
Programming with an Aggressive Posture - tenpoundhammer
http://impressmyself.co/post/49785548742/programming-with-an-aggressive-posture
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zck
>I noticed the results immediately. I became more focused, more energized,
more productive, and found myself solving problems more easily.

It's easy to make a change and become excited that it'll make you more
productive, so it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy and makes you more
productive.

I'm more interested on changes when they induce long-lasting improvements in
behavior, health, or mood.

Also, the article linked to compares effects of posture on _circulating blood
volume_. Do we know how circulating blood volume affects productivity? This
article doesn't tell us. The researchers tested lying down vs. standing up
with armrests, not sitting with an "aggressive stance" vs slouching.

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joe_the_user
I think most people who talk about posture recommend an upright posture, not
an "aggressive", leaned-forward posture. (Without being an expert, I've looked
at The Alexander Technique, Feldenkrais, standard physical therapy theories
and some other theory).

While there's debate about the details, most ideas of "good posture" are based
on the idea that when the spine is balanced and so upright, your muscles don't
have to exert continuous effort to support you whereas in any "leaning"
posture, either forward or backward, involves one's muscles do have be tensed
into a rigid position as they part of your body's support system.

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gldnspud
Posture maintenance is one reason I fell in love with the Swopper, an "active
sitting" stool that I describe to inquisitive friends as being equivalent to a
"German-engineered exercise ball that looks like a stool and doesn't pop".

I bought it because the health benefits sounded intriguing, but mainly because
I needed an affordable "ergonomic" seat that would fit within a small
footprint. (At the time, my home office was very small)

I purchased one for just under $500 just shy of five years ago, and I never
regret a single penny spent on it. I have used it for full-time work for all
of those years, and I've never had a negative feeling of "I'm in pain because
I've been sitting all day". The only drawback I experienced was that I napped
more than usual during the first week or two, since "active" sitting does
indeed use more energy than traditional "passive" sitting.

I should mention that prior to the Swopper I used cheap office chairs, so I
can't compare it to using an exercise ball or high-end ergonomic seating. That
said though, I think the Swopper is a great product for anyone looking for
affordable ergonomic seating with small footprint.

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yankoff
Also, yelling at your code might help to debug faster.

~~~
ashwinaj
Yup I swear at code all the time.

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SubMachinePun
Would coding in isosceles or Weaver-stance count?

~~~
Jacquass12321
Now I want a retention holster for my mouse >.>

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oinksoft
The linked document shows physiological differences (circulation, etc.) with
an erect posture, but makes no claims about the sitter being more "productive"
or any of the other claims this post makes. Perhaps the author can cite other
sources rather than lazily suggesting "if you need more proof just google the
'effects of posture'."

~~~
tenpoundhammer
It's kind of incredible that you call the author lazy, because you are too
lazy to search google yourself. Win!

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jcl
On the other hand, there is research that suggests that sitting up straight or
leaning forward is not as good for your back as leaning back:

[http://www.motleyhealth.com/news/slouching-back-is-good-
for-...](http://www.motleyhealth.com/news/slouching-back-is-good-for-your-
back-do)

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rjd
Wait... He makes an active decision to work more aggressively and chooses
sitting up straight as the method.

...Sure its not the fact he made the decision the first place and is sticking
to it, rather than the sitting?

