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Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

sciencealert.com

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Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#91

Post by jltsiren »

safety1st wrote: post #79
deprecative wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Butts in seats is a very poor way to get productivity. It is, however, management enforced. Management only pretends to care about productivity. Until managerial ideology shifts we'll never bother. I think countries beyond the US have a much better prospect of doing this.

People need to stop expecting their employer to solve this problem, because they won't. They're not responsible for making you exercise. The most efficient way to incorporate exercise into your day is to make it part of your commute. Walking, biking, taking the train etc. - different modes are viable for different locations. If you choose a job where this is not possible, you're just going to have to make it up some…

This is not about exercise. Extended periods of inactivity are bad for your health, even if you are physically active. If the nature of your job is sedentary, you should interrupt the inactivity often enough. This is something all employers should accommodate. Either voluntarily, due to market pressure, or by regulation if more reasonable approaches fail.

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#92

Post by tikhonj »

aeternum wrote: post #76
tikhonj wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've developed two habits that work well for me: 1. Taking walks during the day. I have figured out a lot of tricky design and even debugging questions by taking a walk. And even if I don't think about programming directly, it still clears my head. Splitting my day up with an hour (or longer) walk leaves me more effective than spending the same time in front of my computer. I usually work remotely, so often this invo…

The videocall obsession has got to stop for #2 to work. It used to be much easier to do walking meetings and walking calls, now every external call has to be on video and even internal calls there are plenty of people that subtly guilt you or assume you're not actually working if you have video off. I'm about to start leaving video on with the phone in my pocket as I walk.

Yeah, I've been lucky to work on teams where people are pretty flexible about having video on or off.

And for 1:1s walking meetings can work well in person too :)

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#93

Post by taberiand »

tzs wrote: post #63

Here's an article [1] from a few years ago from Cornell ergonomics researchers that is still relevant the discusses the pluses and minuses of both sitting and standing desks. Here is their recommendation: > Sit to do computer work. Sit using a height-adjustable, downward titling keyboard tray for the best work posture, then every 20 minutes stand for 8 minutes AND MOVE for 2 minutes. The absolute time isn’t critical…

That essentially reads to me as "you can't both be focused on computer work and be active enough to be healthy"

Break my concentration EVERY 20-30 minutes to move around for at least 2 minutes? That's at least halving my productivity. It's a total non-starter. It's the sort of advice that everyone pays lip service to, but almost no one is actually able to follow.

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#94

Post by a_e_k »

vunderba wrote: post #23

Study argues that movement is better than a static position (standing or sitting). Shocker. What they're obviously missing is that when you're at a standing desk, the friction to engaging in some kind of movement is drastically decreased (unless you're talking about spinning). While I stand at my desk, I frequently find myself pacing, jogging in place, stretching, etc. I don't have to first GET UP OUT OF A CHAIR .

Came here to say exactly this. I've noticed that when I'm standing at my desk, I'm much more likely to start walking around the room, go look out the window, or go pet the cat while thinking something through.

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#95

Post by marviel »

taberiand wrote: post #93
tzs wrote: post #63

Here's an article [1] from a few years ago from Cornell ergonomics researchers that is still relevant the discusses the pluses and minuses of both sitting and standing desks. Here is their recommendation: > Sit to do computer work. Sit using a height-adjustable, downward titling keyboard tray for the best work posture, then every 20 minutes stand for 8 minutes AND MOVE for 2 minutes. The absolute time isn’t critical…

That essentially reads to me as "you can't both be focused on computer work and be active enough to be healthy" Break my concentration EVERY 20-30 minutes to move around for at least 2 minutes? That's at least halving my productivity. It's a total non-starter. It's the sort of advice that everyone pays lip service to, but almost no one is actually able to follow.

Some of my best ideas come during little stretch breaks, or while I'm pacing in front of my window waiting for water to boil for tea.

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#97

Post by chimpansteve »

marviel wrote: post #95
taberiand wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That essentially reads to me as "you can't both be focused on computer work and be active enough to be healthy" Break my concentration EVERY 20-30 minutes to move around for at least 2 minutes? That's at least halving my productivity. It's a total non-starter. It's the sort of advice that everyone pays lip service to, but almost no one is actually able to follow.

Some of my best ideas come during little stretch breaks, or while I'm pacing in front of my window waiting for water to boil for tea.

Agreed, and many of mine do when I'm out with the dog or on the toilet. The thing is that those are unscripted. The point that I think the OP was making was that enforced breaks on a schedule will immediately kill any form of concentration or workflow

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#98

Post by taberiand »

chimpansteve wrote: post #97
marviel wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some of my best ideas come during little stretch breaks, or while I'm pacing in front of my window waiting for water to boil for tea.

Agreed, and many of mine do when I'm out with the dog or on the toilet. The thing is that those are unscripted. The point that I think the OP was making was that enforced breaks on a schedule will immediately kill any form of concentration or workflow

Absolutely, it's the regimented and very frequent schedule that is the problem. Breaks are necessary, and very useful - but if that frequency is what I have to do to stay healthy with a desk job, then I guess I'll be unhealthy

Basically - movement isn't free

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#99

Post by vincnetas »

taberiand wrote: post #93
tzs wrote: post #63

Here's an article [1] from a few years ago from Cornell ergonomics researchers that is still relevant the discusses the pluses and minuses of both sitting and standing desks. Here is their recommendation: > Sit to do computer work. Sit using a height-adjustable, downward titling keyboard tray for the best work posture, then every 20 minutes stand for 8 minutes AND MOVE for 2 minutes. The absolute time isn’t critical…

That essentially reads to me as "you can't both be focused on computer work and be active enough to be healthy" Break my concentration EVERY 20-30 minutes to move around for at least 2 minutes? That's at least halving my productivity. It's a total non-starter. It's the sort of advice that everyone pays lip service to, but almost no one is actually able to follow.

You can keep working with your (aka thinking) head while moving around. Sometimes change or setting can give birth to now ideas or approaches.

Re: Standing desk might be as bad as sitting all day

#100

Post by wtfpohqeq »

taberiand wrote: post #93
tzs wrote: post #63

Here's an article [1] from a few years ago from Cornell ergonomics researchers that is still relevant the discusses the pluses and minuses of both sitting and standing desks. Here is their recommendation: > Sit to do computer work. Sit using a height-adjustable, downward titling keyboard tray for the best work posture, then every 20 minutes stand for 8 minutes AND MOVE for 2 minutes. The absolute time isn’t critical…

That essentially reads to me as "you can't both be focused on computer work and be active enough to be healthy" Break my concentration EVERY 20-30 minutes to move around for at least 2 minutes? That's at least halving my productivity. It's a total non-starter. It's the sort of advice that everyone pays lip service to, but almost no one is actually able to follow.

Your concentration breaks if you stand up?

Try not to involve your legs in any thought process. With enough training you should be able to take your concentration into the kitchen, the bathroom, the shower, etc.

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