Ask HN: Improving health despite working in a screen-based job

Dynamic body movement, dancing, running, jumping. Desk jobs force us to be static, the longer we are static the more accustomed our muscles, tendons, ligaments and nervous system become to being static. Stretching doesn’t overcome a lack of movement, movement overcomes a lack of movement.

Lifting heavy weights & body weight exercises, lifting and holding your own weight is very important.

A calorie maintained diet. I personally believe in keto, mostly because it keeps people away from simple carbs which the body treats as sugar, and sugar is a toxic substance, IMHO.

Enough water to maintain hydration, even a little bit of dehydration will rob you of both physical and mental capabilities.

Adequate sleep, varies from person to person, but it’s more than you are currently getting.

Sunshine, if you live in the northern or Southern Hemispheres it means supplementing your diet with Vitamin D & vitamin K, at lunch time, 8,000 IU of D is what most of the scientific community recommends, it’s easy enough to go Google.

Limit screen time outside of work, many geeks have hobbies that have us sit at in one place for long periods of time. Mind and body need to be in harmony.

Get air quality monitors for your work environment and for your home. I did this recently and was shocked at what I was subjecting my body to breathe, it was really hard at home to fix the problem, but once I did a lot of things started changing for me mentally.

Don’t smoke anything, or drink alcohol, avoid caffeine, and sugar (simple carbs), avoid all processed foods. Get checked for food sensitivities, many plants produce toxins to keep pests away, and those toxins can be problematic for some humans. Eat animals that are free range naturally foraging for food, avoid grain feed animals. You are what you eat, and drink.

My secret weapon against the 35 pounds that I keep at bay is to get two solid half days of manual labor a week. I'm not highly skilled so I just offer neighbors to help with their projects. Digging out a pool, building a deck, cleaning up on a job site, roofing, cutting firewood. Anything. Along the way, I learn new skills, have fun with a few people, keep their project cost down, and often take some pride in the project when it's done. I bring a half gallon of iced tea, lightly salted and lemoned.

My other routine elements are pretty common:

Walk as often as possible with notebook

Stop eating by 7pm and don't break the fast until about noon

Don't let my enemy foods in the house. I'm looking at you Sr. Oreo!

I also have a score card in .txt, along with Convict Conditioning for days I don't have any labor. I look for 10 sets and a nice walk.

Lastly, if I'm doing all this, I don't beat myself up when the Oreos do show up and I manage to clean them out in a matter of hours. Resistance is futile - don't blame yourself.

Have an exercise routine. I think weight lifting gives you most bang for your buck.

Around technologists there still seems to be a sort of nerd vs. jock thinking where people are afraid they have to become some "gym douchebag" who only thinks about lifting weights. People definitely fixate on it sometimes because exercise can become addicting, but there is nothing preventing one from taking a minimalist approach to it that doesn't demand much time or thought, but has huge benefits. It is sad to see a kind of gnostic thinking where people are contemptuous of anything non-cerebral, especially when exercise is actually good for your brain! Boosts BDNF.

Plenty of routines out there which only require 3 days a week with workouts being under an hour. This is a nice example: https://physiqz.com/workout-routines/powerbuilding-programs/...

I think this sort of thing is best. Walking on a treadmill at work while coding is a bit gimmicky.

I don't think trying to passively exercise while working is the right approach - I take 2-3 15 minute walking breaks a day, but I also do 30 minutes to an hour of cardio before or after work every day. I use a bike trainer and rowing machine, but this could also be running, HIIT, roller blading, whatever. IME getting your heartrate into the aerobic zone for 30 minutes a day is way more effective at maintaining fitness than having it slightly elevated all the time.

I've been using a standing desk for about 6 years. It's not the standing alone that's helpful, it's having easy access to movement. Just stretching a bit while standing feels like it helps. I stand about 80% of the time if I had to guess at a percentage.

I also walk a few miles a day, usually early in the morning then again in the afternoon and sometimes in the evening. I'd find a different job if they won't let you step away for 45 minutes in the afternoon, especially if you have a 1 hour lunch. That should be your time.

I also throw in a bunch of push ups and sit ups every day. No exceptions here, at least 50 of each. It's only a few minute time investment.

I wouldn't say I'm the healthiest person in the world but I don't have any random pains and generally feel physically good every day even after doing uncommon strenuous things like moving (30) 60 pound bags of cement from a truck into a wheelbarrow. I did that recently and thought I was going to be destroyed the next day but I didn't even notice.

1. Buy some bowflex adjustable dumbbells and put them next to your desk. You can almost do a complete full body workout with them in minutes, even without a bench.

2. If it’s weight loss you’re after, diet is way more impactful than exercise. Just eat way less. Try logging everything you eat, logging your weight every morning, and only eating lunch and dinner w/ no snacking (veggie snacks are ok)

3. You aren’t going to have the motivation to change habits without being well rested. Find a way to get at least 7h of sleep per night. Go thru the same routine every night, get out of bed for a while if you’re restless, and take melatonin as needed.

The most important part of all this is consistency. You can try the “systems vs goals” approach outlined here: https://jamesclear.com/goals-systems

Hope this helps!

I work freelance, and have been glued to my couch all day for a long time. I became physically depleted and demoralized, and the money couldn't compensate. In the end, I cut a quarter of my workload and now have at least one afternoon a week (two, some weeks) where I walk at a good pace about 7-10 miles + whatever walking I can get at weekends with my girlfriend.

I was sorry to lose the money, but there was just no other way forward, and I have to say that it's proved worth it. The work that remains, I perform better than before, and my life has more balance.

Working an office job that's been WFH'd, I don't know what the answer is, particularly in the darker winter months (for me, I am resolved to switch to morning walks and working later into the afternoon and early evening).

One issue that can develop over time is cervicogenic headache. This issue strains your muscles that span over your head. This origins from bad posture, typically from a screen-based job. Some exercises that help in these area, according to my physical therapist, are bending over your head as much as possible. Hold this position for 10 seconds. Then move your head back, such that you make a double chin. Also hold this for 10 seconds. The more you do these exercises, the better. They should strenghten your neck musculature. This way, you will develop a flexible neck.

What I do, is get up at 5AM (I “sleep in” on weekends, and get up at 5:30), and walk 2 miles (3.2Km). I’ve been doing it for many years.

It won’t give me washboard abs (I wonder how many people understand what a “washboard” is?), but it helps keep me from keeling over and popping my clogs.

I also use a standing desk (and have, for many years).

Neither of these things makes my day any more pleasant, but I feel they help.

Also, I can’t say enough for the concept of personal discipline. I feel that self-discipline, just by itself, contributes greatly to improved mental and physical health.

For every 20 minutes in front of the screen, go for a 10 minute walk. This has the added benefit of keeping your eyes, back,shoulders,neck, wrists and most importantly your brain in a relaxed state while getting things done. The trick is to keep thinking about what your working on during your walks. It’s sort of like background processing. When you return to your screen afterwards you may have the problem you were working on already solved.

I focus more on quick exercise before/between work. So:

* 7 min HIIT workout before work

* Walks during breaks. May do quick sprint on walk, literally just run 20-30 seconds in whatever you’re wearing, once. No need to sweat

At work, I do do two things:

* I have a sit stand desk

* While reading, I will generally stretch or massage. Like just quick forearm stretches or massage of any points sore from working

If you have reading to do you could do that on an exercise bike, there are small ones easy to fit in an office. And I definitely recommend calls while walking if you can manage it socially

But in general, sit sit, stand stand, never wobble is a good mantra. Good exercise and good work both require focus and you can’t really combine them.

But, you can do good exercise in 5 min on a work break. I’m more fit and strong than most and haven’t been to gym or done workout longer than 15 min in years.

You can try doing microworkouts throughout the day. For example:

1. I start the day with one set each of jumping jacks and ab crunches. You can also add in pushups and/or pull ups (if you have a bar).

2. I have resistance bands of various strength levels. Over the day I try to get in 100 reps each for biceps, triceps and shoulders. Usually I try to get a couple of sets in just before or after a meal.

I wouldn't say I'm in the best shape of my life, but this routine has improved my upper body strength at the very least.

I'm not a fan of standing desks for myself - I inevitably find myself leaning or unfocused. Dependent on your situation, but the things that work for me:

- see a personal trainer once a week (over Zoom). Forces me to show up, don't have to be disciplined.

- Set a daily step goal. Start where you are, and try to add 500 a day per week.

I think walking is the best exercise because everyone knows how to do it, low risk of injury, and you won't burn yourself out.

The only people I see successfully using stuff like standing desks etc are people who are already fit and also go to the gym every day. For other folks like me the only thing that works is to take a proper 15 - 20 min break minimum every 2 hours and go for a walk, take a break every hour to get a glass of water or something, and exercise in a gym or somewhere at least thrice a week. Honestly this itself drains me!

Standing desk, cardio in lunch break. I like to go running for 25 minutes. Quick snack, shower, back to desk. It's like starting the day again for me.

Buy three 4k screens. hook them up side by side. use all of them. forces your head and body to turn.

buy a table that can ascend/descend from a sitting to standing position. vary sitting and standing randomly. combined with the large screens around you, there will be lots of movement while at your desk.

but still minimize time at desk by taking phone calls while walking, etc

My top tip would be to regularly sip water while desk bound. This has the dual advantage of both hydrating and ensuring a physical break is regularly taken (a trip to the bathroom that involves a flight of stairs is a bonus).

Paradoxically, it seems to me that smokers are most likely to take regular breaks from their desk...

- Standing desk / treadmill desk / stationary bike

- Don't worry too much about getting in a lot of exercise during your work. Our bodies aren't designed to be very stationary but also not to constantly move

- But also make sure to do exercise outside of your work. Both cardio and heavy weights

- Good diet and sleep are also important

I set up a pull up bar next to my desk. Any time I start compiling I try to do a few pullups or pushups on the ground!

I use a solid wood workbench from Lowes as my standing desk - it is very solid but does not easily go down. I use a stool if I want to sit but stand most of the day.

Build a floor desk: https://youmemindbody.com/aches-pains/re-design-your-work-st...

Get a sit/stand desk, and make sure you do some cardio everyday. I burn an additional 1000 kJ by standing and dancing to music while waiting for stuff to load, and then I run about 10k and swim about 2k

Try Yoga. I started doing it every morning for 15-30 minutes, it makes a big difference.

Another advise I can give you: your health is more important than your job. Take the time you need every day.

Get a standing desk. If you really want to walk while working, you can also put up a treadmill. Need to keep the computer stationary somehow.

Set an allocated time, and during that time. Try to do anything that makes your body move. Also, try to rest your eyes as possible.

Every 30 minutes, I like to do 10 air squats

Housecleaning is great exercise. Keep your space unnecessarily tidy and clean.

everyone is suggesting solutions other than going to the gym or partaking in an athletic sport

Take breaks while working

standing desk + balance board