Important Coding Habits

> laptop

The author buried the lede. Using a bare laptop all day will damage your health. To achieve an ergonomic posture [0], you have to be looking straight forward (or close to that) while your elbows are low and bent at an obtuse angle. This is impossible with a laptop, unless you basically turn it into a desktop by connecting it to an external keyboard, mouse, and monitor(s). Theoretically, you could use a laptop stand instead of an external monitor, but I've found that the letters on a laptop screen are small enough that they make me reflexively crane my neck forward.

Time spent using a laptop without external peripherals should be limited just like vibration and noise exposure is. You're always straining either your shoulders, your neck, or both.

It's surprising to me that the author is looking into niche products like sit-stand desks before having addressed the obvious problem that would be pointed out by any ergonomics resource on the Internet. It reminds me of the phrase, "don't major in the minors".

[0] https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/7-things-you-need-fo...

Posture is very important. What’s also important is not trusting a chiropractor, like this article (previously) stated: chiropractic is a quack medicine[1] that ranges somewhere between harmless (but falsely advertised) massage and dangerous, sometimes fatal, spinal manipulation[2].

Edit: Amended to reflect the fact that this was likely a translation error.

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiropractic

[2]: https://web.archive.org/web/20100516074554/http://jrsm.rsmjo...

I think there's on assumption being made here which ought to be challenged. Laptops are widely used, but they are not great coding environments. They were created to enable portability, but the way it mostly gets used promotes terrible habits, posture, handpositions, viewing angles, all of the above. If given a choice I would opt for a desktop and live with the portability restrictions it comes with. Of course it is an increasingly uncommon choice. The next best thing is to use the laptop docked but closed, and have separate peripherals: monitors, keyboard, mouse.

I don't understand how people use laptops for extended periods of time. The only comfortable way to use a laptop is with an external monitor, keyboard and mouse. The author talks about ergonomics but still uses a laptop. Laptops are for doing work on a plane or taking to a hotel room when traveling, not for being a daily driver in my book (at least not without peripherals). The keyboard on laptops is too close together, the screen is at the wrong height and angle. Trackpads are disastrous. Using a laptop for 8 hours feels like the day after running a marathon but without any of the good parts.

I never liked the seated, sedentary nature of programming. Over time though, I've forced myself to take regular breaks, say every 10 minutes to straighten out my spine, and every 60 mins I go for a longish walk to clear my head and repair my back. Any hard problems or puzzles I encountered usually get solved when walking, as my brain is in a different state and can problem-solve better.

There are ergonomic items you can buy for a home-lab situation or maybe the office splurged out on Herman Miller chairs, but no amount of ergonomic items (Vertical Mouse etc) will solve the sitting down problem. You have to do pattern interrupts and frequent (reparative) breaks.

This is known to increase productivity. If you're in your twenties you can probably get away with long sessions sitting down without major issues, but over time, sitting /will/ affect you if you're not doing interrupts and exercising/repairing yourself.

I never really understood the appeal of standing desks. Standing still seems less natural to me than sitting, and I don't think it is particularly healthy, unlike moving. Personally, I can walk for hours, no problem, but I can't stand still for more than a few minutes at a time. Most jobs that require standing usually involve some moving around. A clerk for instance may leave the counter to bring the things you bought.

Out of all the usual recommendations, like better (sitting) posture, regular walking breaks, exercising, etc... Extended use of a standing desk seems like the worst to me, though alternating between sitting and standing seems like a good idea.

> According to my chiropractor, sitting for long periods of time had led to my stomach and thigh muscles being relatively unused, and therefore unable to assist my back in supporting my body, putting it under extra strain.

This is reasonable - getting up often and walking or stretching is good for you. However I wouldn't rely on chiropractors for medical advice.

Don't forget your hands! You don't think of programmers as "people who work with their hands", but we really are. (So are surgeons, by the way.)

I typed too hard for a few decades because I began on some really stiff keyboards. That has not been good for my fingers. You shouldn't hit keys harder than you need to, because if you multiply that by a few decades the impacts on your joints and tendons add up to damage. If your fingers hurt after a day of coding, pay attention.

Wrist angle matters. Carpal tunnel is no fun. (So far, I have been spared that.) Pay attention to strain on your wrists as you type. If there is some, think about your geometry, and how you can change it.

One of the things I despise about laptops is that their keyboards are too small for my hands. For serious work, I need a full-sized keyboard.

So when you think about ergonomics, don't forget your hands.

(And don't forget your eyes. Look away from the monitor to something at least 20 feet away, for at least 20 seconds, regularly. I forget what the recommendation is - every 20 minutes, or every 2 hours, or something. But regularly.)

For me the best option is a floor desk. I found sitting on the floor challenging at the beginning. I even had to re-learn how to get down to and up from the floor properly. But with time (and yoga/stretching exercises) my core has gotten stronger and my joints feel great and I can withstand any amount of time sitting on the floor. I'd say the amount of times you get down and up count as mild exercise. I have had no back or any other kind of pain whatsoever, even after longer sessions. A great thing is that you keep changing posture naturally and you have many more ways you can sit or squat on the floor than on a chair. I don't see this mentioned often, but to me it makes a lot of sense. Children prefer sitting on the floor (they haven't experienced any mobility loss yet), hunter-gatherer tribes sit on the floor for most of the day [0], older people in Japan (and other cultures) sit on the floor without much problem, etc., just to mention some examples.

[0] https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/sitting-all-day-bad-f...

I've been programming for ~20 years and I sit very slouched, with my butt resting at the at very forward lip of my chair.

This is very comfortable and relaxed and puts no pressure on my back at all. I keep my monitor high up so my head is elevated. If the need arises, I can do this for 12 hours a day without being uncomfortable or sore at all by the evening.

Sitting ramrod straight in the proper "ergonomic" position seems like a disaster waiting to happen. It's super uncomfortable and stresses my back, my arms, my neck.

Kudos for the author for raising this. I'd add one more thing to consider.

No Touch Typing.

Despite my many decades in IT I never learned to "properly" touch type. I type at the typical 40 wpm looking at the keyboard and moving my forearms and hands very frequently. However, recently I tried to learn touch typing. I set my chair/monitor/keyboard as recommended and I commenced some typing exercises with my fingers planted on the home row.

After an hour of this I felt my wrists are definitely going to give up if I carry on (mainly due to hands being held in this cramped position for a long time instead of random movements). Classic keyboards force you into a very unnatural angle where forearms point towards the centre and wrists are bent outwards to make both hands parallel. A split keyboard can probably resolve this. But entering into the realm of non standard keyboards has certain disadvantages (lack of portability). Then there is a slippery slope of.. If I'm contemplating a split keyboard why not go further into curved keyboards, key rows that are not offset and so on... It all becomes a long and expensive process of buying/building lots of "weird" keyboards. All of it could be avoided, just by giving up on touch typing.

Unless anyone has a better idea?

I’ve been dealing with a herniated disc for almost a year now. It’s completely changed how I view my body, and it’s made me forever grateful for my health - along with complete respect for those dealing with chronic medical issues. For the first few months I could barely get out of bed. Nine months later and I can only walk a mile or two a day. Unfortunately, I was laid off right before it happened and haven’t been table to get surgery. Talk about bad luck. This experience has accentuated how horrible the American healthcare system is to me. Even if I wanted take another turn in the service industry until I get back into engineering, I can’t, because I need my body fixed first.

> Don’t code late at night

Big disagree fore. For me, code comes much easier in the deep of the night. I can just write, and it's fine, where-as during the day I get distracted by side quests & perfectionism.

I think regularly of PKD writing I think in VALIS trilogy about the heat of the palm tree garden (of Eden), waves of heat making us languid. And then the night, the absence of god's light, humans unwatched, free, unburdened. The contrast has resonated with me for so long, the relief from pressures of the day, unburdened freedom. I feel it, I feel freer, as I code deeper into the night.

Weirdly I don't seem to have the two main problems that coders report: back pain and hand/wrist pain.

I always keep a straight posture. Either I'm standing, or I'm sitting with my back straight. I make sure I don't slouch, because that's what causes pain. Used to feel natural to slouch, but now it feels natural to puff my chest out. Also, walking on a treadmill while reading makes it impossible to slouch.

With my wrists, I'm not sure I get it. Surely people are not actually typing all the time? I spend a lot of time looking at the code by using the touchpad. A lot of slidey-two-fingers to scroll the text. But also I hardly type much when coding. I type in something, let smart complete fill in the line, hit tab. But it's not even that much text to type in. Most of the work is looking at things and thinking. Perhaps it's the height of the table, I have a movey-up-down table that I adjust so I'm not uncomfortable. But basically I never have wrist pain, whether I'm standing or sitting.

I think that working in the same position every day, for hours, is going to have bad effects even if you are in the best position. If you always stress exactly the same muscles, it's going to start hurting at some point.

So my solution is to change it up. I often change the setup of my screens, I switch between keyboards and mice, sometimes I work on my couch on my laptop, sometimes at the office, occasionally at a standing desk.

I think the variation helps.

I was confined to a supine workstation for a similar reason. Thankfully, changing my habits allowed a nearly full recover, albeit years long. I wrote about my setup, only slightly out of date: https://medium.com/@jcraigk/healthy-hacking-diy-supine-works...

I only use a kneeling chair. Also daily short 15-20min HIIT with pull ups have resolved all my back problems. I highly recommend the simple and sinister daily energizer approach. After work when you are tired and mentally drained is the best time to exercise. This gives you energy to do your own things for the remainder of the day.

I tried a standing desk. It boosted my productivity for sure - when I wanted to procrastinate instead I just switched between sitting/standing and kept working.

It also created a couple of health problems.

First, I started to feel pain in my left shoulder. After a while I realized that it's caused by leaning on my left arm as a way to let my feet rest.

Then, I started to feel tingling/numbness in one of my knees. It persisted for weeks until I stopped using a standing desk.

I'm hoping that a potential transition from monitors to AR glasses will substantially alleviate some of these issues.

Gosh that MRI looks just like mine from 2016. Herniation of the L5S1 disc, minor slip/misalignment of the vertebrae and some tearing of the longitudinal posterior ligament.

Mine was caused by poor squat form due to a lack of ankle mobility + sitting badly.

Took me 3 years to rehab it fully, with no need for surgery with a mix of standing desk, regular physiotherapy, changing movement patterns and time.

There is clear evidence that so long as the hernia isn’t causing imminent danger to bodily functions then the recovery path for having surgery and not having surgery is basically the same.

Also, chiro’s are quacks - their core thesis is treating (from memory) luxations, of which there is no evidence of existing. If you have an injury, find a physio who isn’t afraid to work on you with manipulations, massage, cupping, scraping, dry needling, mobilisations AND prescriptive exercises for mobility and strength work.

Stretching feels good, but has little effect in injury prevention. In general, back pain is very common across the population and quite resistant to reliable prevention or treatment. I think there was a study that found only education and physical activity had any effect at all (and stretching is not useful for meeting minimum physical activity standards).

Also, people tend to develop disc bulges as they age, and the vast majority are asymptomatic. In this case probably the pain is actually caused by the herniation, but don't nocebo yourself into pain just because there are some deformities in your spine.

As someone in his position 20+ years ago who did a lot of stretching and yoga for recovery, I can attest that this will only take you so far. Real gains come when you lift weights, which I started at the age of 49. The deadlift is a particularly good remedy for lumbar pain. Start on low weights with good form. Programmers develop weak lumbar support and stretching weak muscles can bring short term relief, but will not resolve the underlying issue. In time, stretching no longer becomes effective without over-stretching, which brings its own problems. Building that muscular support is key.

Totally agree, either physical or mental health problems is the most dangerous risk we face. Doing or not doing something over a long period of time can have serious consequences.

Do the exercises, not just the stretches. Squats and situps or planks. The difference between no exercise and little, but consistent, exercise is ridiculously large.

Can someone explain to me how you can slip a disk typing? I can't contort myself in a way I feel anything more than the occasional back muscle pain. Is the author unusually weak or something? I exercise frequently so perhaps my back is stronger than usual. Still, it seems extremely odd to me you can hurt yourself in that way just simply sitting. Hunched or not.

I use my computer lying down. Once you discover the utility and comfort of this approach, you'll never want to give it up.

Let me just drop in to recommend the Kinesis Advantage 2, a keyboard I bought about 6 years ago after first noticing wrist pain. It's probably my only purchase that beats Factorio in "benefit-per-dollar". I absolutely love it. Haven't used the 360 (it wasn't available when I bought it), but that looks even better.

I found my neck and shoulder a lot less tense since I started using split keyboards, and my overall posture also improved. The downside is trying (and building!) new split keyboards starts to become an addicting hobby, and I keep finding my next keyboard with fewer keys than the previous. Settled with a 36-key Skeletyl for now.

I've been sitting long in front of the computer since I was 6.

Being slouched, crossing your legs, many positions are an act of stretching. Skin will stretch, spine curvature will change, knee/hip tissue will stretch.

I have lost all of the curvature in the neck and spine. Outside of X-ray showing that neck/back lost its natural curvature, there's no tissue/disc damage. Doctors say it is quite normal for anyone sitting to lose curvature.

My sitting experience was never accompanied by pain.

I did notice knee & hip pain during longer walks in the left leg that I usually keep in a more stretched position while sitting (crossing or tucking legs). Since I've incorporated strength training (heavy squat/deadlift/overhead press) years ago there's no pain any more (interesting observation, left leg grew much more).

I have no idea if sitting, for me, is detrimental at all.

Too true. I’ve come to particularly dislike the way we design computing devices and interfaces. They ruin our bodies and require exceptions to accommodate people with different capabilities. And to afford those accommodations is a privilege many do not have access to.

The best thing we can do is spend less time in front of them.

I have a very similar issue and likely the same cause. What has helped for me: Cortisone shots (temporarily relief but not a fix), losing weight, core strengthening activities and switching to a standing desk 100% of the time. YMMV. 43yr old male, lifelong developer.

At first I thought this would be about technical habits, but I’m glad it’s actually about longevity.

I've had pretty bad spinal issues for the last 19 years, starting with my neck, but more recently with my lower back. Both have caused excruciating pain, with the neck being chronic mid-level, and the lower back putting me in bed for weeks and unable to walk for over a month.

I've dialed down the pain to background through several activities. First I went through physical therapy for both the neck and back issues, and did the prescribed exercises religiously. Finding a good therapist is crucial - some just give you pre-packaged sets of exercises, but good ones will be constantly evaluating and customizing your exercises and movements.

For my daily routine, I do 1 hour of Mysore Ashtanga yoga. It has dozens of cobra poses (urdva muka svanasana) to reverse the stress on your neck.

I also do the 12 minute Foundation Training routine, which strengthens the lower back. [1]

For ergonomics, I'm using a standing desk all day. It only takes a couple weeks to get used to, so you might need to take breaks while getting adjusted. Make sure to not lock the knees, or you can alternate which knee is locked. I like to stand in tree pose, alternating legs every once in a while. Make sure to have a standing pad to prevent leg issues.

I've also got a mini treadmill under the desk. I try to walk for 5-7 miles a day. It's not as hard as it sounds to get used to, and I'm actually able to code while doing this. Precise mouse movements can be difficult, but luckily my setup is Neovim + SwayWM + Vimium on the browser.

If i absolutely must sit, I use an exercise ball on top of a foam swimming noodle that has been glued with epoxy into a circle to keep it stable. The exercise ball keeps the spine in a good poster. It's difficult and painful to slouch on an exercise ball.

For my keyboard, I use a Glove80 split ergo. It's a brilliant setup that has gone through tons of a/b testing to fit most hands without needing to move your hands and wrists into awkward positions.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BOTvaRaDjI

The only habit you need are the regular strength exercises, especially for the stability of the back muscles.

Please, please forget about the stretches or "ergonomics" if you don't excersise. It will not help you in the long run.

I rarely use my laptop as a coding device, must have external monitors and keyboards, otherwise my neck hurts quickly.

the laptop by design is too close between its keyboard and monitor, I wonder how others can use it continuously.

I hope in public areas we have some monitor+keyboard+mouse there for use(or rent, like the EV chargers to-be-built-more or the gas-stations-everywhere), everyone just brings his/her laptop, or even a little raspberry pi or intel NUC, or cast their phone screen, then plug and get work done.

Quick question I like to ask to remote workers who have worked in office environments before:

Do you find your ergonomics are better or worse since switching to working at home? Or the same?

I've heard it both ways, but for me it's been harder to keep up healthy ergo habits at home. Not sure if it was peer pressure in the office that kept me using my standing desk better or what, but I definitely have slipped and my posture is noticeably worse lately.

Been coding mostly from hone to 20+ years. You need:

1. Adjustable height desk (sit/stand, whatever) 2. External monitor, full-size keyboard, and mouse 3. Comfy chair (NOT necessarily “ergonomic”). If you’re comfortable and your body doesn’t hurt when standing or changing position, then it’s a good chair). 4. Frequent mental breaks (play guitar, games, fidget toys, etc.) 5. Post-nut clarity

I do body weight exercises and stretch every day. They are easy to do during breaks from coding, and don't require any special equipment.

I am really fond of the L-sit as it works so many muscle groups and makes for a strong core. It's something you may have to work up to though.

I also meditate. It is great for concentration and overall well-being.

As someone who has been feeling various back pains at the ripe old age of 25, I appreciate this article greatly.

I think regular sports involving use of muscles really helps with this. Either weight lifting, with an emphasis on squats and deadlifts, bouldering, certain forms of yoga, calisthetics etc. Keeping your overall muscles strong supports the rest of your body throughout the day while you work.

Just a little thing but it would help a lot if terminal input lines were at the top of the screen by default.

I invested in a Herman Miller Aeron to try help with my posture and back, and it was uncomfortable for months. Eventually I adjusted, which was helped by finding a proper height desk and losing a bit of weight.

Just saying this so people know: a good chair is not necessarily an instant fix.

I have suffered the same. The pain from the sciatica was unlike anything I had ever experienced. Excruciating doesn’t even begin to describe it.

The McKenzie exercises every morning since have undoubtedly helped my recovery. As has giving up running.

I am using the Herman Miller Embody and Envelop desk with a foot rest. Being able to pull the desk in/out, switching between reclined / upright, etc.. is great for varying seating positions throughout the day.

I try to incorporate deadlifts into my workouts twice a week to prevent this.

Lower back pain is scary. During covid, when the gyms were closed, I couldn’t do deadlifts and felt the back pain coming. Thankfully everything opened up.

wrt posture, this cool (because its simple and pithy) Chrome extension has reminded me every 20 minutes for years to "Sit Up Straight, Cuz" and similar admonitions.

https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/postureminder/dkmk...

https://github.com/sheryllun/postureminder

Keen to here whether anyone here uses a exercise/sitting ball at a desk as a way to improve posture?

Insta-closed when I saw that hideous AI “art” at the top. How is that at all better than nothing at all?

Alas, too late. Add half our walks after lunch and diner, in addition to the other habits mentioned.

The best posture is your next one.

Just keep moving guys, and train those core muscles that keep your back straight.

- exercise! - use an external monitor, stop squinting at a 15" screen.

There you go.

Using laptop is a last resort...

This article is pretty clueless, as most people.

Backbone is hugely supported by muscles. Slipped disc basically means there were no muscles to prevent it. Posture, healthy lifestyle etc is hugely irrelevant. Also typical exercise like running, lifting etc does not help.

As a developer, you should train torso muscles to protect your backbone. Pretty complicated regime, you need good personal trainer for that.