Desk cycles and bike desks are all the rage, but you must make sure your desk cycle ergonomics are correct or you risk injury.. But there are a number of ergonomic sand traps you can find yourself in quickly if you didn’t plan to set up your workstation to avoid repetitive strain injuries, low back and knee pain.
By far, the most common complaint you’ll hear from new desk cycle users is banging their knees against the bottom of their desks. If there isn’t enough clearance under the desk, you can expect to develop some sore kneecaps.
If you pedal in an office chair that has caster wheels, the pressure from your pedaling will tend to roll your chair backwards, taking you farther and farther away from the pedal unit and your desk. Instead of lunging to grasp your keyboard, make sure your wheels are stabilized.
Cycling and working takes some getting used to. There’s a learning curve. Things will get better with practice, but keep in mind that cycling is not as natural a movement for our bodies as walking, for instance. We’ve been walking since we were toddlers. It’s ingrained in our biological history. Cycling, not so much. Many users will find it difficult or impossible to perform higher level cognitive functions while cycling because it takes a conscious effort to keep pedaling.
Task switching during the workday often leads to suspending the pedal movement. We know many users who pedal while reading but pause when typing, both for ergonomic reasons and for the sake of proper concentration on the task at hand. Our recommendation is to keep your cycling for more passive activities like reading emails or watching webinar videos.
Be sure to check out our helpful primer on How to Set Up an Ergonomically Proper Desk Cycle before you buy your equipment. And check out our comprehensive desk cycle comparison review including every major product in this category.
Check out these articles by our staff experts on desk cycle ergonomics to make sure your move to working while standing is an optimally healthy one!
We sent our staff out to review the top under-desk pedal units on the market. They investigated design features, weight and size specs, customer experiences, and more according to our rigorous review process. Below, you'll see the combined results of our research.
Call them desk pedals, desk cycles, under desk pedals, or desk ellipticals. Whatever you choose, these devices require upfront effort before use at a desk.
Knowing how the study of anthropometry, posture, repetitive motion, and workspace design affects the user is critical to proper ergonomic design.