60 kg — 32 Extra Calories/Hour Standing

At 60 kg (132 lb), standing adds 32 extra kcal/hour to your expenditure (standing 113 kcal/h vs sitting 82 kcal/h, per Ainsworth 2011 METs). Over 230 workdays with 3 h/day standing, this totals ~21,735 kcal yearly—about 6.2 pounds of fat equivalent.

Standing burns ≈ 32 more kcal/hour than sitting at 60 kg (132 lb).
Swap 3 h of sitting for standing each workday → ≈ 94 kcal/day, 472 kcal/week, 21735 kcal/year (~6.2 lb of fat).
SITTING
82 kcal/h
STANDING
113 kcal/h
EXTRA / HOUR
+32 kcal
EXTRA / YEAR
21735 kcal

ADJUST FOR YOU

EXTRA CALORIES BURNED
+94 kcal/day · 21735 kcal/year

How this is calculated

Energy burn is estimated from metabolic equivalents (METs): light office work seated is about 1.3 MET, standing light work about 1.8 MET. Hourly burn is MET × body-mass(kg) × 1.05. The difference is the extra you spend by standing instead of sitting.

Reality check: a standing desk is a posture and movement tool, not a weight-loss device. The extra 32 kcal/hour is real but modest — the bigger wins are less prolonged sitting, better circulation, and an easier path to staying upright.

Calories by body weight

WEIGHT + / HOUR + / YEAR* DETAILS
50 kg
110 lb		 +26 kcal 18112 kcal ► VIEW
55 kg
121 lb		 +29 kcal 19924 kcal ► VIEW
60 kg
132 lb		 +32 kcal 21735 kcal ► VIEW
65 kg
143 lb		 +34 kcal 23546 kcal ► VIEW
70 kg
154 lb		 +37 kcal 25358 kcal ► VIEW
75 kg
165 lb		 +39 kcal 27169 kcal ► VIEW
80 kg
176 lb		 +42 kcal 28980 kcal ► VIEW
85 kg
187 lb		 +45 kcal 30791 kcal ► VIEW
90 kg
198 lb		 +47 kcal 32602 kcal ► VIEW
95 kg
209 lb		 +50 kcal 34414 kcal ► VIEW
100 kg
220 lb		 +52 kcal 36225 kcal ► VIEW
110 kg
243 lb		 +58 kcal 39848 kcal ► VIEW
120 kg
265 lb		 +63 kcal 43470 kcal ► VIEW

* assuming 3 h/day standing, 230 workdays/year.

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FAQ

Do heavier people burn proportionally more standing?
Yes. Your 32 kcal/h advantage (vs 26 kcal/h at 50 kg) reflects the fact that moving a larger mass requires more energy. Ainsworth 2011's MET values scale with body weight, so a 100 kg person would see ~52 kcal/h extra. But all groups benefit equally from the metabolic-health side.
Is 6.2 lb/year realistic?
Only if you're actually changing behavior. These numbers assume 3 h/day standing, 230 days/year—a 60% standing split. If you're replacing sitting with standing and not compensating with extra calories elsewhere, yes. But standing desks don't work in isolation—diet and overall activity matter more.
What's the hidden benefit of the calorie math?
The non-obvious insight: you're unlikely to lose 6 pounds just from standing. But here's what actually works: standing forces postural awareness and movement micro-adjustments (weight shifts, subtle stepping) that sitting suppresses. The real metabolic win is that interruption (per Healy 2008, Owen 2010), not the 32 kcal/h itself.

RÉFÉRENCES

  1. Ainsworth BE, Haskell WL, Herrmann SD, et al. (2011). 2011 Compendium of Physical Activities: a second update of codes and MET values. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 43(8):1575–1581.
  2. Buckley JP, Hedge A, Yates T, et al. (2015). The sedentary office: an expert statement on the growing case for change towards better health and productivity. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 49(21):1357–1362.
  3. Healy GN, Dunstan DW, Salmon J, et al. (2008). Breaks in sedentary time: beneficial associations with metabolic risk. Diabetes Care, 31(4):661–666.
  4. Owen N, Healy GN, Matthews CE, Dunstan DW (2010). Too much sitting: the population-health science of sedentary behavior. Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, 38(3):105–113.