My Treadmill Desk | Hacker News Reader

My Treadmill Desk

joshwhiton.com

45 pointsjeremyrwelch46 comments

Computer programmers have a fixation on treadmills other sedentary hobbyists don't have.

I have a treadmill behind the main TV couch in my house, and I sometimes use it while the TV is on. I don't watch much TV with the result that I don't walk on the treadmill very much, but it does sometimes happen.

The main treadmill problem I can see is they're not really compatible with little kids or small animals WRT obvious hazard, so for a variety of reasons its only recently that I can safely use mine without any worry. This focus does fit in with the stereotype that startups are really good at solving 25 year old kid problems, not so good at the other 90% of the population. What doesn't fit in is a stereotypical startup kid would live in a tiny apartment and the "whiiiiiir" would drive the other inmates crazy pretty quickly, to say nothing of the horrible open office fad, if my treadmill takes up 3ft x 6ft or so area and a fad style open office only allocates a 2ft x 2ft space per person this is a problem.

I have no complaint with this implementation and anytime I see someone do carpentry I like it. I'm just commenting on the general fascination with treadmills and desks seen on HN, its kinda funny.

There's also something deliciously ironic about literally being on a treadmill while you're working. It's a metaphor we often use to describe the feeling of not getting anything done, or working just for the sake of working.

There is truth in that. However why are computer programmers utterly fascinated with the concept, but not, for example, accountants? Or stock traders? Or customer service? Those seem like even more stereotypically cyclical jobs.

I propose the analogy of the "endless loop" of the treadmill and endless loop software bugs.

No doubt sitting is bad, but don't overthink this. The original and following studies could not possibly have controlled for every related variable. There's just too many potential nodes and arcs.

If you're in generally good health, get a standing desk and call it a day.

It could also be argued that having a treadmill desk leads to spending more time at the desk. Since treadmill means less work done due to fatigue + less productivity because of loss of deep focus. Overall, bad news. Standing desk + general cardio is what I recommend.

Actually, at such a low speed I find it only helps focus. It's meditative, similar to how a labyrinth is an ancient meditative walking device.

Also, our bodies evolved walking 10+ miles per day. Not standing in one place for hours. The broader point is about reconciling modern lifestyles with the evolutionary past that we are still largely bound by.

How low a speed are we talking here for maximum focus? Have you tested with different speeds? Would be interesting!

> get a standing desk and call it a day.

http://google.com/search?q=prolonged+standing

> Since treadmill means [...] less productivity because of loss of deep focus.

Is your conclusion based on personal experience with treadmill desks?

I'm not following your logic here. What I'm getting is, "this topic is complicated and we don't know much, so you should adopt the solution I happen to like." Is that what you were after?

I built a treadmill desk a few years ago and I love it. It's tough to get myself out of my chair to use it, but once I get started I like it.

It's definitely not an all day solution though. I usually start feeling tired after about 45 minutes. I start sweating at about 1 hour. After 1.5 hours, I need a break. So I go back the my sit down desk.

The basic idea is to avoid staying in one place for a long time. Treadmill for an hour or so, then site for a while. Repeat.

How fast are you going? I had mine set on 1-2 mph, and never broke a sweat.

Regardless, I am a big fan of breaks; if I'm out hiking I'll also stop every couple of hours to sit down for a bit. And really, when I'm sitting I try to stand up and move around every couple of hours.

All those things wrong about 'sitting' are wrong about standing also. It's the fact that your spine is supporting your weight that causes back pain and issues. If you are sitting, it's best to use the chair back to support your back so you can recline in a 135 degrees.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitting#Posture

The tide is probably turning against that opinion: the aches and pains are not due to the body doing too much, but too little.

> If you are sitting, it's best to use the chair back to support your back so you can recline in a 135 degrees.

This idea is supported by a study that focused only on the volunteers' backs, not their necks, shoulders, etc.

Standing still is sub-optimal. But that's why treadmills are better - you're exercising and building muscle and that helps back pain.

For me, this is not about “cardio”. This is simply about not sitting. That’s it. That’s all.

In which case, wouldn't the author be better off with a lectern with a stool. Then they could stand or sit depending on mood.

It seems to me that some combination of sitting and standing are likely to have the greatest health benefits. There's evidence that standing all the time is itself not good for you.

The extended content in grey covers my experiments with standing desks prior to this. tl;dr: Standing for a half hour leads to aching body parts — walking doesn't.

Right, but I wasn't talking about walking vs. standing, I was talking about standing vs. sitting. There seems to be evidence that being upright all the time isn't good for you either.

Sitting and standing for extended periods both have their perils. However, given that we're built for long distance walking, that might be more optimal:

http://healthland.time.com/2011/04/13/the-dangers-of-sitting...

My personal thoughts would be that if computer interfaces catch up to the point of being able to use them in a redwood forest you won't be looking at the redwood forest you would be working.

Much better to be in a controlled environment that does not distract you from your work but takes into account all the evolution that has taken place so far.

Treadmill desks can cause seasickness.

At least for people video chatting with you :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-SKWfNWS08

Not sure how fast the person in this video is walking though. [edit: looks like he's walking at 2-2.5mph, whereas author recommends 0.5mph]

Why does the article cut off unexpectly? Is it not finished, or is it a chrome bug?

Does it really just cut off? I colored the second, less essential half of the article grey for visual simplicity. Is it not showing up as such for you?

This is the last paragraph I see when I get to the bottom of the page:

    Noise — If you’re in an office environment noise is a real concern, especially for the $35 Craiglist special. There are exercise treadmills out there that are whisper quiet but you’ll need to find out which ones. I assume the new generation of treadmills geared for desk use are a fair bit quieter.

That is the last paragraph. Shouldn't be the last word though. You're seeing it cut off with the word "for" ? Anyone else?

I don't think it's cutting off for them. The lack of margin at the bottom makes it feel unfinished though.

Yeah. Lack of margin definitely made me try scrolling down a few times. Also, from the amount of intro, I was expecting a longer, more detailed article. And it didn't seem to conclude so much as stop.

I guess I was expecting a conclusion (or hopefully instructions on building one :-)

I see the full article (I assume), but the grey coloring keeps throwing me off.

I'm interpreting this as pretty hardcore satire. Is anyone else picking up on that?

50%-20% of my days are spent on the phone. I doubt anyone would want to talk to me if I was huffing and puffing or breathing heavily into the phone.

I think the best approach is to talk a jog during lunch it gets the blood flowing and make me less tired afterwards.

EDIT: I didnt realize you would be walking at 0.5 MPH.

If you're huffing and puffing at .5 mph, you probably really need a walking desk...

I didnt realize that was how slow they were going. But just moving around with a headset you can hear the noise.

I think this goes along with his observations of speed/typing error rate correlation: go slow. He's only going .5 an hour, typical walking speed is 3mph, so he's not likely to be winded.

However, it could make considerable noise (enough to effect a phone call).

I'd say if you're spending 50%-20% of your days on the (presumably wireless, cordless, mobile, whatever radiation-emitting technology) phone, then sitting is not the main concern you should have regarding your health.

Those were workdays so out of an 8 hour workday I have between 2-4 hours of meetings and then they expect me to get my coding done with 20%-50% of my day taken up by meetings...but I digress that is a different discussion.

If you use an earbud headset are you subject to the same radiation than say putting a phone/bluetooth device against your head?

Reminds me of those hamster wheels.

In the middle of a redwood forest.

Is it because he "loves" nature so much he'll tear down dozens of redwood trees and displace wildlife so he can casually mention it in his blog posts?

Anyone who destroys nature to be close to it does so out of ego, nothing more.

In the middle of a redwood forest.

Is it because he "loves" nature so much he'll tear down dozens of redwood trees and displace wildlife so he can casually mention it in his blog posts?

Anyone who destroys nature to be close to it does so out of ego, nothing more.

Not that you are even on topic here, but it doesn't take "dozens of trees" to make the little wooden desk that he made.

Wait, what? Since when was appreciating the aesthetics of nature bad? Since when was living in a cabin in the woods a nature-destroying venture? How did you conclude his motivations were solely narcissistic? Yes, he's living out there just so he can mention it in blog posts...

This sort of extreme snap judgement just comes across as envy.

No, disgust. I'm exposing the truth and advocating for wildlife. I'm allowed to do that. It's my planet too.

Then give up whatever device you are typing on, and never set foot again in whatever structure you are typing from. Surely you know that your activities have destroyed at least as much nature as whatever you're criticizing.

What truth? You've asserted, in the form of a question, that OP was involved in the destruction of redwoods. You then make a statement that assumes an answer to the question you just posed.

Sounds like jealous to me!

How is the OP destroying wildlife?

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