The Sedentary Life Of A Dev: Staying healthy in the workplace?
polycounter lvl 13
Being rooted to our desks day-in day-out is the nature of our jobs. But how long can we last in such a sedentary career. What can we do to battle against this slow death sentence heh.
How many solid hours do you spend at your desk? How often do you take breaks? And for how long? What do you do in those breaks, exercise, stretch? Does your studio have good or bad views on employee health, Crunch vs Longevity?
I'm interested to know how everyone deals with it, what your average work day is like. What you do personally to stay healthy?
And whether your studio contributes to aiding or worsening your health aswell:
- Some places can be all about crunching long continuous hours, fueled by caffeine and snack food. Often well past clocking off time.
- Others can be more health conscious/family type focused; sensible hours, fewer crunches for shorter durations. Encourage physical activities as a team.
It's possible to stipulate that these can relate to the type of people working there; Younger newer upstarts can love the 'work hard play hard', 'burn the midnight oil' lifestyle. Where as more experienced devs with families will want/need more sensible work hours. I've heard some crazy tales from both ends of the spectrum ranging from slave labour to inhouse gyms :poly101:
While this older thread (Quality of life vs. crunch) has some nice discussions on the subject, I created this thread to preferably culminate a larger focus on what we all personally do to try and stay healthy at our workplace.
I'm no model but I'm becoming more aware. For me I find I can easily go 4 hours at my desk without noticing, I try to force myself every 2 hours as a minimum to do some stretching and exercise. mainly anything to get the legs pumping, or just 20minutes away from my desk as apposed to just getting up for a drink or whatever.
I generally eat healthy meals, lots of veg - no junk food although I can be pretty lazy with cooking, I still snack throughout the day on fruit or biscuits. I drink a ton of water and consume lots of tea. I try to avoid too much caffeine.
Interceptor is very much a crunch instead of sleeping indie company, being around 30 people all 20s-30s. Aslong as you meet milestones you can however manage your own time, taking breaks as you see fit. Which combats nicely the long hours.
That all may sound good but I've noticed a serious lack of exercise being at a pc for so long over the past 5 years, instead of becoming overweight I find myself at the opposite end being a frail skinny white boi now. I spend all day at my desk, trying to up my exercise too much often results in straining a muscle and having to recover thus almost nullifying the progress haha. still wanting to do personal art in the evenings but after a whole day at a desk my body just wants to get away from it at that point haha.
I used to skate alot which kept me super healthy, but breaking my limbs isn't good for an artist so I gradually got out of it. Now I'm litually too weak to do such a strenuous hard impact sport straigh off the bat again. I need gradual progressive exercise to work upto something like that again I guess. Which is my ultimate goal, to find a healthy balance between desk and body. :poly142:
So what do you guys do to stay healthy in the workplace? Even better, do you work together to stay healthy at work?
.
How many solid hours do you spend at your desk? How often do you take breaks? And for how long? What do you do in those breaks, exercise, stretch? Does your studio have good or bad views on employee health, Crunch vs Longevity?
I'm interested to know how everyone deals with it, what your average work day is like. What you do personally to stay healthy?
And whether your studio contributes to aiding or worsening your health aswell:
- Some places can be all about crunching long continuous hours, fueled by caffeine and snack food. Often well past clocking off time.
- Others can be more health conscious/family type focused; sensible hours, fewer crunches for shorter durations. Encourage physical activities as a team.
It's possible to stipulate that these can relate to the type of people working there; Younger newer upstarts can love the 'work hard play hard', 'burn the midnight oil' lifestyle. Where as more experienced devs with families will want/need more sensible work hours. I've heard some crazy tales from both ends of the spectrum ranging from slave labour to inhouse gyms :poly101:
While this older thread (Quality of life vs. crunch) has some nice discussions on the subject, I created this thread to preferably culminate a larger focus on what we all personally do to try and stay healthy at our workplace.
I'm no model but I'm becoming more aware. For me I find I can easily go 4 hours at my desk without noticing, I try to force myself every 2 hours as a minimum to do some stretching and exercise. mainly anything to get the legs pumping, or just 20minutes away from my desk as apposed to just getting up for a drink or whatever.
I generally eat healthy meals, lots of veg - no junk food although I can be pretty lazy with cooking, I still snack throughout the day on fruit or biscuits. I drink a ton of water and consume lots of tea. I try to avoid too much caffeine.
Interceptor is very much a crunch instead of sleeping indie company, being around 30 people all 20s-30s. Aslong as you meet milestones you can however manage your own time, taking breaks as you see fit. Which combats nicely the long hours.
That all may sound good but I've noticed a serious lack of exercise being at a pc for so long over the past 5 years, instead of becoming overweight I find myself at the opposite end being a frail skinny white boi now. I spend all day at my desk, trying to up my exercise too much often results in straining a muscle and having to recover thus almost nullifying the progress haha. still wanting to do personal art in the evenings but after a whole day at a desk my body just wants to get away from it at that point haha.
I used to skate alot which kept me super healthy, but breaking my limbs isn't good for an artist so I gradually got out of it. Now I'm litually too weak to do such a strenuous hard impact sport straigh off the bat again. I need gradual progressive exercise to work upto something like that again I guess. Which is my ultimate goal, to find a healthy balance between desk and body. :poly142:
So what do you guys do to stay healthy in the workplace? Even better, do you work together to stay healthy at work?
.
Replies
I'm also starting seated leg raises for abdominal strength and I've put a no fuss pull up bar on the door. Every time I walk through I have to do one mandatory pull up. I used to climb and be quite strong but I've got the upper strength of a kitten now so even one is pushing it but I'm improving quickly.
One thing that helps to monitor my time is the Pomodoro technique. There's free apps everywhere for it. 25 minutes work, 3 minute rest, rinse, repeat.
It helps me keep track of the day. I can happily burn 4 hours without realising and that isn't necessarily a smart way to work. It keeps me asking if I'm using my time in the best way.
Also, finishing my work day when I'm supposed to. The extra 1-2 hours at the end of the day to polish things up equate to a full work day by the end of the week and again, it's not a smart way to work.
I'm not super strict with this stuff but it keeps me looking in the right direction.
Latley I have been all about pimpin' my lifestyle, and being fit, jacked and eating healthy have massivley boosted my energy, confidence and generally makes me feel a lot better than being alittle slug sitting at a desk all the time not doing anything. It can be hard to be motivated sometimes but pushing through that is what creates good habits, not the new years resolution hit the gym for a week or 2 and then quit.
heed this advice
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Going to echo the whole excercise thing as well as mentioned by others - been trying the Shaun T insanity workout which is great even if you don't have much time during the day, just half an hour - 40 mins at least and it will get you sweating like a bastard!
Fellow SWOLBROTHER here... I'm a little over a month into my new lifestyle. I hit the gym 6 days a week, for an hour. I've recently added an additional hour, later in the evening, 3 times a week, too. Although, I'm fortunate enough to work at a place with a decent gym. I coach roller derby on the side, so my nights and weekends are often full of skating (I look glorious in my booty shorts).
If you can't get to the gym, give yourself time to get up and walk around, stretch, etc. Also, if you drink soda, work towards cutting that shit out. So many devs sit at their desk and pound Mnt Dew/Energy drinks. Believe it or not, we run better on premium and I guarantee that you'll have more energy by just being a little bit more active and eating healthy food.
Hydrate! Get yourself a good water bottle and drink tons of water from it. I recommend the [ame=http://www.amazon.com/Contigo-AUTOSEAL-Bottle-32-Ounce-Charcoal/dp/B003KZKDIG/]Contigo.[/ame] You won't see me around the office without it.
Amen to that, when I was at Sega I'd always see people knocking back cans of Relentless everyday, that shit is so bad for your insides XO
adding to this point - if you're sipping on cola, coffee or any caffeine containing liquid during the day and make it a habit, be aware that regular caffeine intake is elevating your cortisol levels over time, which will contribute to chronic fatigue, sugar cravings and, possibly, suppression of immune system;
it also slows down bone formation, and, if you're often drinking coke, that one contributes to calcium loss, which will lead to long-term osteoporosis and slower healing process if something happens to your bones in the future. it's also not good for both teeth and gums, because our bones and teeth actually lose calcium over time, and soda accelerates this process.
and, it contains a shit load of sugar.
if you absolutely can't make it without fizzy stuff, mix orange/apple/cherry juice and carbonated water 1:2, and make sure to get some sort of calcium supplement.
It'll be rough at first and incredibly discouraging, but the long term rewards are worth it (in my opinion). If you're having a tough time physically, some outdoor running and resistance training goes a long way, otherwise as long as you keep playing consistently, it'll come. If you're having trouble keeping up with others skill wise, just use your head and do the same thing you do for self-improvement with game art. I think most sports on the amateur level, you can more than make up for any physical disadvantages with smart, intelligent play.
Even if you don't pick up a sport, I would try finding away to make exercise fun and most importantly rewarding. You'll more likely to stick to it consistently.
I've often thought of making some sort of music video based around the sound of cans opening around the office.
I honestly had no idea just how dehydrated I was until I cut the soda, a few years back, and started drinking nothing but water. Only recently have I increased my water intake and man... it makes a huge difference!
The problem with all of this is finding the balance between informing someone and not sounding like a pretentious prick. Everyone knows they need to eat better and be more active, but rarely do people want to be reminded by someone else.
http://ellaskitchen.com/ellas_range/stage-1-baby-food/
Also, stand up. I have my Cintiq on an adjustable ergotron arm so I can sit or stand while working.
amen on drinking more water, whenever im properly hydrated I can hit it 2-3x as hard at the gym before I start to tire, run longer and generally have more energy. also, I recently had the person in charge of ergonomics come and setup my desk so my posture isnt fucked, and neck and wrists are not being destroyed. so many people in this industry have rediculously bad posture, body language and what I like to call "turtle neck syndrome" where the head juts forward and the neck is pushed at an odd angle.
get that stuff taken care off, and join mine and geezus's MOTHAFUCKIN' SWOLL PATROL.
I've been really interested in fasting. Been thinking about trying 6:1 to test out. Would it be okay to lets say, go to the gym or being active on the day of your fast?
I do brazilian jiu jitsu. I find it fun and always keeps me interested. with the added benefit of making me overall healthier. I find the gym boring. I recommend taking some a class where you can learn some sort of skill.
Parkour would be awesome.
SWOLBRAHAM LINCOLNS!
...i'm sorry.
I play with our dog / cat as often as I can, ( i dont mean standing in one spot throwing a ball either, more like running around, rolling around on ground etc. ) and get out in the veggie garden too. I like the idea of parkour, might look into something along these lines when i get back to New Zealand.
Its all too easy for me to go 4 hours or more without stopping. once im in the zone man thats it, food, drink everything gets forgotten haha.
I juice a lot of fruit veggies, and eat 3 / 4 fairly healthy meals a day, + protein shake & vitamin C, flax seed oil and B12 suplements because I only eat meat occasionally. I've always been a skinny kinda dude.
Junk food is pretty low, havent had a sodas in about 2 years, and fast / microwaved food is completely out of our diets.
One thing I do want to do, is seriously build myself a proper 'workstation' that will in all likelyhood be a standing station, with perhaps a nebuchadnezzar style matrix chair with cintique arm built into it for those laid back moments. Standard sitting posture at a desk is just not working for me at all, posture gets worse the further in the zone I become.
I usually go to the gym every other day at lunch for an hour. It's about a mile run so I run there, get my SWELL ON, then run back. When I get back I throw food I cooked the night before in the microwave and eat up. If you want to be in shape and stay in shape you'll find a way to make it happen. I definitely still drink the occasional soda :X But I'm trying to cut them out quick!
....mmmm soda. brb
random funfact. I saw a couple at the gym the other day with a shirt that said "SWOLE MATES". I almost died.
Other than that, lots of water and kale(if you're not eating this regularly, you should, it's insanely cheap, and delicious).
@Haz, I had the same problem with my posture, towards the end of the day I resembled an amorphous goo puddle in my chair. I switched to an exercise ball chair and I love it. It forces you upright(though it's still possible to slouch). Another added bonus is that it tires you out, so you're forced to get up and move around from time to time. I'd recommend trying one.
It's like level grinding for your upper body.
Yo bob, you'd be better off reading the book by Mosley than me trying to give you advice on it - [ame="http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Fast-Diet-Intermittent-Fasting/dp/1780721676"]The Fast Diet: The Secret of Intermittent Fasting - Lose Weight, Stay Healthy, Live Longer: Amazon.co.uk: Dr Michael Mosley, Mimi Spencer: Books[/ame]
If you're doing jiu jitsu that's even better, a lot of athletes advocate fasting during certain periods of training. Some people are concerned that it will be detrimental to their health or it will be really distracting, but there are a lot of pros to it. Also it doesn't require cutting calories everyday and can help form more realistic goals, rather than "I need to lose a stone by this month". It needs to be more of a lifestyle change, more so than "I won't eat chocolate for a few weeks and see how it goes"
I'm the same with the gym, I figure why go running in a box when you can go out in the open.
I gave some thought to this as well and would love to try it out, but would probably struggle getting off the ground as I'm a big git. I keep imagining trying to vault over a wall and landing doing the splits, crushing the twins XO
Have you tried Lumbar support? I had the same problem sitting and working for a long time and because I slouched, the lower back would get all kinds of messed up. Picked up one from Poundworld recently and it does the trick!
I completely agree with that. Back in my WoW days in high school I'd sit at my computer all day and drink 8-16 cans of soda a day with maybe a Gatorade and no water. Although I still sit at the computer most of the day, I drink 120-200 ounces of water a day which is a ton for getting no exercise and maybe drink four 8 ounce glass bottles of soda a month.
Cold showers in the morning (activates hormones) ZMA at night to boost testosterone, also gives you good energy through the day, and a good diet cutting out most carbs.
sometimes I do some Jiujitsu classes or kickboxing on my punchbag, health is way too important to put on the back burner, the key to life is balance, I really believe if you neglect your body and have poor health you will feel shitty, you feel shitty, you create low quality work.
This works wonders. Try to do 10 pushups ever 1-3 hours. Takes 2 mins tops and you'll see a noticeable improvement. I set alarms on my phone to go off for when i should do them.
I've started jogging aswell as there's not much you can do whilst in working hours, I do 2 miles every 2 or 3 days and its getting longer every time I go out. So far I've learnt that if its windy then don't go running haha, if its super hot then don't go running haha, if you are tired then don't go running haha. I really enjoy it though which is funny as everyone else I know hates it haha. Main thing though is watching your food and realising that if you eat at work then you are gonna have a harder time burning it off, I'm lucky my lady is on a diet too so making meals we both like is really good.
I try to limit drinking to nights like friday an the weekend when im not working out to keep my testosterone production solid.
Granted it requires a good amount of time investment and whenever a crunch rolled around I would find it hard to sneak out at 5 to make class times.
Yes! Kettle bells are awesome. And I tried the cold shower awhile back. Not as bad as you would think. You kind of get used to it. Gonna try it again. Thanks for reminding me
Did you also read Tim Ferriss' book?
Thanks I'll check that out. I just watched his Doc. Interesting stuff.
if anyone is interested here's a link.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xvdbtt_eat-fast-live-longer-hd_shortfilms?search_algo=2#.UbPqNfm1FrW
Cool. White belt, 3 stripes.
You?
White 4 here and Judo orange.
Zhoo Zhitz!
Just wanted to add when your getting bored with the routine of exercising (which you will, if you don't plan ahead.)
I figured out a cool little system in adventures of becoming healthier and stronger make 3 exercising routines and make each new cycle harder and set a final "achievement" goal.
So an example would be:
week 1 (or 3 week cycle)
incline Push ups (if new)
week 2 (or 3 week cycle)
regular push ups
week 3 (or 3 week cycle)
decline push ups
Goal for me right now is:
Handstand Push Ups (Epic) I'm 31 so little bit harder for me.
3 week cycle means after 3 weeks of those move onto the next one.
^ Pretty much do that for anything and everything else, if I listed a full body routine this post would be huge.
But you get the idea just cycle after the third week, and maybe add a new exercise for that body part on week 1 or week 3 and eliminate the starter exercise. (Basically progression)
For the discouraged, I've taken 6 months off through out my adventures it is hella hard to fight cravings so it is not like it wasn't hard but I would just say to myself I am glad I didn't take that beer, or eat Mc Donalds, ect. ect. I do still eat sort of bad but it is not an every day or week thing, once a month or two as a reward but I am finding that things aren't as tasty as I thought they were.
never enjoyed a workout as much as I did with kettlebells.
Its important to have a good selection, so you can change weights for each exercise and push yourself each time.
Still struggling to find a diet that doesn't leave me exhausted during the day. I would literally be falling asleep at my chair come 2-3 PM.
Breakfast - pure protein. NO CARBS. Your body doesnt need carbs that early in the day. If you arent much of a breakfast person, a protein shake does wonders.
mid morning snack - some sort of veggie. I usually go for 10-15 baby carrots.
Lunch - protein and carbs. You`ll want 4oz of protein and carbs. So a nice big sandwich. Subway. chicken and rice. something like that. Lunch is when your body needs the energy from carbs the most, and it will help you get through the day.
Mid afternoon snack - Fibre fibre fiber. An apple with the skin on is PERFECT for that time of day.
Dinner - Protein, veggies, fruit, salad. No carbs. Generally you dont want to eat carbs after 4pm because your body doesnt need it anymore, and will just store it as fat. But you want 4oz of protein (chicken or turkey or something), then the rest of your plate is fruits and veggies and salad. Whichever you want to have.
After dinner, if you find yourself hungry, have more protein. Dont go for the chips or sweets or anything. an extra chicken breast or protein shake works wonders and will fill you up. But before you have a snack, drink some water. Your body could be mistaking dehydration for hunger. So have a glass of water before you jump to the fridge.
You dont have to follow that exactly, but once I started following that eating routine, I noticed I had more energy at the end of the day, AND I was sleeping better, which also helped with the more energy.
http://www.polycount.com/forum/showthread.php?t=84478&highlight=belly+club
mmmm lovely cake
Even though there is a gym literally 3 minutes walk from my building, when there is so much to catch up in skill level, I'm always feeling afraid of being left behind if I take even 1 hour off.