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Comment by throwawaaarrgh | Hacker News Reader

Not gonna walk around for 22 minutes, it's boring. I can barely get myself to exercise regularly, so I go on hikes on the weekend. During the day I do pushups, pullups, overhead press, squats, jump tucks. But I only do 10-20 reps per day (total); sometimes I only do 5. Surprisingly, I'm getting stronger every few weeks (can do more reps). And I'm a stronger hiker than anyone I know. So, if I die early, so be it.

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This kind of article is clearly targeted to people who do no exercise at all, and is aimed at motivating them to just walk, which most people consider to be easy and not a “real” exercise. The point is that walking, even though it’s easy, still has useful benefits. You’re not the target audience for this.

The article is targeted at people who sit for long periods of time. It says nothing about how much they might exercise or not. In any case, I don't do 22 minutes of exercise a day, more like 2 minutes.

So I'm still the target audience, you're wrong, and I'm not right, because I wasn't trying to make a point or win Internet Argument Points.

Why does every comment on HN need to be adversarial? I feel like it's a result of the rules being skewed to only comments that are "useful", and that leading to intellectual competition and constantly trying to "win" some point. Why can't we just share our thoughts without constant corrections?

> Not gonna walk around for 22 minutes, it's boring. (...) I go on hikes on the weekend.

Maybe you should walk in a more interesting environment?

What sort of environment stays interesting month after month after month, though?

I do a ~25 minute walk basically every day -- the key for me is doing a defined loop. Doesn't matter where, just so long as it's a single loop (eg no repeating, no backtracking) and it always stays interesting for me. And in fact the more you do it, the more it becomes rote, and the LESS you care about the route being interesting. You can just tune out, go on autopilot, and keep thinking about what ever you want to keep thinking about but also get some exercise in.

Just my $0.02

I go for a 50 min walk every night with my gf, virtually always the same route, and it's never boring quite the opposite. It's the only time where you have nothing else to do than focus on the essentials, no screen, no music, no food/snacks. Before I met her I did the same alone and it wasn't boring either. If it's boring it probably mean you're addicted to overstimulation

I have a coffee in a park with the wife almost every evening. Park is 2.5 km away from home. If you need a goal, a latte will do.

Ah but you shouldn't drink caffeine past 6pm

You really don't need to tell people not to do the things that they enjoy doing. Most people aren't idiots: they know what works for them.

When I met my wife she would consistently drink a pot of coffee around 8PM and fall asleep an hour later. Different people are wired differently.

Not to disparage your intention here. But couldn't you apply the same argument to this paper's results?

I.e. "Some people don't need to walk 22 minutes a day, don't tell them to do so. Different people are wired differently."

Just as there is evidence walking 22 minutes a day improves lifespan for the /majority/ of people, drinking caffeine 6 hours before bed is considered negative for your sleep for the /majority/ of people. It's sound advice, even if it's telling someone what to do.

While I believe suggesting people be more lenient to other's life choices is good - it's a practice in empathy - sometimes people are misguided because the might not realize the impact of their actions, haven't thought about their actions thoroughly, etc. These mentions can be wakeup calls just as often as they can be negative/annoyances. I'd argue OP keep suggesting advice and instead we all try to keep open minds is the safer choice, for the /majority/ at least.

You can always get decaf or hot chocolate or something else if caffeine bothers you. But of course people have to pick on the use of coffee instead of the advice to have a goal.

Something magical happens to a walk when you do the same route again and again. At some point it stops being routine and turns into something else like you notice things differently each time. With another even more so.

The woods!

The woods are a visual, olfactory, sonic, and proprioceptive environment that is almost overwhelmingly stimulating and ever changing, if you take the time to soak it in.

Facts! That's why I said it as a response to the person asking what walking path could remain interesting month after month!

Around here it's peak mushroom fruiting season. Tons of interesting fungi popping up everywhere! My neighbourhood walks are taking about 10% longer as I stop to take pictures.

Treadmill and a TV?

Walking is a chance to explore your own mind, which should stay interesting.

The woods.

This is a primary reason I live in a real city, of the sort of which are common everywhere but the USA.

Likewise! If you live in a reasonable urban center, walking can just happen in the course of the day, without requiring special time and effort. I never exercise for exercise's sake, but I walk to work, walk to the store, walk to get coffee, walk to the bar, walk to friends' houses; at least 40 minutes of walking every day, often more. It is so much more pleasant than driving everywhere.

Your imagination

Its not about the environment, its about getting out of the damned house and away from distractions. When I go on walks in my neighborhood, thats when the deep thinking happens. Nothing to distract you, just you and your thoughts. I’m not even thinking about where I’m walking to. I’m thinking about all kinds of things. Sometimes the 20 minute walk turns into an hour and I don’t even realize it if I’ve really been pondering.

New York City.

I can't sit still to listen to podcasts, and I soon get bored walking around.

But putting the two together, walking whilst listening to podcasts works very well for me.

The concern for most of us isn't dieing early but rather becoming disabled early by chronic disease or injury. Frequent hard exercise is one of the most effective ways to increase healthspan even if it doesn't necessarily do a lot to extend maximum lifespan.

“It’s boring to walk and I don’t exercise regularly: instead I take long walk regularly on weekends and exercise daily.”

I listen to audiobooks or take Zoom calls.

I have gotten friends and family complaining that I only call when I'm on my way somewhere. A nice walk is a good excuse to call mom.

I used to take walks around the neighborhood during weekly meetings and 1:1s.

Complaining? What do they want: you only calling when you need something from them?

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