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42 hours a week in a physically demanding job is very, very different from 42 hours in a chair. I did a temp job ages ago at a warehouse for 3 weeks, the first
by eric_h 9y ago
42 hours a week in a physically demanding job is very, very different from 42 hours in a chair.
I did a temp job ages ago at a warehouse for 3 weeks, the first of which I was required to pack and move boxes, 8 hours a day, 5 days a week (2 15 minute breaks and 20 minutes for lunch, complete with a bell telling you when these things were happening). That first week was brutal.
Fortunately at the end of the first week I demonstrated that I was an order of magnitude faster at operating the computer for that packing line than the guy who was running it (also a temp) and I got to stop doing the physical labor so the remaining time was less terrible.
- Inconel 9y agoI don't want to discount the toll that physically demanding jobs can take on your body, but I think it's important to note that you can't really extrapolate much from the first week on the job. Just as you wouldn't after the first week of a new exercise routine. I've worked some pretty physically demanding jobs before, warehouse/fulfillment center, construction, farm labor, landscaping, and assuming you have proper protocols in place for safety, your body gets much stronger after a period of a few weeks. Edit: I've also worked customer service jobs were I sat in a chair for 8 hours a day and tbh I think that had a worse impact on my overall health than even the more grueling and unsafe construction jobs I've worked. Edit#2: Just to be clear, I'm not trying to excuse any unsafe working conditions at Tesla or elsewhere. I do however believe a job can be both physically demanding while also following proper health and safety guidelines to ensure employees aren't being hurt.
- valuearb 9y agoWe've all had physically demanding jobs. After a few weeks your body would have fully adjusted.
- eric_h 9y agoAnd after a decade or two there would be irreversible damage, regardless of how "adjusted" your body was.
- industriousthou 9y agoYeah, I worked construction for a number of years and if you want to do physical work long term, you gotta invest in your health. Nothing crazy, but two to three hours a week in the gym can stave off major problems for a long time for most people. The real problem with that kind of work isn't the physical demands, but the monotony.