A standing desk reminder on Mac that tells you when to sit, too

Most standing desks I've seen in offices spend their life in the sitting position. People buy them with good intentions, stand a lot in the first week, then forget. The desk is fine. What's missing is something that tells you when to move it.

The opposite happens too. Some people get excited, stand for the whole morning and end the day with sore feet and a stiff lower back. Standing for hours isn't the goal any more than sitting for hours is. The goal is to change position regularly.

Why a normal stand reminder isn't enough

A classic stand reminder sends one message: get up. That's perfect at a regular desk, where you stand for a minute or two, walk around and sit back down.

At a standing desk, the job is different. You don't stand for a minute, you work standing for a while. So you need two prompts instead of one: one that says "stand now", and another one later that says "you can sit again". Without the second one, you either sit back down after five minutes or stay up far too long.

What a good sit stand timer does

• It runs a cycle, not a single alert: a sitting phase, then a standing phase, then back.
• Each phase has its own length, because almost nobody wants equal time on both.
• It shows where you are in the cycle without opening anything.
• It lets you switch early when real life gets in the way, without breaking the rhythm.
• It stays quiet during calls, so you don't get told to stand in the middle of a presentation.

How I set it up with Standro

Standro has a Sit / Stand mode built for exactly this. It's opt-in, so the classic single reminder stays the default. Here's how it works:

1. Turn on Sit / Stand mode in preferences.
2. Pick a length for each phase: 15, 20, 30, 45 or 60 minutes.
3. Work. The menu bar icon becomes an arrow, pointing down while you're seated and up while you're standing, and the menu shows the time left in the current phase.
4. When a phase ends, you get a gentle prompt to change position.

During Focus or Do Not Disturb, prompts stay silent and only the icon changes. Everything picks up again when the Focus ends.

Which durations to start with

There's no magic ratio, and anyone who sells you one is guessing. A common starting point is about 45 minutes sitting and 15 standing. Try it for a week, then adjust: if your feet complain, shorten the standing phase; if you're restless, lengthen it.

I went through what the research says, including the often quoted 20-8-2 rule, in how often you should stand at a standing desk. The short version: switching often matters more than hitting a precise ratio.

When meetings and lunch break the rhythm

No schedule survives a real workday. You stand up for a hallway conversation halfway through a sitting phase, or you sit down for a long call while the timer thinks you're standing.

That's why Standro has "Switch to standing" and "Switch to sitting" right in the menu bar menu. One click puts you on the other posture and starts a fresh phase for its full length. It also works while the timer is snoozed or paused. For longer interruptions, pause it for an hour with Cmd Shift P.

If you want more ideas on keeping a routine going past week two, read a sit stand rotation that actually sticks.

Can you do this for free?

Partly. You can alternate two Clock timers by hand, or write a small script that switches messages. Both work until the first meeting moves your schedule. I compared the free options honestly in free stand up reminders on Mac.

Quick questions

Is a standing desk reminder different from a stand reminder?

Yes. A stand reminder sends one nudge to get up. A standing desk reminder runs a cycle: stand, then sit back down, so you don't end up standing for hours either.

How long should each phase be?

Start around 45 minutes sitting and 15 standing, then adjust after a week. Changing position often matters more than the exact numbers.

Will the timer interrupt my meetings?

Not if you use Focus. Prompts stay silent during Focus and Do Not Disturb, and only the menu bar icon changes.