7 ms·

Obesity is rising in Silicon Valley

67 points by fahimulhaq 11y ago

tsunamifury 11y ago
I recently got an Apple Watch and comparing my activity on a normal weekend vs a normal weekday was staggering. When I'm not at work I live an active healthy lifestyle, at work I'm literally killing myself. It's not about the fancy gyms free on campus or one off runs, it's that on the weekend physical activity is a normal part of my work and on the weekday it is antithetical to my work. I, and several others, have expressed a desire to leave tech over this issue. We are active fit people who TRY to workout and eat right, but our work grinds our willingness out of us while demanding large numbers of hours being physically inactive.
- allsystemsgo 11y ago
  You could look at working remotely. You could still stay in tech but also live a healthy lifestyle.
  - kd5bjo 11y ago
    Working remotely doesn't change either the amount of work you're expected to do or the fact that it has to be done at a computer, which basically has to be a sedentary activity.
    - bpicolo 11y ago
      I know plenty of people that jog/hit the gym during lunch or what have you. I run almost daily after work. If your work is busting your ass so hard you feel it's literally impossible to move at any point during the day, get a new job. That's not SV as a whole.
      - kd5bjo 11y ago
        True, but few people would argue watching TV for 6 hours every day is part of a healthy, active lifestyle. Physically, that's about the same as writing software.
        tertius 11y ago
        Consuming vs. producing, even if sitting still, is different physiologically.
        wavefunction 11y ago
        Do you have some evidence to back that up?
        aws_ls 11y ago
        Its just an intuitive hypothesis. And point to note is that ever since we started doing agriculture, and that was around 20,000 years ago. We started to have more idle time for creating tools and arts, in general more sedentary than hunting/gathering. Even the works of mathematicians since several centuries ago, I can imagine, would have implied being sedentary while they worked. So software is just the latest in that chain of things since we started doing agriculture.
        tertius 11y ago
        Certainly, we can start with the neurological effect of watching TV. http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/5jcl/5JCL59.htm http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/5jcl/5JCL59.htm
    - yodsanklai 11y ago
      I feel I'm a little less sedentary when working remotely. I find it easier to take a 15 min break to walk around, do my laundry, lie on the couch to read. At the office, I'm more often sitting at my desk for long period of times.
    - tertius 11y ago
      Standing desk? I mean there may be easier paths the health than leaving the industry.
      - kd5bjo 11y ago
        Every industry has its own health hazards -- we're just now learning what they are for the computing industry. If these issues are as widespread as the article implies, it's something that needs to be attacked on a company- or industry-wide scale instead of by individuals trying to hack their way around the system. As an individual, on the other hand, leaving the industry until they get their act together could be the best course if your circumstances allow it. Altering your own work practices and lobbying your company to pay more attention to these issues are also worth considering.
        tertius 11y ago
        That really depends on how detrimental the effects actually are and if "altering your work practices" can negate the effect then we probably shouldn't be quitting our jobs.
      - URSpider94 11y ago
        Latest data says that standing desks don't improve health by all that much. It's movement that counts.
        tertius 11y ago
        Great iteration. I would argue that moving requires a lot more will power and induces more decision fatigue than just standing. I don't think a treadmill as a desk is a great solution.
- jurassic 11y ago
  I started bike commuting for exactly this reason. It takes me a bit longer than driving would and isn't an option for those with megacommutes, but now I look forward to my commutes as the highlight of my day instead of the stressful, boring time-suck they used to be. I'm riding about 100 miles a week now.
  - deleted 11y ago
    [deleted]
- doverion 11y ago
  I've expressed the same desire to leave tech for this very reason. I'm curious, what are some alternatives that you and your colleagues have come up with?
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
- aaronbrethorst 11y ago
  Interesting. It's actually a bit harder for me to hit my watch's activity goals on the weekend when I'm not at work. The reason is that—since I got the Apple Watch back in April—I try to make a point of walking to or from the office every day, plus I started running. I don't think you should leave tech. You should leave an abusive employer who expects an absurd number of hours of work from you every day.
- Todd 11y ago
  The best solution that I've come across so far is the treadmill desk. Standing desks are not much better than sitting desks. You're still basically inactive. They might be better for your back, though. Treadmill desks don't get you fit, but they will let you move while you code/design/write/etc. You only have to do an hour or two off and on throughout the day to notice a big improvement. It's not hard to get to 10000 steps.
  - mahyarm 11y ago
    Treadmill desks don't work in the cubicle / open office environments of almost every tech company due to noise. Treadmill desks are actually better for you than standing, because being stationary while standing can cause lower back pain too! Doing the stationary standing desk thing was the first time I felt back pain while working.
    - Todd 11y ago
      Yes, true. The place where I'm working laughs at the concept of a TD. Many more forward thinking companies have workout areas and places to take brief naps. Maybe in the future there will be TD areas. This could help manage the noise and any awkwardness which might be felt by those at the TDs. It doesn't take much time on the TD to be effective. It's a way to punctuate long stretches of stasis with activity. In an environment like this, it would be easy to reserve electronically in the same way that we reserve conference rooms today. Lots of people could share a small number of desks.
  - dogma1138 11y ago
    Isn't it easier to just get a run during your lunch break? Most offices have showers these days it seems to be much easier to achieve than a treadmill at your desk.
  - krisroadruck 11y ago
    don't you find it difficult to type/read the screen when your constantly bobbing up and down due to how the human stride works? Sure maybe your health goes up but I suspect your productivity goes way way down. Seems to me it would make far more sense to just run/jog on breaks/lunch/before/after work.
kerningcultures 11y ago
Taking this discussion in a bit of a different direction, we recently released our episode on the tech scene in Dubai, and whether we're seeing a new frontier like Silicon Vally in then Middle East. Would love your feedback! kerningcultures.com/episodes/uae-startup-scene
yodsanklai 11y ago
> the primary culprit is a diet high in processed carbohydrates and sugar. Isn't sugar a special case of carbohydrate? The way I see it, most common carbs are sugar and starch. I'm not trying to be nitpicky but I've been reading nutrition articles and I'd like to understand the proper terminology. I understand there are complex carbs (starch) and simple carbs (aka sugar, such as glucose and fructose).
- refurb 11y ago
  Yes, carbohydrates are comprised of: simple sugars (e.g. glucose), more complex sugars (e.g. sucrose is a disaccharide), even more complex starches (e.g. amylose) and very complex fibers (e.g. cellulose). Each one is processed in a different way by the body.
grezbegriff 11y ago
I've found it easy to live healthy here (for 2.5 years so far). I expect with the right choices you could be healthy in any normal place. But there are some aspects of silicon valley that make it easier to be healthy compared to much of the US: - better pay, so it's easier to eat a healthy diet - better weather, so you can easily exercise outside every day and don't need any exercise equipment - better public transportation / bike lanes, so living without a car is feasible. - lots of amazing geography and ocean nearby, so I've been going hiking / surfing on days off and rarely spend my free time indoors. There are cities with better public transit, and there are places that have nature even more accessible, but I can't think of anywhere else in the US with this combination of pay, weather, public transit and nature all in the same place. Of course, if you have a job that requires you to spend many more than 40 hours at the computer each week, and doesn't provide healthy food, it will be more difficult to keep healthy habits.
- amelius 11y ago
  I think you nailed it with that last sentence.
- presty 11y ago
  not to mention that big companies also have in office gyms and classes (usually yoga) and many mid-size startups also provide those perks by budding up with gyms
randomname2 11y ago
I'm surprised the article doesn't question whether there's something about the environment itself that is contributing to these health problems. Use of electronic devices is definitively more prevalent in Silicon Valley, and there is evidence that blue light exposure from screens or artificial light exposure at night may be harmful to health. And while this may be far fetched, there also are indications that some forms of electromagnetic radiation could potentially be harmful too.
- toufka 11y ago
  There are also all the environmental effects of living in the 'Silicon Valley' - named as such because of all the chip manufacturing from the 60-80s. Google's campus is nearby the 'MEW Plume'[1] of trichloroethene. A few buildings on Google's campus exposed pregnant Googlers' children to significant risk of heart defects [2]. Here's a pretty good article on silicon valley's troubled environmental legacy as they try to remediate their land [3]. Not to say that the environment is causative, but it sure does not help matters of health for employees who live their lives in the area. Silicon valley still has a significantly polluted environment [4]. [1] http://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/Moffet-Field-Toxic-Plume-Concerns-192436521.html http://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/Moffet-Field-Toxic-... [2] http://www.mv-voice.com/news/2013/02/28/toxics-put-pregnant-googlers-at-risk-expert-says http://www.mv-voice.com/news/2013/02/28/toxics-put-pregnant-... [3] http://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2014/mar/-sp-toxic-waste-silicon-valley-trail http://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2014/m... [4] http://dotspotting.org/u/302/sheets/2679#c=10.00/37.3527/-121.9610 http://dotspotting.org/u/302/sheets/2679#c=10.00/37.3527/-12...
  - npunt 11y ago
    Wow, that Guardian article is really well done. Our lack of concern for the environment leaves a terrible legacy both in lives and pure dollars. 10's of billions to not even properly clean up what could have been dealt with at the source for thousands or millions. The rising number of superfund sites shows the increasing cost burden to this way of doing things - this is probably the best argument for the fiscally minded who do not identify as environmentalists. The article explains a few ways the cleanup is spreading waste elsewhere, and it makes me wonder what similar sorts of choices we are making today in areas where the 'science isn't clear' or other excuses that were probably used in the 60s when this started. Are we changing the way we do things, or just which things are being done? Thanks for sharing this.
ihsw 11y ago
This whole article plays out as a ringing endorsement for the ketogenic diet[1]. Most people don't realize it but a diet high in carbohydrates and sugars is lethal, and hundreds of millions of people suffer from it on a regular basis. It's a serious lifestyle change but honestly I think many would benefit from it significantly, as adhering to it requires a basic level of self-directed education into what you eat and why it matters. It's not just "eating more fruits and vegetables is good and eating less pizza is better." [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/keto https://www.reddit.com/r/keto
- trollingineer 11y ago
  You could also do something more reasonable like avoiding processed carbs and sugar as much as possible. I'm not knocking keto since I've never done it but I found a common sense diet that is sustainable is the best diet. Kudos to those who can go keto for their entire lives. I certainly can't. But that doesn't mean I can't be healthy. Ultimately being healthy isn't rocket science and doesn't require some esoteric diet. Don't eat shitty food. Move/exercise more. And lift heavy things if you want to get stronger.
  - ihsw 11y ago
    You're absolutely right, simply eating healthy and avoiding shitty food is often-times easier and more beneficial, however for weight loss and weight management I would say that keto is more effective. After adhering to keto for some time, I've moved to a common sense diet and exercise regularly, and I've never been in better shape. The rationale behind advocating for keto is that I honestly think it's easier for most people to adhere to it than to stick to a healthy diet and exercise regimen.
- beachstartup 11y ago
  i've lost 25 pounds on keto and low-carb. some days i eat more carbs than others because pure keto is extremely hard to sustain especially when you eat socially and aren't a teetotaler. i need to lose about 15 more to get back to my college freshman weight, so i was at the high end of 'overweight' and close to 'obese' if you look at the official classifications. even as a keto fan, at the end of the day the most important thing is eating less calories than you expend if you want to lose a significant amount of weight in a 6-12 month period - which really means, the most important thing is for people to actually count their calories. when i first started counting there would be some days where i'd eat 4000+ calories! it's amazing i wasn't 100 pounds overweight. there came a point where i asked myself, "why the hell am i eating this much?" after seeing 3000+ on the graph for a few days in a row, and just decided not to anymore. that was an extremely important point in the process. having to face the quantified view of your terrible choices every day has a profound effect on your decision making.
ronyeh 11y ago
I recently bought a http://www.deskcycle.com http://www.deskcycle.com and I have been happy so far. No long term results yet, but it's better than just sitting there typing.... (I am not affiliated w the company, just a happy consumer.)
tonomics 11y ago
First semester living in the Valley, I gained ~30 lbs and realized the same happened to most new employees(not as much me). Somehow, the company gave the idea of change/disruption/... and that made us work a lot more. Sometimes, 15 hours a day in front of a computer. Still, PMs and execs always got all credit and I started focusing on myself. It was NOT worth it. I ended up regaining my health and I always remind hardworking friends they're playing their own game.
idlewords 11y ago
With computer salary, we can afford many potato!
mahyarm 11y ago
It's the food. There are 24/7 snacks everywhere, for free, and half of them are not good for you. Even if they were all good for you, you it's too easy to eat too much anyway. Then all the provided food is given buffet style, so you cannot measure how much you eat, and the barriers to eating more are very minimal. Even services like Zesty who provide calorie counts are not useful, because they serve it buffet style and make it difficult to calculate portions. Food served is usually restaurant food too, so fat is not visible but added for flavor. All of this combines to becoming fatter. SV can become a force of healthy weight if they provided packaged weight loss meals that had all nutritional info on them for breakfast/lunch/dinner. Then people who wanted to lose weight would have this very convenient option to do so. Most employers are not interested although because a very small amount of their employees will use it at a time.
- lgas 11y ago
  Why can't you measure how much you eat from a buffet?
  - mahyarm 11y ago
    Calorie counts are often not there, the food are cooked composites where you don't know how much oil has been used for example. Even if the counts were there, you have to bring a scale and hold up the line for everyone else for each item you dump on your plate. You'll piss off coworkers. You also get gravity effects where if your scoop near the bottom of the serving dish, you get extra helpings of oil, adding hundreds of calories.
toephu2 11y ago
think SV is overweight? try going to the midwest or the south..
ivan_ah 11y ago
Sitting all day + commute + stress is terrible. A 20 year old body can take this sort of damage and recover, but at 30 the "warranty" runs out and you're likely to find yourself facing medical problems, unless you compensate with regular exercise. Metabolic syndrome is very real---if you eat a big breakfast and then a big lunch and you did no physical activity in between, guess what your blood glucose level will be after lunch? [Hint: not good] One hack I'd like to share with y'all: use the Mac OS text-to-speech tool to make the computer read HN stories for you while you do exercise in the morning. ('System Preferences --> Dictation and Speech --> Speak selected text when key is pressed') A few push ups + situ ps + 1min of plank can make a big difference. Also, the more HN you read the more in shape you'll become :)

67 points by fahimulhaq 11y ago

I recently got an Apple Watch and comparing my activity on a normal weekend vs a normal weekday was staggering. When I'm not at work I live an active healthy lifestyle, at work I'm literally killing myself. It's not about the fancy gyms free on campus or one off runs, it's that on the weekend physical activity is a normal part of my work and on the weekday it is antithetical to my work. I, and several others, have expressed a desire to leave tech over this issue. We are active fit people who TRY to workout and eat right, but our work grinds our willingness out of us while demanding large numbers of hours being physically inactive.

allsystemsgo 11y ago
You could look at working remotely. You could still stay in tech but also live a healthy lifestyle.
- kd5bjo 11y ago
  Working remotely doesn't change either the amount of work you're expected to do or the fact that it has to be done at a computer, which basically has to be a sedentary activity.
  - bpicolo 11y ago
    I know plenty of people that jog/hit the gym during lunch or what have you. I run almost daily after work. If your work is busting your ass so hard you feel it's literally impossible to move at any point during the day, get a new job. That's not SV as a whole.
    - kd5bjo 11y ago
      True, but few people would argue watching TV for 6 hours every day is part of a healthy, active lifestyle. Physically, that's about the same as writing software.
      - tertius 11y ago
        Consuming vs. producing, even if sitting still, is different physiologically.
        wavefunction 11y ago
        Do you have some evidence to back that up?
        aws_ls 11y ago
        Its just an intuitive hypothesis. And point to note is that ever since we started doing agriculture, and that was around 20,000 years ago. We started to have more idle time for creating tools and arts, in general more sedentary than hunting/gathering. Even the works of mathematicians since several centuries ago, I can imagine, would have implied being sedentary while they worked. So software is just the latest in that chain of things since we started doing agriculture.
        tertius 11y ago
        Certainly, we can start with the neurological effect of watching TV. http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/5jcl/5JCL59.htm http://www.cognitiveliberty.org/5jcl/5JCL59.htm
  - yodsanklai 11y ago
    I feel I'm a little less sedentary when working remotely. I find it easier to take a 15 min break to walk around, do my laundry, lie on the couch to read. At the office, I'm more often sitting at my desk for long period of times.
  - tertius 11y ago
    Standing desk? I mean there may be easier paths the health than leaving the industry.
    - kd5bjo 11y ago
      Every industry has its own health hazards -- we're just now learning what they are for the computing industry. If these issues are as widespread as the article implies, it's something that needs to be attacked on a company- or industry-wide scale instead of by individuals trying to hack their way around the system. As an individual, on the other hand, leaving the industry until they get their act together could be the best course if your circumstances allow it. Altering your own work practices and lobbying your company to pay more attention to these issues are also worth considering.
      - tertius 11y ago
        That really depends on how detrimental the effects actually are and if "altering your work practices" can negate the effect then we probably shouldn't be quitting our jobs.
    - URSpider94 11y ago
      Latest data says that standing desks don't improve health by all that much. It's movement that counts.
      - tertius 11y ago
        Great iteration. I would argue that moving requires a lot more will power and induces more decision fatigue than just standing. I don't think a treadmill as a desk is a great solution.
jurassic 11y ago
I started bike commuting for exactly this reason. It takes me a bit longer than driving would and isn't an option for those with megacommutes, but now I look forward to my commutes as the highlight of my day instead of the stressful, boring time-suck they used to be. I'm riding about 100 miles a week now.
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]
doverion 11y ago
I've expressed the same desire to leave tech for this very reason. I'm curious, what are some alternatives that you and your colleagues have come up with?
deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
aaronbrethorst 11y ago
Interesting. It's actually a bit harder for me to hit my watch's activity goals on the weekend when I'm not at work. The reason is that—since I got the Apple Watch back in April—I try to make a point of walking to or from the office every day, plus I started running. I don't think you should leave tech. You should leave an abusive employer who expects an absurd number of hours of work from you every day.
Todd 11y ago
The best solution that I've come across so far is the treadmill desk. Standing desks are not much better than sitting desks. You're still basically inactive. They might be better for your back, though. Treadmill desks don't get you fit, but they will let you move while you code/design/write/etc. You only have to do an hour or two off and on throughout the day to notice a big improvement. It's not hard to get to 10000 steps.
- mahyarm 11y ago
  Treadmill desks don't work in the cubicle / open office environments of almost every tech company due to noise. Treadmill desks are actually better for you than standing, because being stationary while standing can cause lower back pain too! Doing the stationary standing desk thing was the first time I felt back pain while working.
  - Todd 11y ago
    Yes, true. The place where I'm working laughs at the concept of a TD. Many more forward thinking companies have workout areas and places to take brief naps. Maybe in the future there will be TD areas. This could help manage the noise and any awkwardness which might be felt by those at the TDs. It doesn't take much time on the TD to be effective. It's a way to punctuate long stretches of stasis with activity. In an environment like this, it would be easy to reserve electronically in the same way that we reserve conference rooms today. Lots of people could share a small number of desks.
- dogma1138 11y ago
  Isn't it easier to just get a run during your lunch break? Most offices have showers these days it seems to be much easier to achieve than a treadmill at your desk.
- krisroadruck 11y ago
  don't you find it difficult to type/read the screen when your constantly bobbing up and down due to how the human stride works? Sure maybe your health goes up but I suspect your productivity goes way way down. Seems to me it would make far more sense to just run/jog on breaks/lunch/before/after work.

kerningcultures 11y ago

Taking this discussion in a bit of a different direction, we recently released our episode on the tech scene in Dubai, and whether we're seeing a new frontier like Silicon Vally in then Middle East. Would love your feedback! kerningcultures.com/episodes/uae-startup-scene

yodsanklai 11y ago

> the primary culprit is a diet high in processed carbohydrates and sugar. Isn't sugar a special case of carbohydrate? The way I see it, most common carbs are sugar and starch. I'm not trying to be nitpicky but I've been reading nutrition articles and I'd like to understand the proper terminology. I understand there are complex carbs (starch) and simple carbs (aka sugar, such as glucose and fructose).

refurb 11y ago
Yes, carbohydrates are comprised of: simple sugars (e.g. glucose), more complex sugars (e.g. sucrose is a disaccharide), even more complex starches (e.g. amylose) and very complex fibers (e.g. cellulose). Each one is processed in a different way by the body.

grezbegriff 11y ago

I've found it easy to live healthy here (for 2.5 years so far). I expect with the right choices you could be healthy in any normal place. But there are some aspects of silicon valley that make it easier to be healthy compared to much of the US: - better pay, so it's easier to eat a healthy diet - better weather, so you can easily exercise outside every day and don't need any exercise equipment - better public transportation / bike lanes, so living without a car is feasible. - lots of amazing geography and ocean nearby, so I've been going hiking / surfing on days off and rarely spend my free time indoors. There are cities with better public transit, and there are places that have nature even more accessible, but I can't think of anywhere else in the US with this combination of pay, weather, public transit and nature all in the same place. Of course, if you have a job that requires you to spend many more than 40 hours at the computer each week, and doesn't provide healthy food, it will be more difficult to keep healthy habits.

amelius 11y ago
I think you nailed it with that last sentence.
presty 11y ago
not to mention that big companies also have in office gyms and classes (usually yoga) and many mid-size startups also provide those perks by budding up with gyms

randomname2 11y ago

I'm surprised the article doesn't question whether there's something about the environment itself that is contributing to these health problems. Use of electronic devices is definitively more prevalent in Silicon Valley, and there is evidence that blue light exposure from screens or artificial light exposure at night may be harmful to health. And while this may be far fetched, there also are indications that some forms of electromagnetic radiation could potentially be harmful too.

toufka 11y ago
There are also all the environmental effects of living in the 'Silicon Valley' - named as such because of all the chip manufacturing from the 60-80s. Google's campus is nearby the 'MEW Plume'[1] of trichloroethene. A few buildings on Google's campus exposed pregnant Googlers' children to significant risk of heart defects [2]. Here's a pretty good article on silicon valley's troubled environmental legacy as they try to remediate their land [3]. Not to say that the environment is causative, but it sure does not help matters of health for employees who live their lives in the area. Silicon valley still has a significantly polluted environment [4]. [1] http://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/Moffet-Field-Toxic-Plume-Concerns-192436521.html http://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/Moffet-Field-Toxic-... [2] http://www.mv-voice.com/news/2013/02/28/toxics-put-pregnant-googlers-at-risk-expert-says http://www.mv-voice.com/news/2013/02/28/toxics-put-pregnant-... [3] http://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2014/mar/-sp-toxic-waste-silicon-valley-trail http://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2014/m... [4] http://dotspotting.org/u/302/sheets/2679#c=10.00/37.3527/-121.9610 http://dotspotting.org/u/302/sheets/2679#c=10.00/37.3527/-12...
- npunt 11y ago
  Wow, that Guardian article is really well done. Our lack of concern for the environment leaves a terrible legacy both in lives and pure dollars. 10's of billions to not even properly clean up what could have been dealt with at the source for thousands or millions. The rising number of superfund sites shows the increasing cost burden to this way of doing things - this is probably the best argument for the fiscally minded who do not identify as environmentalists. The article explains a few ways the cleanup is spreading waste elsewhere, and it makes me wonder what similar sorts of choices we are making today in areas where the 'science isn't clear' or other excuses that were probably used in the 60s when this started. Are we changing the way we do things, or just which things are being done? Thanks for sharing this.

ihsw 11y ago

This whole article plays out as a ringing endorsement for the ketogenic diet[1]. Most people don't realize it but a diet high in carbohydrates and sugars is lethal, and hundreds of millions of people suffer from it on a regular basis. It's a serious lifestyle change but honestly I think many would benefit from it significantly, as adhering to it requires a basic level of self-directed education into what you eat and why it matters. It's not just "eating more fruits and vegetables is good and eating less pizza is better." [1] https://www.reddit.com/r/keto https://www.reddit.com/r/keto

trollingineer 11y ago
You could also do something more reasonable like avoiding processed carbs and sugar as much as possible. I'm not knocking keto since I've never done it but I found a common sense diet that is sustainable is the best diet. Kudos to those who can go keto for their entire lives. I certainly can't. But that doesn't mean I can't be healthy. Ultimately being healthy isn't rocket science and doesn't require some esoteric diet. Don't eat shitty food. Move/exercise more. And lift heavy things if you want to get stronger.
- ihsw 11y ago
  You're absolutely right, simply eating healthy and avoiding shitty food is often-times easier and more beneficial, however for weight loss and weight management I would say that keto is more effective. After adhering to keto for some time, I've moved to a common sense diet and exercise regularly, and I've never been in better shape. The rationale behind advocating for keto is that I honestly think it's easier for most people to adhere to it than to stick to a healthy diet and exercise regimen.
beachstartup 11y ago
i've lost 25 pounds on keto and low-carb. some days i eat more carbs than others because pure keto is extremely hard to sustain especially when you eat socially and aren't a teetotaler. i need to lose about 15 more to get back to my college freshman weight, so i was at the high end of 'overweight' and close to 'obese' if you look at the official classifications. even as a keto fan, at the end of the day the most important thing is eating less calories than you expend if you want to lose a significant amount of weight in a 6-12 month period - which really means, the most important thing is for people to actually count their calories. when i first started counting there would be some days where i'd eat 4000+ calories! it's amazing i wasn't 100 pounds overweight. there came a point where i asked myself, "why the hell am i eating this much?" after seeing 3000+ on the graph for a few days in a row, and just decided not to anymore. that was an extremely important point in the process. having to face the quantified view of your terrible choices every day has a profound effect on your decision making.

ronyeh 11y ago

I recently bought a http://www.deskcycle.com http://www.deskcycle.com and I have been happy so far. No long term results yet, but it's better than just sitting there typing.... (I am not affiliated w the company, just a happy consumer.)

tonomics 11y ago

First semester living in the Valley, I gained ~30 lbs and realized the same happened to most new employees(not as much me). Somehow, the company gave the idea of change/disruption/... and that made us work a lot more. Sometimes, 15 hours a day in front of a computer. Still, PMs and execs always got all credit and I started focusing on myself. It was NOT worth it. I ended up regaining my health and I always remind hardworking friends they're playing their own game.

idlewords 11y ago

With computer salary, we can afford many potato!

mahyarm 11y ago

It's the food. There are 24/7 snacks everywhere, for free, and half of them are not good for you. Even if they were all good for you, you it's too easy to eat too much anyway. Then all the provided food is given buffet style, so you cannot measure how much you eat, and the barriers to eating more are very minimal. Even services like Zesty who provide calorie counts are not useful, because they serve it buffet style and make it difficult to calculate portions. Food served is usually restaurant food too, so fat is not visible but added for flavor. All of this combines to becoming fatter. SV can become a force of healthy weight if they provided packaged weight loss meals that had all nutritional info on them for breakfast/lunch/dinner. Then people who wanted to lose weight would have this very convenient option to do so. Most employers are not interested although because a very small amount of their employees will use it at a time.

lgas 11y ago
Why can't you measure how much you eat from a buffet?
- mahyarm 11y ago
  Calorie counts are often not there, the food are cooked composites where you don't know how much oil has been used for example. Even if the counts were there, you have to bring a scale and hold up the line for everyone else for each item you dump on your plate. You'll piss off coworkers. You also get gravity effects where if your scoop near the bottom of the serving dish, you get extra helpings of oil, adding hundreds of calories.

toephu2 11y ago

think SV is overweight? try going to the midwest or the south..

ivan_ah 11y ago

Sitting all day + commute + stress is terrible. A 20 year old body can take this sort of damage and recover, but at 30 the "warranty" runs out and you're likely to find yourself facing medical problems, unless you compensate with regular exercise. Metabolic syndrome is very real---if you eat a big breakfast and then a big lunch and you did no physical activity in between, guess what your blood glucose level will be after lunch? [Hint: not good] One hack I'd like to share with y'all: use the Mac OS text-to-speech tool to make the computer read HN stories for you while you do exercise in the morning. ('System Preferences --> Dictation and Speech --> Speak selected text when key is pressed') A few push ups + situ ps + 1min of plank can make a big difference. Also, the more HN you read the more in shape you'll become :)