6 ms·

I'd like to add one more "B" to OP's title: Body. I have found after many years of programming that how I take care of my body before I ever sit down is much m

by edw519 15y ago

I'd like to add one more "B" to OP's title: Body. I have found after many years of programming that how I take care of my body before I ever sit down is much more important than the environment I sit down to. I have sat in over 100 offices of every possible condition (some you wouldn't believe) and have figured out that there's a "time warp" involved here... If I've taken care of myself, then I can function quite well in the worst client dump. If I haven't taken care of myself, then the most expensive of everything won't help much. I have had scoliosis my whole life, so I've had to learn how to take care of myself or I never would have made it this far. Some of the things I always do: - jogging (3-4x per week) - body weight exercises (I love Hindu squats and push-ups.) - stair climbing - proper eating (a whole subject itself) - monthly chiropractic visits - getting out of my chair every hour (a must for ANY chair) Oddly, I have never really followed most of OP's advice because I never thought it was very important. Most other programmers can't believe me, but here is my typical arrangement: - cheapest chair from yard sale - cheapest (disposable) laptop (currently $350 Lenova) - one monitor (I can't stand > 1; I lose my focus.) - good keyboard & mouse (the only things I don't skimp on) - any work surface, as long as it's lower than 29" - at least one feline companion OP brings up some good points, but the most important thing is to find out what will work for you for years. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

sophacles 15y ago
I completely agree with this. Anecdotally from my own experiences. About a year ago, I decided it was time to be in shape again, lose some pounds, feel better, all that. So I went to the gym regularly, went for runs, bike rides etc, went dancing on the weekends. Nothing super heavy, just a lot of solid activity. About 2 months ago, I sort of fell off the wagon because I let work get in the way (then laziness crept in a bit too). So I am currently well versed in the whole gamut of exercise benefits (and non-exercise drawbacks). They directly relate to programming too! Not exercising is correlated with: - Not sleeping well - Feeling anxious more frequently - Lack of focus - Lack of motivation - More difficulty following complex problem/solutions - General irritability After this next deadline in a week, I'm renewing my commitment to exercise and putting it in the non-negotiable list of things to do everyday.
- espeed 15y ago
  For the last 7 months I have been completely focused on a project and have been neglecting exercise to a point where it feels like it has become a slog. Some may say it's burnout, but I am not losing interest -- everything just feels like it has slowed down. Code that I should write quickly is taking longer. I know it's marathon, not a sprint, but if you don't keep your body in shape that marathon can take longer than it should. So this week I have committed to focus on exercising and getting my energy levels back up.
- dennisgorelik 15y ago
  "After this next deadline in a week, I'm renewing..." Only in a week? I guess you didn't really learn your lesson yet. Exercise improves your productivity immediately (same day). There is no point to wait for another week.
revorad 15y ago
My setup almost exactly matches yours (but I got two cats ha!). On the body side, I generally eat well, have been swimming once a week, but could do with more exercise.
Arjuna 15y ago
In recent years, I have added yoga to my "body list." For the uninitiated, it likely sounds foreign, but the strength, flexibility and mind-centering aspects of a yoga practice must be experienced to be fully appreciated.
- hugh3 15y ago
  I'd like to take a yoga course which focused on strength and flexibility, without all the hippie mystical BS that seems to infect most of the yoga I've seen.
  - ahlatimer 15y ago
    There's power yoga. I prefer Vinyasa, but the classes I've been to and the DVDs I've watched all have had some mysticism to them (for certain definitions of mysticism). That doesn't bother me, though. I enjoy the meditative aspects of it. I just ignore it when it starts to get a little too out there.
    - vshade 15y ago
      I found power yoga, where I did to be a bit too soft, I swastia is very good type of yoga to do. Also found something that around here they call pilates-mat, which is pretty close to the yoga that I didi without any of the hippie things.
- Tyrannosaurs 15y ago
  I know a few people who felt Yoga sounded a bit "soft" (I know it doesn't have to be) but for those who want something a bit more physical you might want to look at pilates.
  - Arjuna 15y ago
    I know a few people who felt Yoga sounded a bit "soft" [...] "Sounded?" That word suggests that they have only read or heard about it, without actually trying it. I wonder if they would consider the physical and mental development required to hold Mayurasana as soft? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayurasana http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayurasana
Tyrannosaurs 15y ago
You had me right up to chiropractic. Studies have shown chiropractic to be no better than placebo for pretty much all conditions other than lower back pain. For lower back pain it is better than placebo but not massively and given the associated risks (please tell me you don't let him near your neck) you'd be better off with more conventional remedies. Don't get me wrong, if it makes you feel better then that's fine (though you should be aware of the risks). Most Chiropractors are nice, well meaning people, but medically it is unfortunately largely bunkum. (Incidentally as far as I can tell there is no good evidence to support chiropractic in the treatment of scoliosis, though I'm sure your chiropractor has a different opinion.) 100% agree though with looking after your body though.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
- jzawodn 15y ago
  Have you ever used a Chiropractor?
  - aidenn0 15y ago
    Have you ever used leeches?
  - maaku 15y ago
    He wasn't saying it didn't work at all--he's saying it didn't work better than an actor make-believing he's a chiropractor.
  - quandrum 15y ago
    Here's the deal with Chiropractors. They heal symptoms. It seems to work great. You walk out feeling better without having to put in significant effort. They know your symptoms will keep returning and you'll end up paying them every week or two forever. But you should figure out what causes the symptom, and fix that. It may take effort. Most times it takes strength training. But it's better for you then going to some guy to push your bones around once a week.
  - 15y ago
mkramlich 15y ago
you lost me on chiropractic but got me right back on the next line :) overall golden advice that rings true with my decades of experience
tzs 15y ago
You should get up more frequently than every hour: http://ergo.human.cornell.edu/CUESitStand.html http://ergo.human.cornell.edu/CUESitStand.html
cfdrake 15y ago
I totally agree with you here. It doesn't matter how much you drop on your fancy chair (and I can't believe how much people debate this endlessly). If you don't get out of it for a few minutes every hour, all your money is probably going to waste in the long run.

by edw519 15y ago

sophacles 15y ago

I completely agree with this. Anecdotally from my own experiences. About a year ago, I decided it was time to be in shape again, lose some pounds, feel better, all that. So I went to the gym regularly, went for runs, bike rides etc, went dancing on the weekends. Nothing super heavy, just a lot of solid activity. About 2 months ago, I sort of fell off the wagon because I let work get in the way (then laziness crept in a bit too). So I am currently well versed in the whole gamut of exercise benefits (and non-exercise drawbacks). They directly relate to programming too! Not exercising is correlated with: - Not sleeping well - Feeling anxious more frequently - Lack of focus - Lack of motivation - More difficulty following complex problem/solutions - General irritability After this next deadline in a week, I'm renewing my commitment to exercise and putting it in the non-negotiable list of things to do everyday.

espeed 15y ago
For the last 7 months I have been completely focused on a project and have been neglecting exercise to a point where it feels like it has become a slog. Some may say it's burnout, but I am not losing interest -- everything just feels like it has slowed down. Code that I should write quickly is taking longer. I know it's marathon, not a sprint, but if you don't keep your body in shape that marathon can take longer than it should. So this week I have committed to focus on exercising and getting my energy levels back up.
dennisgorelik 15y ago
"After this next deadline in a week, I'm renewing..." Only in a week? I guess you didn't really learn your lesson yet. Exercise improves your productivity immediately (same day). There is no point to wait for another week.

revorad 15y ago

My setup almost exactly matches yours (but I got two cats ha!). On the body side, I generally eat well, have been swimming once a week, but could do with more exercise.

Arjuna 15y ago

In recent years, I have added yoga to my "body list." For the uninitiated, it likely sounds foreign, but the strength, flexibility and mind-centering aspects of a yoga practice must be experienced to be fully appreciated.

hugh3 15y ago
I'd like to take a yoga course which focused on strength and flexibility, without all the hippie mystical BS that seems to infect most of the yoga I've seen.
- ahlatimer 15y ago
  There's power yoga. I prefer Vinyasa, but the classes I've been to and the DVDs I've watched all have had some mysticism to them (for certain definitions of mysticism). That doesn't bother me, though. I enjoy the meditative aspects of it. I just ignore it when it starts to get a little too out there.
  - vshade 15y ago
    I found power yoga, where I did to be a bit too soft, I swastia is very good type of yoga to do. Also found something that around here they call pilates-mat, which is pretty close to the yoga that I didi without any of the hippie things.
Tyrannosaurs 15y ago
I know a few people who felt Yoga sounded a bit "soft" (I know it doesn't have to be) but for those who want something a bit more physical you might want to look at pilates.
- Arjuna 15y ago
  I know a few people who felt Yoga sounded a bit "soft" [...] "Sounded?" That word suggests that they have only read or heard about it, without actually trying it. I wonder if they would consider the physical and mental development required to hold Mayurasana as soft? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayurasana http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayurasana

Tyrannosaurs 15y ago

You had me right up to chiropractic. Studies have shown chiropractic to be no better than placebo for pretty much all conditions other than lower back pain. For lower back pain it is better than placebo but not massively and given the associated risks (please tell me you don't let him near your neck) you'd be better off with more conventional remedies. Don't get me wrong, if it makes you feel better then that's fine (though you should be aware of the risks). Most Chiropractors are nice, well meaning people, but medically it is unfortunately largely bunkum. (Incidentally as far as I can tell there is no good evidence to support chiropractic in the treatment of scoliosis, though I'm sure your chiropractor has a different opinion.) 100% agree though with looking after your body though.

deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
jzawodn 15y ago
Have you ever used a Chiropractor?
- aidenn0 15y ago
  Have you ever used leeches?
- maaku 15y ago
  He wasn't saying it didn't work at all--he's saying it didn't work better than an actor make-believing he's a chiropractor.
- quandrum 15y ago
  Here's the deal with Chiropractors. They heal symptoms. It seems to work great. You walk out feeling better without having to put in significant effort. They know your symptoms will keep returning and you'll end up paying them every week or two forever. But you should figure out what causes the symptom, and fix that. It may take effort. Most times it takes strength training. But it's better for you then going to some guy to push your bones around once a week.
- 15y ago

mkramlich 15y ago

you lost me on chiropractic but got me right back on the next line :) overall golden advice that rings true with my decades of experience

tzs 15y ago

You should get up more frequently than every hour: http://ergo.human.cornell.edu/CUESitStand.html http://ergo.human.cornell.edu/CUESitStand.html

cfdrake 15y ago

I totally agree with you here. It doesn't matter how much you drop on your fancy chair (and I can't believe how much people debate this endlessly). If you don't get out of it for a few minutes every hour, all your money is probably going to waste in the long run.