to invest in creating an inviting workspace I love working from
• It must be a comfortable desk and not a source of pain due to working 40 hours/week from it
• My back-pain started to get worse while working from normal desk + chair setup
• I heard good things about standing desks related to back pain (and longer life expectancy from avoiding sitting down?)

What sold me on this company?

• It was tough to find any sort of review that is not hosted on the website itself, so I had to do some digging. And hence, why I wanted to also create a review for them so that others can see.
• I found a reddit thread where user researched various brands and he got the best customer service from Rocky Mountain desk co. As someone who appreciates good customer service, I went with these guys. Plus they were in Quebec I believe as well.

Review: Vantage Plus Standing Desk by Rocky Mountain Desk co

The Pros:

• Love the big table area! (54″L x 30″W x 1″H) and love how the top of the table feels solid.
• Very sturdy 9/10 for me when I use it on a rug (I hate desks that wobble even a little bit) This one is just right.
• Simple setup process (took about an hour or so)
• It's FAST when adjusting heights (1.5″ / second and it has 3 position memory)
• It's quiet too (< 45db)
• FAST SHIPPING! (ordered Monday night, received Wednesday morning)
• The customer service is actually great. Here's how I knew:

The first day I got to their website, I picked the desk that I thought fit my needs (btw use the comparison page when going through their website). I saw that there was a promo code going on (end of January), and I wanted to see the pricing with taxes and how much shipping would cost (if any). I put in my details, and got to the checkout page. I saw the number. And then closed the window and went on with my day and research.

The next day, I got an email from someone from the team telling me the "prices increased slightly today. If you contact us before placing your order, we will honor the previous price for you."

I thought wow, these guys really care and are willing to reach out to people pro-actively to help customers. I appreciated the gesture. I figured they don't do this often and I followed up with them.

In the end, they honoured the pricing and I moved forward with the order. 1 day passes and the desk is delivered at my house! Wow. I was so blown away.

The Cons:

• The setup hurt my back, ironically haha. When screwing the desk top to the frame, I did not have a drill, so hand twisting the screws into the top was the part that took the longest and the most energy for me.
• Very heavy (watch your back when you move this thing!)

My routine:

The way that I use this standing desk in a way that I love: I start standing for the first 1/2 to 3/4 of the day, then I bring it down to a sitting position for the rest of the day. I feel like I should start standing, and then end the day when I am tired and want to sit. It's been working great for the last 2 weeks.

Value for money: 10/10

I absolutely love coming to work with this standing desk.

Verdict?

I should have ordered this sooner. Although the investment might seem steep, it is a significant upgrade to my daily workflow. I love the feel of the desk, love the robustness of the legs, although heavy. Great purchase IMO.

Before & After:

Before:

After:

What about alternatives to getting a standing desk?

Kettlebell swings

I tried doing kettlebell swings throughout the day. This worked. But on the days that I didn't, I felt the pain. Opting for the standing desk for me felt like the long-term sustainable solution. I will continue my kettlebell practice as well (this is another story).

Small table on desk

This worked for me at the start, but the switch from standing to sitting, and having to move so many little items off then back on my desk seemed too tedious for me. Although it does the job, it wasn't as practical as the entire desk going up and down.

Working from a bookshelf

I tried this for a day, and I hated it. I would not recommend it haha.

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Have you used a standing desk before? What are your thoughts about them?

Cheers, Leon