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How To Not Get Fat At A Web Startup

31 points by shanedanger 16y ago

Working on the web all day long is a recipe for fatness. Not metaphorically, I mean literally. You’re sitting on your butt all day. And especially when you’re working at a startup and putting in 16 hour days, it’s hard to find time to take care of yourself...

petercooper 16y ago
Nice, unexpected HN reference in there :-)
- pyre 16y ago
  At least with a USB port to the brain, you don't have to worry about accidentally up/down-voting something. ;-)
  - invisible 16y ago
    ... Unless you sneeze? :)
asnyder 16y ago
Interesting, working has the opposite effect on me. This past week I barely ate. I usually get so caught up working that I'll only stop to grab a bite to eat when my stomach won't allow me to continue. I'm curious to see what the distribution is for HNers.
- pyre 16y ago
  Isn't that bad for your metabolism though? I thought that that best way to eat was to constantly be eating small amounts of food because that keeps your metabolism up. [Note: snacking on an entire bag of chips over the course of two hours doesn't really qualify because I'm sure the content of the chips out-weighs the benefits of higher metabolism.]
  - Evgeny 16y ago
    Isn't that bad for your metabolism though? I thought that that best way to eat was to constantly be eating small amounts of food because that keeps your metabolism up. There are also 'non-conventional' views on the aspect: http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/grazing-is-for-cattle.html http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/grazing-is-for-cat... Also, a decent article on the subject here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/meal-frequency-and-energy-balance-research-review.html http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/meal-freque...
- jkincaid 16y ago
  I'm the same way; if I am busy I put off eating for hours longer than I should. Unfortunately I find that if I don't eat anything for a long time, I get progressively dumber. I read something that said there's a strong correlation between blood sugar and brain activity, but have no idea if it was scientifically sound. In any case, it seems true for me. Sidenote: my best pick-me-up when I haven't eaten for too long are Triscuits, with a few glasses of water.
  - deleted 16y ago
    [deleted]
- jac_no_k 16y ago
  I used to be really skinny because I too would not eat for extended periods because of the distractions that the computer offered. Then when I hit 25 years old, I started to gain a lot of belly fat. Eventually your metabolism adapts to being in starvation mode and then it becomes very difficult to convince your body that this is not the case. Eat normal, do something aerobic. I think that this will let one not get "fat".
- tjr 16y ago
  I've I'm working on something sufficiently interesting to get into "hack mode", then yeah, I can work for hours on end without even thinking about food. If I'm working on something boring (but has to be done...), then I'm much more likely to find myself fighting the boredom with an occasional snack.
- rwhitman 16y ago
  Yea ditto here. I have a lunch at 1 and then work to 10PM without eating. Such a bad habit, plus I'm so late getting out that I just hit up fast food and eating after 10 is terrible for your metabolism..
  - Scriptor 16y ago
    Eating late at night can be okay, as long as you don't eat within 3 hours of going to sleep. Maybe take a late-night walk as well to help the food digest?
claytantor 16y ago
One word. Salads.
- redcap 16y ago
  Man cannot live by salads alone. But from a diet point of view, a lot of people aren't eating enough fruit and veg. Salads > junk food.
wyclif 16y ago
Another thing that helps is a stand-up desk (this has been discussed on HN a few times). It won't reduce calorie intake, and by itself will not prevent you from gaining weight. But I believe it does encourage movement and improve posture.
noarchy 16y ago
Bike to work, if it is possible. For me it is actually faster than using public transport, and it does wonders for my health, since I am not physically active at most other times (especially when working).
- mshafrir 16y ago
  How good of an exercise is biking compared to running and walking?
  - brc 16y ago
    I don't have the stats, but it's an excellent alternative to running because it is lower impact but requires just as much or more cardivascular work (depending on how fast you go) Plus it's a viable alternative to getting somewhere, you can't walk to work unless it's within 2 miles, otherwise you're going to spend all day walking. Running to work is OK but it's hard to carry things with you.
  - billpaetzke 16y ago
    I wouldn't run to work. You'll get sweaty and smelly and always have to take a shower before work. With biking, the constant air flow keeps you cool, so you won't have to shower at work unless it's really hot out. That's assuming your work has a shower (which mine doesn't).
  - starkfist 16y ago
    Biking is good exercise but is quite efficient so you have to do a lot of it to get the same effect as running or even walking. For instance, it takes me about 1.5 hours to walk to work and I burn about 600 calories. The same distance on a bike, even going pretty fast, I only burn about 350 calories. And that's going flat out the whole way... in reality there are many opportunities to coast. I've found that walking is underrated as an exercise. If you live in a suitable area (like NYC) it's easy to walk 2 hours a day, and you can also use the time to talk on the phone, listen to podcasts or books on tape, or just be outdoors.
    - 16y ago
gruseom 16y ago
I'm surprised he didn't mention sleep. There is a well- established correlation between sleep deprivation and weight gain. Not that I am acting on this knowledge, particularly. But someone could!
brc 16y ago
Eat less than you feel like and get 30 minutes- 1 hour of exercise per day. The health and productivity benefits will outweight the lost time in food preparation and exercise.
scottshapiro 16y ago
Super simple: eat to keep insulin and cortisol levels low. Avoid sugar (including artificial sweetners), juice, grain, starch and sweet fruit (berries are fine). eat enough fat and protein to feel full. get plenty of sleep (8+ hours / night). Exercise will improve strength, muscle tone and metabolic conditioning, but diet is far more relevant to body composition. As Gary Taubes taught us in "Good Calories Bad Calories" this is a hormonal issue, not a thermodynamic one.
patrickk 16y ago
The second "proposal" reminded me of the South Park World of Warcrack episode, where Cartman....you know. Let's just say he didn't need to get up to fulfill basic bodily functions. Anything can be taken to the extreme, even productivity ;-)
sliverstorm 16y ago
Step one: Don't eat

31 points by shanedanger 16y ago

petercooper 16y ago

Nice, unexpected HN reference in there :-)

pyre 16y ago
At least with a USB port to the brain, you don't have to worry about accidentally up/down-voting something. ;-)
- invisible 16y ago
  ... Unless you sneeze? :)

asnyder 16y ago

Interesting, working has the opposite effect on me. This past week I barely ate. I usually get so caught up working that I'll only stop to grab a bite to eat when my stomach won't allow me to continue. I'm curious to see what the distribution is for HNers.

pyre 16y ago
Isn't that bad for your metabolism though? I thought that that best way to eat was to constantly be eating small amounts of food because that keeps your metabolism up. [Note: snacking on an entire bag of chips over the course of two hours doesn't really qualify because I'm sure the content of the chips out-weighs the benefits of higher metabolism.]
- Evgeny 16y ago
  Isn't that bad for your metabolism though? I thought that that best way to eat was to constantly be eating small amounts of food because that keeps your metabolism up. There are also 'non-conventional' views on the aspect: http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/grazing-is-for-cattle.html http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/grazing-is-for-cat... Also, a decent article on the subject here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/meal-frequency-and-energy-balance-research-review.html http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/meal-freque...
jkincaid 16y ago
I'm the same way; if I am busy I put off eating for hours longer than I should. Unfortunately I find that if I don't eat anything for a long time, I get progressively dumber. I read something that said there's a strong correlation between blood sugar and brain activity, but have no idea if it was scientifically sound. In any case, it seems true for me. Sidenote: my best pick-me-up when I haven't eaten for too long are Triscuits, with a few glasses of water.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
jac_no_k 16y ago
I used to be really skinny because I too would not eat for extended periods because of the distractions that the computer offered. Then when I hit 25 years old, I started to gain a lot of belly fat. Eventually your metabolism adapts to being in starvation mode and then it becomes very difficult to convince your body that this is not the case. Eat normal, do something aerobic. I think that this will let one not get "fat".
tjr 16y ago
I've I'm working on something sufficiently interesting to get into "hack mode", then yeah, I can work for hours on end without even thinking about food. If I'm working on something boring (but has to be done...), then I'm much more likely to find myself fighting the boredom with an occasional snack.
rwhitman 16y ago
Yea ditto here. I have a lunch at 1 and then work to 10PM without eating. Such a bad habit, plus I'm so late getting out that I just hit up fast food and eating after 10 is terrible for your metabolism..
- Scriptor 16y ago
  Eating late at night can be okay, as long as you don't eat within 3 hours of going to sleep. Maybe take a late-night walk as well to help the food digest?

claytantor 16y ago

One word. Salads.

redcap 16y ago
Man cannot live by salads alone. But from a diet point of view, a lot of people aren't eating enough fruit and veg. Salads > junk food.

wyclif 16y ago

Another thing that helps is a stand-up desk (this has been discussed on HN a few times). It won't reduce calorie intake, and by itself will not prevent you from gaining weight. But I believe it does encourage movement and improve posture.

noarchy 16y ago

Bike to work, if it is possible. For me it is actually faster than using public transport, and it does wonders for my health, since I am not physically active at most other times (especially when working).

mshafrir 16y ago
How good of an exercise is biking compared to running and walking?
- brc 16y ago
  I don't have the stats, but it's an excellent alternative to running because it is lower impact but requires just as much or more cardivascular work (depending on how fast you go) Plus it's a viable alternative to getting somewhere, you can't walk to work unless it's within 2 miles, otherwise you're going to spend all day walking. Running to work is OK but it's hard to carry things with you.
- billpaetzke 16y ago
  I wouldn't run to work. You'll get sweaty and smelly and always have to take a shower before work. With biking, the constant air flow keeps you cool, so you won't have to shower at work unless it's really hot out. That's assuming your work has a shower (which mine doesn't).
- starkfist 16y ago
  Biking is good exercise but is quite efficient so you have to do a lot of it to get the same effect as running or even walking. For instance, it takes me about 1.5 hours to walk to work and I burn about 600 calories. The same distance on a bike, even going pretty fast, I only burn about 350 calories. And that's going flat out the whole way... in reality there are many opportunities to coast. I've found that walking is underrated as an exercise. If you live in a suitable area (like NYC) it's easy to walk 2 hours a day, and you can also use the time to talk on the phone, listen to podcasts or books on tape, or just be outdoors.
  - 16y ago

gruseom 16y ago

I'm surprised he didn't mention sleep. There is a well- established correlation between sleep deprivation and weight gain. Not that I am acting on this knowledge, particularly. But someone could!

brc 16y ago

Eat less than you feel like and get 30 minutes- 1 hour of exercise per day. The health and productivity benefits will outweight the lost time in food preparation and exercise.

scottshapiro 16y ago

Super simple: eat to keep insulin and cortisol levels low. Avoid sugar (including artificial sweetners), juice, grain, starch and sweet fruit (berries are fine). eat enough fat and protein to feel full. get plenty of sleep (8+ hours / night). Exercise will improve strength, muscle tone and metabolic conditioning, but diet is far more relevant to body composition. As Gary Taubes taught us in "Good Calories Bad Calories" this is a hormonal issue, not a thermodynamic one.

patrickk 16y ago

The second "proposal" reminded me of the South Park World of Warcrack episode, where Cartman....you know. Let's just say he didn't need to get up to fulfill basic bodily functions. Anything can be taken to the extreme, even productivity ;-)

sliverstorm 16y ago

Step one: Don't eat