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All the ergo adjustments in the world won't help you if you sit in one position all day long with one small set of muscles engaged while the rest are disengaged

All the ergo adjustments in the world won't help you if you sit in one position all day long with one small set of muscles engaged while the rest are disengaged and slowly atrophying. The best solution is touched on in the article, but it can't be overstated that actual exercise is the best preventative.

cylinder 10y ago
Easiest solution for an office worker is to just run up and own the stairwell a few times a day. I don't know how so many people just sit still all day, with a big lunch too, then wonder why they feel tired in the afternoons. Their only solution seems to be more garbage Keurig coffee!
- kjsthree 10y ago
  One of the most frustrating things about working in New York is the ample amount of potential stairs to climb with almost every door locked from the stairwell.
  - cylinder 10y ago
    Hah, same issue in my building in NYC.
  - mikestew 10y ago
    The epidemic has long since spread to the west coast. The Seattle building I currently work in has some limited, well-defined accessible stairwells, but AFAICT the majority are one-way, emergency-only. I've worked in buildings as you describe: one-way, down-only. Sucks when you don't know this yet, think you'll take the stairs to the fourth floor only to discover that you need to climb all the way to the bottom then take an elevator up. Security? Yeah, maybe, but that's bare-minimum-to-meet-the-spec lazy security.
    - stevenwiles 10y ago
      did "as far as i can tell" really need an acronym?
    - cholantesh 10y ago
      I can confirm that the Royal Bank building in Toronto is the same, so I wouldn't doubt that this is a malaise in much of this city's office space.
- Jugurtha 10y ago
  >I don't know how so many people just sit still all day, with a big lunch too, then wonder why they feel tired in the afternoons. One of the best periods I had in college was when I used to wake up around 0430, work out at home, take a shower, have breakfast (oeufs au plat, escalope/steak, and half a liter of milk). I'd spend the day feeling great even though I didn't have lunch hour, just four 1h30 lectures from 0800 to 1430 as opposed to 1st and 2nd years 0800-1120, 1300-1630, with 10 minute pauses between each two lectures. Full of energy and feeling great the whole day.
- tomjen3 10y ago
  We had a physical therapist come by the office and adjust everybodies chairs - the result was that sitting down hurt so badly I ended up standing all the time, that should be better than sitting down, and the best possible position for my back other than lying down. My feet wanted to murder me the first week, and especially the first 3 days, but once you get over it I highly recommend doing so - I actually don't have a chair at my desk anymore.
jseliger 10y ago
Switching to a sit-stand desk is by far the best thing I've done: http://jakeseliger.com/2015/01/24/geekdesk-max-sit-stand-desk-review-two-years-with-a-motorized-desk http://jakeseliger.com/2015/01/24/geekdesk-max-sit-stand-des....
- yodsanklai 10y ago
  It sounds great but I'm wondering, would this be accepted in any company?
  - fzzzy 10y ago
    Yes.
  - collyw 10y ago
    My coworkers just got some Ikea boxes and swap around from time to time between standing and sitting.
  - analog31 10y ago
    I work at a Fortune 500 company, in an open office area. I was the first person to use a standing desk, by cobbling some cardboard boxes together. And then I was kind of a promoter, and also mentioned to the department chair: "By any reasonable measure, computer use is a workplace safety problem waiting to explode." In fact I goaded him into getting one for himself. Since then, quite a few people have gotten a VariDesk, and if you ask, your boss will just tell you to get one from Amazon. If you think programming is bad, CAD is even worse. So far as wrist fatigue goes, I was in pain within a few months of getting my first Apple Mac, and quickly learned all of the keyboard shortcuts so I could minimize mouse use. A side benefit is that using a keyboard shortcut instead of an icon doesn't require you to focus your eyes on the screen.
    - jdeisenberg 10y ago
      Second the motion on VariDesk; I have one and am entirely pleased with it. (No, I don't work for them or have any financial interest in their company.)

cylinder 10y ago

Easiest solution for an office worker is to just run up and own the stairwell a few times a day. I don't know how so many people just sit still all day, with a big lunch too, then wonder why they feel tired in the afternoons. Their only solution seems to be more garbage Keurig coffee!

kjsthree 10y ago
One of the most frustrating things about working in New York is the ample amount of potential stairs to climb with almost every door locked from the stairwell.
- cylinder 10y ago
  Hah, same issue in my building in NYC.
- mikestew 10y ago
  The epidemic has long since spread to the west coast. The Seattle building I currently work in has some limited, well-defined accessible stairwells, but AFAICT the majority are one-way, emergency-only. I've worked in buildings as you describe: one-way, down-only. Sucks when you don't know this yet, think you'll take the stairs to the fourth floor only to discover that you need to climb all the way to the bottom then take an elevator up. Security? Yeah, maybe, but that's bare-minimum-to-meet-the-spec lazy security.
  - stevenwiles 10y ago
    did "as far as i can tell" really need an acronym?
  - cholantesh 10y ago
    I can confirm that the Royal Bank building in Toronto is the same, so I wouldn't doubt that this is a malaise in much of this city's office space.
Jugurtha 10y ago
>I don't know how so many people just sit still all day, with a big lunch too, then wonder why they feel tired in the afternoons. One of the best periods I had in college was when I used to wake up around 0430, work out at home, take a shower, have breakfast (oeufs au plat, escalope/steak, and half a liter of milk). I'd spend the day feeling great even though I didn't have lunch hour, just four 1h30 lectures from 0800 to 1430 as opposed to 1st and 2nd years 0800-1120, 1300-1630, with 10 minute pauses between each two lectures. Full of energy and feeling great the whole day.
tomjen3 10y ago
We had a physical therapist come by the office and adjust everybodies chairs - the result was that sitting down hurt so badly I ended up standing all the time, that should be better than sitting down, and the best possible position for my back other than lying down. My feet wanted to murder me the first week, and especially the first 3 days, but once you get over it I highly recommend doing so - I actually don't have a chair at my desk anymore.

jseliger 10y ago

Switching to a sit-stand desk is by far the best thing I've done: http://jakeseliger.com/2015/01/24/geekdesk-max-sit-stand-desk-review-two-years-with-a-motorized-desk http://jakeseliger.com/2015/01/24/geekdesk-max-sit-stand-des....

yodsanklai 10y ago
It sounds great but I'm wondering, would this be accepted in any company?
- fzzzy 10y ago
  Yes.
- collyw 10y ago
  My coworkers just got some Ikea boxes and swap around from time to time between standing and sitting.
- analog31 10y ago
  I work at a Fortune 500 company, in an open office area. I was the first person to use a standing desk, by cobbling some cardboard boxes together. And then I was kind of a promoter, and also mentioned to the department chair: "By any reasonable measure, computer use is a workplace safety problem waiting to explode." In fact I goaded him into getting one for himself. Since then, quite a few people have gotten a VariDesk, and if you ask, your boss will just tell you to get one from Amazon. If you think programming is bad, CAD is even worse. So far as wrist fatigue goes, I was in pain within a few months of getting my first Apple Mac, and quickly learned all of the keyboard shortcuts so I could minimize mouse use. A side benefit is that using a keyboard shortcut instead of an icon doesn't require you to focus your eyes on the screen.
  - jdeisenberg 10y ago
    Second the motion on VariDesk; I have one and am entirely pleased with it. (No, I don't work for them or have any financial interest in their company.)