Why your desk job is slowly killing you

Doc, here. I don't think the article is sensationalist at all. Here's a quick list of basic steps I recommend<p>* standing desk: I love mine. 2x6 legs, 2x4 connecters, $50 at Home Depot, and 4 hours of work -- <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/niels_olson/5097452401/lightbox/" rel="nofollow">http://www.flickr.com/photos/niels_olson/5097452401/lightbox...</a><p>* live close enough to work to walk or ride. Ride to the train or ferry if necessary. (I ride 17 miles, take a train, then another 4 miles)<p>* Move to Southern California. I'm not kidding.<p>* Strength:<p><i></i> 50 low crunches, 5n pushups, m half-down pullups<p><i></i> 50 side crunches, 5(n-1) pushups, m-2 half-down pullups<p><i></i> 50 crunches, 5(n-2) pushups, m-4 half-down pullups<p><i></i> 50 opposite side crunches, 5(n-3) pushups, m-6 half-down pullups<p><i></i> 50 crunches<p><i></i> Vary n and m to ability<p>* Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.<p><i></i> Michael Pollan, Unhappy Meals (Food, Inc; King Corn, and Omnivore's Dilemma condensed into one essay) --<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/28/magazine/28nutritionism.t.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/28/magazine/28nutritionism.t....</a><p><i></i> Join the Slow Food movement: <a href="http://www.slowfood.com/about_us/eng/manifesto.lasso" rel="nofollow">http://www.slowfood.com/about_us/eng/manifesto.lasso</a><p><i></i> Four books I'd like to see in every kitchen:<p><i></i>* Deborah Madison, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone (number one among vegetarians, but also the vegetable cookbook everyone should have) -- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Vegetarian-Cooking-Everyone-Deborah-Madison/dp/0767900146" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/Vegetarian-Cooking-Everyone-Deborah-Ma...</a><p><i></i>* Mark Bittman, Fish (If you can't cook fish after this, kill yourself) -- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Fish-Complete-Guide-Buying-Cooking/dp/0028631528" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/Fish-Complete-Guide-Buying-Cooking/dp/...</a><p><i></i>* Harold McGee, On Food and Cooking (unrivaled, in depth, the go-to resource for food hackers) -- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Food-Cooking-Science-Lore-Kitchen/dp/0684800012" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/Food-Cooking-Science-Lore-Kitchen/dp/0...</a><p><i></i>* Julia Child, Mastering the Art of French Cooking (the original food hacker) -- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Art-French-Cooking-Vol/dp/0375413405" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Art-French-Cooking-Vol/dp/03...</a>

The researchers are comparing the time we spend walking against the time spent walking by a bunch of theme park actors they hired? How absurd.<p>No doubt there were people in history who moved about more than we do. There were also people who moved far less than we do, on account of being snowed in all winter, or chained to a Lowell sewing machine. And I think our diet is on average, better than theirs was. I don't claim to know the causes of the increase in heart disease, but I know specious pop sociology when I see it.

I imagine a lot of people will weigh in on standing desks, but what about just kneeling at a desk? Would that be better than sitting in a chair? What about working while in some sort of yoga position?

Companies that have vast numbers of adjustable desks (e.g. Fog Creek [1]): How many developers use them in standing mode vs. sitting mode? Do many pick a mode and stick with it forever, or do they change it up throughout the day? And how many who are normally sedentary switch for a few days following a story like this on HN (or the hailstorm of similar stories on Lifehacker not too long ago)? :-P<p>Selfishly, my question can be boiled down to "build a standing desk or splurge on a GeekDesk?", but I am genuinely interested in how people use them long term.<p>[1]: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMVeHFrgOpE" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gMVeHFrgOpE</a>

Several people have mentioned the Workfit which looks intriguing but I've also thought about getting a GeekDesk. Anyone have experience with either or both?<p><a href="http://www.geekdesk.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.geekdesk.com/</a>

Anyone have a recommendation for an adjustable stand for monitor, keyboard and mouse that can sit low on a normal desk but raise up 1-2 feet use while standing? I'm not having any luck finding such a product.

A factor I would like to see controlled for would be the serum vitamin D levels of the subjects. I'm guessing that at least some of these findings could simply be the result of spending more time indoors.

Correlation is not causality. It seems that all these studies are simply observing correlations.<p>Some of the things in this article are just wrong. For example that sitting will cause "bad" forward pelvic tilt. Sitting generally eliminates forward pelvic tilt- which is the real problem. Forward pelvic tilt (sticking the but out) is the posture all humans used until recently in Western civilization.<p>Also, the idea that sitting will make you fatter because you aren't burning calories is fairly silly. In that case, an hour at the gym would be able to make up for all your sitting. At any rate, most people's appetites/metabolism will simply adjust (read Good Calorie, Bad Calorie for an overview of the obesity evidence).<p>All this being said, as a personal theory I consider sitting in a chair to be harmful. Any time civilization does something like this it usually has bad consequences. Sitting in chairs could be the number one thing we do that ruins our flexibility. Humans are supposed to be able to squat with their butt on the floor.<p>Standing while working is a fine alternative (and a treadmill desk would seem even better). However, other postures are going to be required to start re-gaining natural flexibility. I am experimenting now with different postures- squatting, sitting on the ground, and standing with a bent back. It is possible to work at a computer while doing all of these.

I bet using something like a treadmill desk would help.<p><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPjN07JyVjo&#38;feature=player_embedded" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPjN07JyVjo&#38;feature=playe...</a><p>They say it works in the video for doing things like e-mail and phone calls... maybe it would work for things that require more concentration...I wonder if anyone has had experience doing something like this while writing code.<p>Looks like a neat idea either way.

Even if you exercise, the more hours a day you sit, the greater your risk of early death

I find it very hard to take this article seriously, since there are constant interruption with things like "Work your entire body in 15 minutes with these three moves for fast muscle" and "Tied to the treadmill? Try these seven ways to burn more fat on the belt".<p>It reminds me very much of an old SNL skit with Jerry Seinfeld about "news-at-11" style reporting. I can't find a better link than this one:<p><a href="http://snltranscripts.jt.org/99/99anewswatch.phtml" rel="nofollow">http://snltranscripts.jt.org/99/99anewswatch.phtml</a><p>But the whole thing is filled with quotes like "Connor, it's no bark and all bite for golden retrievers and other so-called family dogs. What's causing these sweet and furry creatures to viciously attack sleeping toddlers? Stay, and we'll tell you in a minute.".

So this debunks the idea that sporadic gym excercise making up a small portion of your week is not enough to keep you healthy.<p>But what about intense, all-day excursions on the weekends? The kind that keep your heart rate up all day long and leave you limp and beaten?

I recently saw a comparative review of budget standing desk options, and I wish I would have bookmarked it. It was from someone who had evaluated a ton of them, put them up as his own personal opinion.<p>Anyone know what I'm talking about?

Seems pretty sensationalist to me. HN, please help debunk :)

Anyone have success reducing the number of hours sitting down while still hacking just about all day/every day?

The Modern Healthy Lifestyle Checklist is growing.<p>1. Barefoot running. (check for me)<p>2. Paleolithic diet. (nope)<p>3. Stand while hacking not siting. (nope)<p>#3 is easy to implement, just put the chair in the other room. #1 is already done. #2 is hard to do because I don't make the choice to shop for X food plus potato chips are tasty.

How many of you can do all this (linked from OP <a href="http://www.menshealth.com/mhlists/be_fit/index.php?cm_mmc=MSNBC-_-Sentenced%20to%20the%20chair-_-Article-_-10%20Standards%20to%20assess%20your%20fitness%20level" rel="nofollow">http://www.menshealth.com/mhlists/be_fit/index.php?cm_mmc=MS...</a>)?<p>* Bench 1.5 Times Your Body Weight<p>* Run 1.5 Miles in 10 Minutes<p>* Touch the Rim<p>* Leg-Press 2.25 Times Your Weight<p>* Swim 700 Yards in 12 Minutes<p>* Do 40 Pushups<p>* Measure Up<p>* Run 300 Yards Sub 1 Minute<p>* Touch Your Toes<p>* Toss a Basketball 75 Feet Kneeling<p>A couple are pretty intense. I lift 3 days a week, climb, and do cardio 1-2 times a week. I cannot bench 285 (1.5x bw; my 5 RM @ 235), or squat 425 (2.25 bw; 5 RM @ 275). Also not sure about the swimming.

Isn't there some factor such as posture being left out here? What about monks who meditate in sitting position for very long stretches?

What about sitting on an exercise ball? Have read quite a few articles in HN about the benefit of doing so.

In the context of this study, does riding a bicycle in the normal seated position count as sitting?

Things like this make me question the wisdom in the career choice I am about to leap into headlong.

I believe it, at least the general conclusion that sitting at a desk for 40 hours a week, plus sitting in your car for another 5-10, probably ain't that good for your health. It ain't what your body was designed to do.

In the US, 14 people a day die in the workplace.