Similarly, I used to get eye strain from all the screen time. Until I moved to an office with a view and I found myself staring out whenever I would zone out to think. Now I'm working from home and don't have the same inducement to look out and my eyes have started bothering me again. I try to observe 20-20-20 (every 20 minutes spend 20 seconds looking at something 20 feet away) but it's not quite the same.
https://medium.com/@truppr/long-sitting-how-it-affects-your-...
Seriously though, one thing I did find was when I quit smoking my ability to solve complex problems at work went down for a while. I was no longer taking a forced 10 minute break every 60-90 minutes that let my brain reset. (Or explaining my problem out loud to another filthy smoker skulking around the back of the building :D )
Fortunately for me it was about the same time that the Pomodoro technique was featured on Lifehacker and I implemented a similar system to replace the regular nicotine craving induced breaks.
It might also be the lack of breaks too, but who knows.
Supposedly it's good for patients that stay in bed for long periods without moving as it improves circulation, reduces back pain and prevents bed sores.
If I had the space I'd consider it myself. Like you, I can drive five hours without stopping and be fine the whole way and when I get there.
https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/304393-ces-2020-limo-for...
I could hardly believe it myself, but it is true.
The "local police may harass you anyway" part threw me off as I thought that's a reference to something actually happened.
Seems cool, but I prefer to drive myself. Maybe I'm not cut out to be an executive? IDK
It'd be nice if being comfortable at a computer all day was as easy as changing the seat but i don't believe that's true.
As someone who lives in the midwest, I have to disagree. Pick pretty much any random 100 mile stretch of I-70 or I-80 between the Appalachians and the Rockies and the majority of it will be straight enough that you could set the cruise and only have to turn the wheel a few degrees at most as long as traffic doesn't do anything stupid.
When I was younger and dumber I once drove from I-71 near Cleveland almost to Chicago with just my knee on the wheel. There's a kink about half way across Indiana that was the only real challenge.
Having recently (and historically many times before that) drove both I-70 and I-80 in the area indicated, I feel you’re being a bit hyperbolic. I’d agree both are as described for some 100 mile stretches (I-70 between Hays / Salina KS and I-80 between Lincoln / Grand Island NE as two examples), but not any random section.
I've also taken to being fairly strict with a Pomodoro routine. 25 minutes focused (strictly locking down email!) work, 5 minutes when I get up and have a wander around the house. I think my attention is better, my eyes get a chance to rest, less aches.
The other thing I did was to start using mouse left-handed. I got terrible RSI with my right (I'm naturally right-handed) and actually although I'm slower with my left it's no bad thing - my movement is more considered, less jerky, and I think has a lower impact on anything likely to trigger RSI.
So yeh, I think I'm ok for a death-trap lying down desk, thanks anyway...
I have an electric standing desk from ikea, and bought a walking pad (movable and foldable) for underneath.
I was scared that walking would make it too hard to read code, but it actually works really well. I would recommend it to everybody.
Mostly I walk about 30 min to an hour in the afternoon. The rest I sit.
If you are suffering from back pain caused by sitting and have trouble sleeping, I used this video [1] to relieve the pain for a while. It helped so much that after 2-3 weeks of doing it every day 2-3 times, I was able to sleep normally again. I also slept on the ground for a while since my mattress was too soft. I now own a very firm mattress.
From his blog post:
> But while standing may be better than sitting, I like to at least start my day with something more active, and for more than a decade I’ve been making sure to walk for a couple of hours every morning. But how can I be productive while I’m walking? Well, nearly 15 years ago (i.e. long before it was popular!) I set up a treadmill with a computer in the room next to my office:
> The biomechanics weren’t too hard to work out. I found out that by putting a gel strip at the correct pivot point under my wrists (and putting the mouse on a platform) I can comfortably type while I’m walking. I typically use a 5% incline and go at 2 mph—and I’m at least fit enough that I don’t think anyone can tell I’m walking while I’m talking in a meeting. (And, yes, I try to get potentially frustrating meetings scheduled during my walking time, so if I do in fact get frustrated I can just “walk it off” by making the treadmill go a little faster.)
Only downside is that when having video meeting, my head is bouncing while walking. Usually leads the conversation on treadmill.
These days I just make time for moving outside of work and change my position at work. Standing desk, sitting on an exercise ball, sitting in a chair, repeat.
The sitting posture matters because the spine is kept erect naturally, like a vertical pendulum. Once you get used to it, it is a pretty relaxed posture that feels quite sustainable .. compared to sitting in any chair.
I'm a big guy, 6'4", and fidgety. Being tall, I learned early on good posture is crucial for a pain free back, as is strong back muscles. Between that and being always moving, I don't deal with a fraction of the body issues a lot of office workers seem to. The worst is long flights, because getting up and walking around at least once an hour is something I don't even have to think about, so planes aren't great for that. On planes I understand why people want comfort at their desk.
>so basically just a desk that constantly moves around?
No, a desk that has a gyro grill attached.
I've now come to the conclusion that low latency video glasses/headset connected as external display to the laptop/smartphone is a better solution for that problem as it doesn't require any of these contraptions; But I'm still in search of one[1].
[1]https://needgap.com/problems/16-wearable-low-latency-display...
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0109Y3CCE/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b...
Disclaimer: I'm an investor in Immersed, but I invested because I loved the product!
But, those who have no issues with VR might indeed find immersedvr useful.
The real problem is no VR headset has a resolution high enough to come even close to what a normal monitor would provide dpi wise.
Thanks, now I'm intrigued. I'll have to checkout Quest soon.
[1]https://needgap.com/problems/7-simulation-sickness-in-vr-and...
I guess you have to find a low weight VR set though.
I completely get it because of how easy it is to get lost in the VR experience and forget about the outside worlds. Seems great for productivity. Might have to try it out sometime.
https://www.amazon.com/Glasses-Horizontal-Watching-Reading-S...
There's a reason the guy in the image is like 90+ years old and either suffers from immobility and/or nerve issues. Anyone more healthy than that would feel the need to squirm and get up long before one would form.
Also, the way we sit in a chair isn't exactly activating any muscles over just laying down or reclining in a La-z-boy. For that reason I do like the idea of sitting on one of those inflatable yoga balls when I'm not standing.
I bet you could burn an extra 200 calories a day just incidentally bouncing as you ponder HN.
It’s folks who are bedridden and don’t have the ability to move themselves around that get pressure ulcers. Combine that with poor circulation and potential nerve damage (diabetes) and it’s not hard to do.
A health 35 year old? You’d have to force yourself to get a pressure ulcer.
For people suffering from severe RSI -- especially those for whom essentially any amount of sitting in one class (say "sitting"), even in difference positions within that class -- becomes unbearable for more than an hour or so -- then this 33 percent can be of significant impact.
Also - for some people standing just doesn't work (for more than very short intervals). So in fact the lying option provides significantly more respite potential (50 percent).
Google "pressure ulcer" / "bedsore".
You can bounce aroundd on it which is fun too as the seat is mounted on a spring like a pogo stick.
Apparently this bouncing helps keep the joints lubricated.
(Just for the benefit of anyone interested and trying to search for it :))
Some days I actually sit on it for 8-10 hours (I hate to admit it).
I do take breaks and it can become fatiguing so occasionally, I feel like having a slouch so I go lie on the floor or use a regular chair (with decent posture) for a break.
Probably what this chair has done for me the most is make sitting with bad posture feel noticeably strange and unnatural.
There must also be something to be said for the fact that there is a “ramp up” time. I don’t think I have a stronger back from using this chair alone, although I guess I do have a less damaged and atrophied one. I do remember a time when it felt like certain muscles were getting stronger. I vaguely remember it taking a few months to become comfortable.
It’s worth mentioning that I do a fair bit of weight training too and that I’ve had the chair for about 8 years.
Forearm plank, side bridge, bird-dog, dead bug.
This video is a meta-analysis of the best rehab exercises for the glute muscles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgWSsaC3UJk
This page has pictures of the above mentioned PT exercises: https://mikereinold.com/5-common-core-exercise-mistakes-and-...
I recently did PT for lower back stuff mostly related to sitting for long periods.
I went from constant “3-4” level pain to “0-1” pain. I’m still working on strengthening, and re-injured my back moving something heavy, but PT was a game changer.
A lot of stretching like the above video shows, as well as working on posture, sleeping position, as well as just overall education on how my muscles work and what to do when I feel them tighten up or feel an area swelling up.
It’s mostly simple stuff but requires habit changes and can be time consuming so you have to fit it into regular routines. Stretching before/after bed, while you brush teeth, etc.
You look weird randomly stretching on a stair while you stir your tea, but it can make a big difference.
Among the many other things I had hammered into me about health when I was a kid in the late 1980s and 1990s that I've come to reject is the incessant hammerbeat about aerobics, aerobics, aerobics. I think the evidence is that the average person is better off with a lot more strength training, which will incidentally train you on some aerobics, and if you feel like occasionally folding some aerobics in, hey, go for it. They're not bad or anything. But they ought to be considered a specialist training, like working out legs specifically for biking, not a default that everybody do. Strength training is a default everybody should work on. Strength training isn't so you can lift 300 pounds when you help your friend move... it because it makes everything work better. You sleep better. Your back hurts less. You fall less. You build a better base for aging.
your shoulders will shrug and round forwards, which will limit your range of motion over time. any stretch that retracts the scapula should help; also if you do any exercise like a row, make sure to focus on really pinching your scapula together.
your core muscles will weaken, leaving your spine more vulnerable to injury. "hunched forward" will become your default posture which exacerbates this further. your spine is actually really strong when it is aligned properly, but you need good core strength to do this. doing a "hollow body" pose and your basic plank are good ways to strengthen these muscles (overarching your spine in either direction is a problem).
Edit: You probably also should focus on core work too. Try some forearm planks to start.
I'd say anything that engages the core (superman, plank variations) and activates the upper back (YTWL's) would be good choices, ideally substituted with some stretches or mobility work
I still laugh. Perhaps true in part though.