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When Guy Anglade took a job as a guard at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, he expected to enjoy working among some of the greatest artworks of human civilization. What he didn’t expect was physical agony.
But after a long stretch of standing in one place, “I’d get sharp pains in my whole back,” he says. “At the end of a 12-hour shift it was excruciating.”
Now Anglade works as a freelance translator — free to sit whenever he wants.
Across New York City, a great variety of workers don’t have that option. They include cashiers, cooks, dry cleaners, nurses and cops — and for many, torment comes with the territory.
“I’d rather walk all day than stand in line for five minutes,” is the conclusion of Ali Sheikhzadeh, who, as director of the research facility at NYU Langone Medical Center’s Occupational and Industrial Orthopaedic Center, is well-versed in all the musculoskeletal mishaps that can afflict various workers.
For chronic standers, the list of potential complications is long, and includes arthritis, varicose veins, foot and back trouble, rheumatism, tendonitis and circulation trouble.
“I could tell you a long story, and you’d start to cry,” says William Henry Jones, a doorman in Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, when asked about the travails of standing all day. At 69, he works two full standing shifts every weekday, as a bicycle mechanic as well as a doorman.
“The muscles start to lock if you stand in one place too long,” he says, adding with a laugh, “once I get home and sit on the commode, it’s so comfortable I don’t want to get up.”
In Sharlene’s bar on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn, bartender Danielle Trofe commiserates with visiting mixologist Mike Reilly. Both sometimes work doubles, 15 or 16 hours on their feet.
“By the end, I’m just drained,” says Reilly. “I feel it in my lower back and knees.”
Trofe nods. “I don’t ever sit down in the middle of a shift, because once you sit, it hurts worse. I’ve perfected the bartender’s lean,” she says, demonstrating the stance with her spine against the back bar and one foot propped up on the beer cooler.
Ideally, all employees would have ergonomically designed workstations and the chance to rest their dogs now and then, but many are forced to shift — or not shift — for themselves. If you have a stand-up job, how can you ease the aches?
Let’s take it from the bottom. Headquartered on Park Avenue South, the Eneslow comfort shoe store has catered to New Yorkers for 103 years, specializing in shoes for feet that hurt. Owner Bob Schwartz notes that long-term standing can contribute to “a laundry list of foot problems, including bunions, neuromas [nerve swellings] and plantar fasciitis [heel pain].”
And, he notes, “Gravity pulls us toward the ground, so as we get older there’s often curvature of the spine and tightness of the neck and head.”
Eneslow operates a workshop, smelling powerfully of leather and glue, where craftsmen fashion orthotics and rebuild customers’ shoes. As Schwartz offers a tour, one shoemaker splits open a New Balance sneaker to widen the sole and add more stability. Eneslow’s customers have included counter workers from the city’s most famous delis, as well as floor traders from the stock exchanges.
For long-standing workers, Schwartz recommends a “rocker sole” shoe. The bottoms are curved, with no heel, and can feel oddly unstable at first.
“They force you to improve your posture and use your muscles,” says Schwartz. “You’re in motion even when standing still.”
Butcher Mike Affronti, owner of Los Paisanos Meat Market in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, wears less exotic footwear, but he shares two reasons he’s not in pain, even though he has stood on the job for 35 years.
“It’s all a matter of having the counters at a height that’s comfortable to cut,” he says. It also helps “if you stay in shape and aren’t carrying extra weight. I go to the gym.”
Nick Drakakis, owner of Nick’s Barber Shop on West 44th Street, has even Affronti beat for continuously working on his feet — he’s been cutting hair since 1961.
“I’m used to it, standing up so many years,” he says. But he pulls out a photo from 1967, when he worked in a shop in the Times Square subway, and looked like a young Johnny Cash.
“See how thin I was? Standing was easier then.”
Other conditions have improved with time. Drakakis now works in his own shop, on a floor of linoleum over wood. He points to the old photo. “That floor was concrete. If you wore thin leather shoes, forget about it.”
Flooring stores sell special tiles and carpeting that provide a forgiving surface for hard-worked feet. For those who can’t afford that option (or whose bosses won’t provide it), a number of companies sell inexpensive “anti-fatigue mats.” Another alternative is to use a foot rail or rest that allows you to shift weight from one foot to the other. (If your workplace includes a beer cooler, you’re all set.)
Supportive shoes and flooring can help, but Dr. Manny Halperin of NYU’s Occupational and Industrial Orthopaedic Center takes a broader view.
“I’m trying to rephrase the discussion,” he says. “The problem may not be just standing itself, but what you’re doing while standing.”
For Halpern, the chief risk factors are lack of motion, bad posture and movement that puts unusual strains on the body. And standing upright is important.
“If you bend forward a little, like a cashier reaching for the register, there’s almost double the pressure on your spinal discs.”
Halperin argues that it’s essential to restore motion and mix things up.
“If you have a break,” says Halperin, “move. Don’t just stand and smoke. Walking stretches the muscles.”
Researcher has shown it’s better to take frequent short breaks than rarer long ones.
“In general,” Halperin advises, “the rule is: Don’t wait for the pain.”
Improving your standing
Spend long hours on your feet? Here are some tips from the experts.
Dress for the occasion: Bob Schwartz of Eneslow Shoes recommends high-top shoes that provide ankle support. Avoid thin-soled shoes and slip-ons, says Eneslow salesman Mike Javier: “Laced shoes offer more support.”
Size matters: “Buying a larger-size shoe is very important,” says Schwartz. “When you stand for a long time, your feet get bigger and your toes get compromised. That’s why it’s better to buy shoes after work.”
Be supportive: Your feet flatten as you stand, so choose shoes with arch support. Pre-made or custom orthotics can help.
Move: “The worst thing for your muscles is when they stay contracted for long periods,” says Manny Halperin of NYU’s Occupational and Industrial Orthopaedic Center.
That’s why motion and exercise are so important. Stretch and strengthen your calves, hamstrings, quads and glutes.
The latter are “key,” says Schwartz, who offers a simple exercise:
“If you’re feeling fatigued, lift your hands and bring your elbows in toward the sides of your body. It helps you find your center and tightens your glutes.”