VertDesk Standing Desk Giveaway

by Brett and Kate McKay on January 11, 2013 · 5,538 comments

It’s a new year, and that often means new resolutions. It is estimated that half of all Americans make some type of New Year’s Resolution. Can you guess the most popular? You got it — lose weight! Coming in just a few spots behind is to get fit and stay healthy. Unfortunately, only 8% of all resolutions are actually achieved. We’d like to help you out as you start the new year, and the new you, so we are giving away a standing desk from Beyond The Office Door. The benefits of a standing desk — from health to focus (as well as the harms of sitting in a chair all day) — are well documented. Get off your keister and start working like the manly writers and statesmen of old.

The Prize

The VertDesk is an electric adjustable height desk. That’s right, with the simple push of a button, you can move your work station up or down. It’s a 30″ x 36″ model, available with either a cherry or hardrock maple top color (winner gets to choose). The motor can lift up to 200 lbs, and it adjusts from 28″ high to 46.5″. Plug it in, and watch it smoothly move up and down at about an inch per second. The easy adjustability means you can switch from sitting to standing throughout the day. Click here to watch a video of the VertDesk in action.

This is a $689 value!

How To Enter

Entering is easy: simply tell us what kind of work you’ll be doing on your new standing desk. Writing the great American novel? Sorting through TPS reports?

Please be patient if your comment doesn’t show up right away! We moderate all comments, so your comment will not show up immediately. But it went through….so don’t post multiple comments!

If you’re an email subscriber and want to enter the contest, do not reply to the email to make your entry! You must click on the comment link here in the email and leave a comment under the post to enter.

A winner will be drawn randomly from the entries. The deadline for entry into the giveaway is Jan. 18, 2013. This post will be updated within 72 hours of the deadline with the winner’s name.

Good luck!

***UPDATE***

One winner was randomly drawn from the comments. And the winner is:

Keith Kuric, from Knox, IN

Congrats Keith!

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5301 Ryan S. January 16, 2013 at 9:57 pm: I am a young filmmaker who shoots and edits various kinds of videos. Having a standing desk will help create a focused environment for me to increase efficiency in the editing of my videos.
5302 Zach E January 16, 2013 at 10:01 pm: I will be studying, writing, and editing audio for school.
5303 Vector1960 January 16, 2013 at 10:02 pm: I’m a MRI tech. I’ve seen radiologists with these desks. Terrific.
5304 Chad Payne January 16, 2013 at 10:04 pm: I have been wanting one of these for months! I’m a pastor, and spend a lot of time at my desk writing and studying. I would use this in my study for sermon preparation.
5305 Stever January 16, 2013 at 10:11 pm: IF I use this for work, it would be for writing patent applications. IF, instead, I use it for play, I would be tinkering with music via a ProTools work station. Either way, the standing option sounds good!
5306 Nathaniel January 16, 2013 at 10:12 pm: I would use the desk to help me write songs and music!
5307 Nate January 16, 2013 at 10:13 pm: I’ll be coordinating directional drillers chasing rigs and pulling dragons from the ground.
5308 Chris Monaghan January 16, 2013 at 10:14 pm: I will use the desk in my home office for prototyping and developing electronic circuits for theater and commercial AV automation. Think cutting solder paste stencils on a plotter, baking circuit boards in a custom reflow oven, using a boom-mounted stereo inspection microscope, and a hot air rework station. I could be so much more productive on my feet – and healthier too!
5309 Dustin Barlow January 16, 2013 at 10:22 pm: I will be doing the manly task of repairing musical instrument such as saxophones, trombones, trumpets, bassoons, and oboes. The standing desk will definitely help take the kink out of my neck from hunching over all day
5310 Joe January 16, 2013 at 10:35 pm: Many, many wonderful things.
5311 Jim W January 16, 2013 at 10:37 pm: I would use this desk as a much-needed upgrade to my current home office desk as I continue working hard from home to secure a full-time job!
5312 Mike January 16, 2013 at 10:38 pm: I shall be brokering insurance.
5313 Eric Bergemann January 16, 2013 at 10:41 pm: I recently had an ergonomic assessment done at work and had a section of my cubicle raised to standing height to help with some back issues. I’d use this desk to work from home in the same way I do at work.
5314 Cal January 16, 2013 at 10:46 pm: I’d use it as a computer desk for engineering work. Need to get some extension cords
5315 Abraham January 16, 2013 at 10:59 pm: I would be using the desk for calligraphy work that I use to make certificates and invitations for my Sunday School students and church members at no cost to them.
5316 Jesse Vincent Panico January 16, 2013 at 11:00 pm: I am currently a full-time student, so naturally I would use this desk to further my studies, but after my graduation, I will use it to practice music for performances. (I am hoping to become a singer, and the prospects are just fine, because I’ve made the All-State Chorus in High School, as well as starring in many community theater productions) The best position for singing classically is standing, but practice can sometimes take quite a while until I’m satisfied.
5317 Joshua January 16, 2013 at 11:12 pm: I’d use the desk for helping with daily tasks (email, video editing) as well as a space for developing sketches for my new wood-crafting venture.
5318 Will B January 16, 2013 at 11:33 pm: I’d like to start writing again with the help of the VertDesk
5319 Jon Hjelle January 16, 2013 at 11:35 pm: I would be programming iOS apps and enjoying the ability to continue directing my energy towards that when I need to stand up and move around.
5320 Brandon Brown January 16, 2013 at 11:36 pm: I’m a teacher, developer, designer, photographer, and starting my own business- all while posture-killing. I spend nearly every waking hour at a desk, being able to change things up (and down) would be amazing!
5321 Evan H January 16, 2013 at 11:43 pm: I’m the director of a community theatre in rural Iowa. So, I’ll be spending a lot of time at this desk planning workshops for kids, and creating programming that brings people together across generations to have fun, learn a new skill, and make a little magic.
5322 Roland Jones January 17, 2013 at 12:01 am: I would be working on my blog about keeping bushcraft skills alive in an urban environment. By the time I sit all day at work, I really want to stretch out, and I end up working less on my personal interests because I can’t stand to stay in the chair.
5323 Bill January 17, 2013 at 12:21 am: I’m a newly elected mayor; first time to hold a political office. I’ll be spending a lot of time reading past ordinances and looking at grants, bids, and gov’t regulations.
5324 Dale Applegate January 17, 2013 at 1:10 am: The desk will be put to good use, as I assisting people in their pursuit of assuring their famlies and loved ones can have a some financial security if, and when life throws them a curveball.
5325 Adri January 17, 2013 at 1:35 am: I will be writing papers, working on my thesis, and making lesson plans for freshman composition at that desk!
5326 SteveC January 17, 2013 at 1:36 am: I will be doing any side projects that come my way. Being the engineering type, I love to draw/ plan things out on my laptop before I do anything and squatting down on the floor is just losing its charm.
5327 Kevin January 17, 2013 at 1:47 am: I will be using this desk to save my life, at least according to a popular graphic! (And to save my knees from the pain I get from constant flexion.) Also to write case reviews.
5328 Mark Roman January 17, 2013 at 2:29 am: I will be using the desk for my undergraduate studies at Rutgers as well as designing and planning my clothing brand.
5329 Linda Allen January 17, 2013 at 3:05 am: I work with my hands all the time, making gifts for my Grandchildren and others. I also make lots for people that request to buy everything from painting, bead work and crochet. My house is very small. and I am in dire need of a work surface. Being able to sit or stand when I need to would help my back pain so much. Thank you :)
5330 Jochen G. January 17, 2013 at 3:16 am: I will be writing newspaper articles and pieces for a radio show.
5331 John Q January 17, 2013 at 3:16 am: I will be repairing our computers and electronics with my desk, without fear of our pet rabbit or our friends child from getting a hold of my equipment.
5332 Oscar January 17, 2013 at 3:28 am: I will use it to do boring engineering homework and endless computer coding.
5333 Jason A. January 17, 2013 at 6:27 am: The desk would be used here for hobbies. Building models, paintin stuff and all that. Fun and standing instead of being on the ole rear, good times.
5334 Todd Perry January 17, 2013 at 7:24 am: I’m a health and safety manager who is keenly aware of the ergonomic benefits of being able to stand while working. I even got my company to set me up with a nice standing work space. I miss being able to work from home to spend time with my family, but I cannot go back to working in a desk chair.
5335 Brian Carroll January 17, 2013 at 7:49 am: Until Spring, I stand at my desk, gaze through the window at the leafless trees and dream about fishing.

After the weather warms and the sun sets, I clean the reels and store the poles, then work at my desk, writing of the snubs my lures received.
5336 Josh Davis January 17, 2013 at 7:50 am: I’ll use this thing to solve complex math problems…yeah, that’s it.
5337 Fish January 17, 2013 at 8:01 am: Sitting down is for unhealthy long legged mack daddies. I’m no beta scumbag, this will let me get on my feet and work like I’ve got a pair. Using this desk will instantly increase my testosterone levels, aloofness, suaveness, and help maintain my ‘man’ credit. I will use it as I use my current workstation, to record music. And I’ll be able to stand, like the primates at the dawn of man learning to walk. No longer would I be lazy, but more like a lycra clad star trek officer stood tapping at his futuristic control panel.
5338 Marc Barringer January 17, 2013 at 8:17 am: A standing desk will get my work off the kitchen table. What was dad’s area has been overtaken by a home business (quilts), study space for the boys, general storage of household items (xmas, camping, extra kitchen goodies), and the strange way “stuff” spills into empty spaces. This desk would give me enough room to:
-run a scout troop
-a place to work that is just for that type of work
-give me place where I can stand around and be busy at the same time
-most selfishly…be mine!
5339 Steve King January 17, 2013 at 8:21 am: I do many things from my desk: paying bills, tying flies, working on my job search, outlining posts for my blog. I would LOVE to have a stand up desk!
5340 Joe Vardner January 17, 2013 at 8:25 am: I will be fighting for the American consumer and protecting their wallet from the greedy hands of monopolists, cartels, and power abusing businesses. At night I’m a humble young flip-cup player. But during the day, I work for the Department of Justice, investigating and suing businesses that violate America’s antitrust laws. This desk would come with me to work and help make sure we fight standing up! Not sitting down.
5341 David January 17, 2013 at 8:25 am: My job as a bookkeeper requires long hours of sitting which is beginning to take a toll on my joints. I’ve been thinking about getting a standing desk so this would be a great addition to my office as well as a way to take better care of myself.
5342 George January 17, 2013 at 8:32 am: I work in front of a computer all day so a desk like this would help alleviate the tension I get in my neck.

Also with a desk like this, I’d be able to spend more time working comfortably from home rather than at the office.
5343 Shawn Yockey January 17, 2013 at 9:05 am: I work as a programmer, but most of my time is spent as secondary-support. Running between our support staff and my desk to research their problems. I consistently sit down for five minutes, find my answer, walk back and explain, and start the process over. A standing desk would be wonderful.
5344 James Cowan January 17, 2013 at 9:10 am: I am the Portfolio Manager for a firm that runs the energy efficiency programs for Michigan’s largest utility, Consumers Energy. We have saved the people of Michigan millions of dollars on their utility bills and the numbers keep getting better. My desk will be on display for the 60 plus people who work with me each and every day. Also, one of my coworkers has a piecemeal mockery of a stand up desk that he put together from spare parts and he deserves to see what a real man uses.
5345 Silas Grosch January 17, 2013 at 9:21 am: College forces me to read and write a great deal and being able to do it while standing would significantly improve my posture and back health.
5346 Patrick H January 17, 2013 at 9:24 am: I’m a network administrator, so my work will involve network testing, configuring and troubleshooting. Im also reenrolled in college so i’ll be studying with my new standing desk as well.
5347 Steve N January 17, 2013 at 9:46 am: Curating my food blog
5348 John Ramseur January 17, 2013 at 9:47 am: I will read, write and count beans for our architecture firm on this. Possibly use it as a changing table for when baby gets here in July.
5349 Nick January 17, 2013 at 9:47 am: This would be the perfect desk for me to study at. It would provide a sturdy surface for me to write on and keep my focus. A recent post on mental floss said that hand writing has 4 benefits and 2 of those are 1) It better for learning 2) It prevents distraction.
5350 Ken January 17, 2013 at 9:55 am: I could use this to clip coupons from my weekly circular!
5351 Cory R January 17, 2013 at 9:59 am: I would use the height adjustment when my wife and I are feeling randy.
Oh, what i’d really use it for? Well…now i can’t really think of anything else. Great. I’d replace my current “standing desk” (IE, stacking outdated encyclopedias to raise the monitors and keyboard) that i currently use for the daily grind.
5352 Chris January 17, 2013 at 10:06 am: I sit for 8+ hours a day due to the new manly occupation of Information Technology. No jackhammers or re-bar for me pal! Nope, good old fashioned ones and zeroes. It’s pitiful really. I often dream of soaking up some rays while on the job, however a standing desk would be one heck of a start to get my bum out of the chair!
5353 John Stater January 17, 2013 at 10:06 am: I write role playing games, so should I be lucky enough to win this beauty, I’ll be using it to chart out lands of fantastic adventure or startling super science for the entertainment of men, boys and the better sorts of girls everywhere. Since I’ll most likely keep it at my real job, I’ll also use it to track the commercial real estate market in Las Vegas, NV. Thanks for running the contest!
5354 Christian Williams January 17, 2013 at 10:11 am: I’m a pastor so I’ll be using this desk to study, write and consider ways to encourage men in the art of manliness.
5355 Nelson January 17, 2013 at 10:27 am: I will be using it at my work with my Aerospace Engineering job. I spend way too much time sitting all day long.
5356 Sam Liedtke January 17, 2013 at 10:33 am: I have been looking for a desk to draw and animate on, this could be it!
5357 Scott G. January 17, 2013 at 10:38 am: I will be designing and supplying carbon storage and pipeline systems for the Coal-Fired power industry!
5358 Craig January 17, 2013 at 10:41 am: Good place to start work on a consulting business.
5359 Jamie Knupp January 17, 2013 at 11:00 am: I just started college to become a substance abuse counselor, this would be great to have to sit and work on homework and other assignments
5360 Nick Kilburg January 17, 2013 at 11:02 am: This desk will be keeping my hip flexors from being chronically strained by my hunching over a standard desk. It’ll help my keep my shoulders back. It’ll have me standing, more likely to move around and burn calories and keep those fricking love handles off.
5361 MythReindeer January 17, 2013 at 11:18 am: I will be doing my back a favor and increasing my lifespan, if recent reports are to be believed. Also, I will be doing scientific research and writing.
5362 Mihai January 17, 2013 at 11:20 am: Futures trading on my desktop PC
5363 Randy H. January 17, 2013 at 11:22 am: Use the desk to review construction drawings, Study the Bible and scripture, and getting healthier
5364 Daniel Revier January 17, 2013 at 11:25 am: In the spirit of the recently past season I would keep this desk in my apartment for primary use by my girlfriend. She is still in school (I have graduated and am working) and as such, does a lot of work from our place. On top of that, she has scoliosis and the sit/stand combo would definitely alleviate some issues as she could change her position whenever she was uncomfortable. I would also use the desk to work on independent electronics projects and to work from home.
5365 GIovanni January 17, 2013 at 11:36 am: I’m entering for my wife, who has terrible shoulder pain from all her computer time working on Family Law Cases and her non-profit, helping abused and trafficked women in Las Vegas.
5366 Jeremiah Dockray January 17, 2013 at 11:41 am: I will be editing films and videos and the drawing the jealousies of my coworkers.
5367 Nels January 17, 2013 at 11:46 am: Organizing and paying bills in my home office.
5368 Kur Garcia January 17, 2013 at 11:48 am: What a wonderful update on a standing desk. I work from my office and home. I would be using Vertdesk at my office to write, write, and write. I would be writing my lesson plans for my college class and pleadings for court.
5369 Andy Greene January 17, 2013 at 11:50 am: Working from home and (trying to) write the great American Novel.
5370 Jerry C January 17, 2013 at 11:51 am: I edit content for TV and web—music videos, commercials, web series—so I spend most of my waking hours behind the desk editing. This would be fantastic!
5371 Joshua January 17, 2013 at 12:08 pm: Writing in my daily and adventure jounals!
5372 Rich January 17, 2013 at 12:10 pm: The first 3.5 months I’ll be doing tax returns, the rest of the year, business accounting.
5373 Banks January 17, 2013 at 12:15 pm: I built/hacked a fixed position standing desk component out Ikea components and have had great luck so far. I would love the option of being able to lower things for the occasional sit down activities.
5374 Andrew King January 17, 2013 at 12:20 pm: I’ll use the desk to study for my bachelor’s degree in Live Sound Engineer. I also work from home, so between studying and working, I spend nearly my entire day sitting. A standing desk will make my day so much more comfortable!
5375 Rob Bunch January 17, 2013 at 12:25 pm: I will use the desk to renew correspondence with old military friends. Last Christmas my good friend gave me a 1961 IBM Selectric Series 1 in red, like the one used by Hunter S. Thompson (personal favorite). So overjoyed by this gift, I reconnected virtually with some old friends and asked for physical addresses. The responses were so overjoyed and more than a few reminisced about the “physical” letters we used to look forward to when deployed. I plan to sit that rare typewriter on that desk and bring back good friends and fond memories.
5376 Tyler January 17, 2013 at 12:26 pm: At my standing desk, I will be staring at the computer for long hours as I do my part to turn around this particular business sector of a large corporation. I’m young and fresh out of college, but I want to stay healthy. I am going to buy a walking treadmill (set at turtle crawl speed) so I can be moving all day while doing my work. By the end of the day, I will have walked at least a mile. I am also looking forward to being more visible in the office, as I’m kind of buried away in a sea of cubes at the moment.
5377 Jeppe Jakobsen January 17, 2013 at 12:30 pm: I’ll be unraveling the mysteries of the human mind as I’m finishing my master educational psychology.

I read/write a full work day most week days, and It really sucks to sit down that much. My current arrangement is a pile of books under my laptop, and under the book I’m currently researching, which allows me to stand. The desk would allow me to stand AND not be annoyed with the mess.
5378 Brad Rickelman January 17, 2013 at 12:33 pm: As the current Grand Master of Freemasons of Oklahoma, I’d be writing dispensations and writing newsletter articles.
5379 Jacob Waller January 17, 2013 at 12:51 pm: I will put a treadmill under it and walk while I spend a ridiculous number of hours writing medical chart notes and reports.
5380 D January 17, 2013 at 12:52 pm: I’ll be using it for software development at home. Plus everything else a computer desk is used for – note taking, expensive tea stand, and day to day tinkering
5381 Darko January 17, 2013 at 1:00 pm: I would use the vertdesk as a computer table, for all kinds of paperwork and as a traytable.
5382 CMikel January 17, 2013 at 1:06 pm: Definitely TPS reports, and staring at my screen, but at least it will be standing up!
5383 Omer Friedman January 17, 2013 at 1:07 pm: In 2004, while serving in an airborne infantry unit in the Israeli military, I was wounded while on operation deployment in the northern Gaza strip and still have grenade shrapnel lodged in my leg. Almost 10 years later I have begun to feel the effects of the injury after spending long hours sitting down in the office. I have had standing desks in my office before but have started to work more from home. I think that a VertDesk at home will help with some of the issues I have cause by sitting at my desk for long periods of time at home. Thanks for reading!
5384 Michael Wailes January 17, 2013 at 1:14 pm: I will be working towards becoming a better man…what else would I be doing?
5385 David Hodnett January 17, 2013 at 1:15 pm: Like many others, I’m a software engineer working from home. I don’t think AoM wants to openly advertise my business so I’ll just say we’re working on building ePortfolio creation tools for the education market.
5386 Joel January 17, 2013 at 1:17 pm: I work from home so lots of “TPS” reports along with reading and writing.
5387 Rick McCray January 17, 2013 at 1:20 pm: I will be writing out business plans, looking at potential real estate investments, and organizing my comic book collection. And I was not kidding about any of those things!
5388 Mark January 17, 2013 at 1:27 pm: I will be designing ecologically oriented landscapes and communities.
5389 Jamie January 17, 2013 at 1:29 pm: I’ve been wanting a standing desk for a while. I want to keep my health and not die young due to such a silly problem! I work at SpaceX as a structures engineer designing rockets! Most of my day is at my desk doing 3D CAD work and Finite Element Analysis, so I sit a lot. I notice how much better I feel on days where I have to go out to the shop floor and support work, so I know this would help.

Thanks!
5390 Sophie D. January 17, 2013 at 1:47 pm: I would use this space to create reproduction and original medieval manuscript illumination and calligraphy. It will also be a beautiful display of the tools of this trade- pens, inks, brushes and little pots of paints.
5391 Vitaliy P January 17, 2013 at 1:52 pm: I am a photographer. I spend quite a bit of time sorting through and editing the images. Standing desk would make my life much more comfortable and my back more thankful! :)
5392 PW January 17, 2013 at 1:57 pm: Seminary work.
5393 Dario January 17, 2013 at 2:03 pm: I will avoid the tendency to keep sitting once I sat down and therefore have to spend less time on the desk.
Generally I will use it for my day to day stuff: organize my day, do some work and study economic sciences parallel to my apprenticeship.
And it’s more fitting to creative impulses like the latest one: design of my next suit.
5394 Peter Nachbaur January 17, 2013 at 2:08 pm: That desk looks outstanding. I would be coding for the company I’m founding – *score. We aim to bring performance analytics to extreme sports, starting with surfing. We’re flying out to SF for the final round of Angel Hack, hopefully we get funding! ( surfscore.me )
5395 Andy H. January 17, 2013 at 2:15 pm: I work at a public accounting firm. Over the past 5 years I’ve seen my health degrade. I exercise less. I’ve made a commitment to myself to change that. First step is standing instead of sitting.

I think my boss’ head is going to explode when I propose it…
5396 Ricardo A January 17, 2013 at 2:20 pm: I’ll try to write the script for a movie that’s been on my head for a while now.
5397 robert January 17, 2013 at 2:23 pm: I will be doing homework for grad school.
5398 Allen January 17, 2013 at 2:31 pm: I will be feeding the insatiable hunger of my jealous mistress.
5399 Eric Wright January 17, 2013 at 2:46 pm: I work as a pastor and would be writing messages and planning church functions.
5400 Tyler January 17, 2013 at 2:52 pm: I’ll use a standing desk to work on finishing my degree as well as working on design and digital asset creation. Though, I suppose I’d also use it to read this blog.