Energy Cost of Sitting Versus Standing

Sitting for long periods of time at work has raised long-term health concerns. Standing workstations have been developed as one approach to limiting the time employees spend seated, and a study published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise looks at the differences in terms of calories burned.

Researchers calculated the calories 46 male and female subjects burned while lying down, sitting and standing. They determined the difference between lying and sitting as 0.03 calories per minute, while standing instead of sitting burns 0.15 more calories per minute, a 12% difference.