
Simple Exercises To Help Undo the Damage of Sitting (2014) - t23
http://www.artofmanliness.com/2014/08/05/undo-the-damage-of-sitting/
======
raamdev
One of the most amazing books I've read about simple ways to correct the
muscular imbalances that result from too much sitting is Pete Egoscue's _Pain
Free at Your PC_ [1]. His other book, _Pain Free_ [2] is also extremely
effective and informative.

The first part of _Pain Free_ explains how muscular imbalances form and, most
insightful to me, how every human body has the same _design range of motion_
(with a few exceptions due to birth defects or disease), that is every human
body is designed to have the same range of motion but muscular imbalances
formed as the result of specific repeated activities (or lack of activity)
impede that design range of motion. All of the exercises in the Egoscue Method
require no special equipment, only simple things like a chair or a wall (which
further convinced me that it's not a fad out to sell something). Highly
recommend reading these books if you're interested in this topic.

1\. [https://www.amazon.com/Pain-Free-Revolutionary-Stopping-
Chro...](https://www.amazon.com/Pain-Free-Revolutionary-Stopping-
Chronic/dp/0553379887)

2\. [https://www.amazon.com/Pain-Free-Your-PC-
Computer/dp/0553380...](https://www.amazon.com/Pain-Free-Your-PC-
Computer/dp/0553380524)

~~~
tgb
Isn't this obviously false? First, humans weren't designed at all. Second, the
range of motion is often determined by bone structure, which no amount of
muscle imbalance can affect. Check out squatting positions and how they're
affected by the variety of hip joint shapes people have. Like this page:
[https://squatuniversity.com/2016/03/25/how-hip-anatomy-
affec...](https://squatuniversity.com/2016/03/25/how-hip-anatomy-affects-
squat-mechanics/)

~~~
criddell
> First, humans weren't designed at all.

Oh come on. You know what he means.

~~~
tgb
It's not wrong to care about phrasing when that phrasing leads to wrong
results. Anthropomorphising evolution as a designer is a classic mistake to
make precisely because it causes us to make real mistakes. The parent post
makes a big claim which is based entirely off a mistaken metaphor.

~~~
sn9
Even biologists and anatomists use the same language as shorthand when they
know the audience understands what the shorthand means. It's just more
convenient.

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theprop
Great suggestions -- the fire hydrant is a great exercise.

More simple exercises are one leg squats -- if you use a desk to keep your
balance, they're not that difficult to do and a great exercise you can do
anywhere. Also, you can drop down and do 5, 10, 20 pushups anywhere. While on
the phone you could put it on speakerphone and drop down and try to hold the
plank position for the length of the call -- I've seen some Scrum meetings
have everyone do the plank (shortens the meeting much more than just standing
up).

A few more ideas :-D!

~~~
virmundi
I call this Office Calisthenics. It really throws people off. Nothing bad, but
they're confused. I've tried to convince some that it's fun. Even did it with
a tie on. Didn't get any takers.

~~~
theprop
Try having a contest or competition. See who can hold the plank the longest or
stand on one foot the longest. That makes it fun.

~~~
jlg23
Or it may make people detest your management style even more. I belong to
those who cannot stand being coerced into doing some "fun group activity"
(whether in office or in a hotel). And when people want to take care of my
health in office, why not start with the obvious:

* Don't give me a car - give me a bicycle and tickets for public transport.

* Give me a shower in office or a membership in a gym nearby.

* Invest in good chairs and tables (yes, yes, you all do - until I arrive with my 190cm and suddenly it's .. "we could place some books under the legs of your table!")

~~~
chrismeller
Completely agree about detesting the management style. It's not even actually
health focused, it's just showing off like you're at a frat house.

190cm isn't that tall, really. (I'm short). Do you normally have trouble with
the standard 30-inch (76-ish cm) desk?

~~~
jlg23
It's tall enough that I can neither bend me legs to 90 degrees nor use a
regular office chair.

While 190cm is not this tall, it's just too tall to fit into most industry
norms: Beds, bikes, desk & chairs are all made for "slightly smaller" people.
The 3cm my armrests are missing in height are exactly those 3cm that my whole
upper body will gravitate down so that my arms can rest. 2h later I have a
stiff neck, 8h later a sore back.

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icc97
There's always yoga [0] [1].

I just do the sun salutation [2] a couple of times a day - takes ~5mins,
reduces any back pain I get.

[0]: [http://www.npr.org/sections/health-
shots/2017/02/20/51567525...](http://www.npr.org/sections/health-
shots/2017/02/20/515675259/got-back-pain-try-yoga-or-massage-before-reaching-
for-the-pills)

[1]: [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/01/12/yoga-key-
relie...](http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/01/12/yoga-key-relieving-
long-term-back-pain-new-study-suggests/)

[2]: [http://yogasite.com/sunsalute.htm](http://yogasite.com/sunsalute.htm)

~~~
specialist
Yoga can be great.

Ditto qigong, tai chi, pilates, isometric exercises, physical therapy. I've
even done goofy looking breathing exercises that rebalance your diaphragm.

I also know that yoga, chiro, gyms hurts people. Gonzo attitude, ignorance,
and bad instruction.

The trick is to find the therapists and teachers who understand the body, your
body, and help you mend. Everyone needs something a little different.

Source: I had a lumbar fusion and some other stuff. I've spent a lot of time
just remaining functional, managing pain.

Advice: By 30, everyone should be hitting the gym. By 40, everyone should get
regular PT tune ups; you'll be surprised how much function you (unknowingly)
lost. Like now I can stand on one foot and put on the other shoe, two years
ago I couldn't do that.

~~~
seanp2k2
I was also surprised to learn the thing about putting on one shoe by standing
on the opposite foot, as that's how I've always put on shoes, and thus never
understood the seeming requirement for a bench / chair in an area where shoes
come off and go on.

~~~
icc97
Are we talking tying laces as well?

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Tempest1981
I've heard* that the discs in your back cannot repair themselves -- they have
no blood flow. So strengthen your "core", because if you squeeze those discs
(thru bad posture) year after year, eventually they deteriorate. Then your
nerves get pinched, and the pain can be insane.

* Not a doctor. Let me know if they self-heal.

~~~
dahart
They self heal, slowly, as long as they can. In order for them to self heal,
they have to stop getting squished at all, for long periods of time.

I never knew the importance of core exercise until I squished some discs and
experienced pinched nerves. Core exercises build up the muscles around the
discs and can help prevent them from getting squished. But you have to also
find out which activity is squishing them, and stop that too. Exercise alone
won't do it.

Pain is the first part of what happens. Pain nerves run along the outside of
the spinal column. Motor control nerves run inside the spinal column, so the
second part is the pain goes away and your muscles stop working properly.
That's the really scary part. Even though the pain can be bad, as long as you
feel pain, you're closer to healing than after the pain goes away and you
develop a funny walk or can't do pushups anymore.

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sundvor
Nothing fixes my desk-related back issues like being regular at my gym, doing
deep squats and deadlifts. When I can't manage my priorities, it's only a
question of time before the old back starts complaining.

~~~
tomsthumb
An office job is basically 40+ hours a week of practicing disengagement of the
posterior chain (via sitting, likely with poor posture). Deadlifts are such a
good treatment.

~~~
sundvor
Yes. The deadlift is probably the most universally useful exercise, when
executed properly. It really is worth the effort to learn. (Closely followed
by the squats.)

~~~
jclos
I would put squat and deadlift at the same rank personally, just because they
are very similar in their impact. Closely following behind them would be a
vertical pressing exercise (e.g. barbell overhead press) and a vertical
pulling exercise (e.g. chin-ups or pull-ups) because it feels great to
decompress the spine after putting so much weight on it.

~~~
sundvor
I agree, it's hard to split squat and deadlifts in terms of how good they are.
Do them both! And yes, overhead press is fantastic - it's a great way of
engaging the whole body too. I need to be doing chin ups more, however just a
bit too fat to do them in numbers; have just been hanging off the bar to
stretch my spine out.

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peterwwillis
He's right about taking it easy if you're tight or sore. I've hurt myself from
cranking into stretches or exercise without a gradual warm-up. Want more
stretch + pace ideas? Do like the Japanese:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnZJINpzhs8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnZJINpzhs8)

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eevilspock
Another front page post compliments this one: Why Walking Helps Us Think
([https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14235398](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14235398))

i.e. Do your thinking while walking, not sitting and hunched over a screen.
Your brain and your body will love you for it.

~~~
z3t4
it would be awesome if you could walk and program. back pain can come from
static hand posture. and swinging your arms is good for the back. i imagine
parks full of programmers that time to time bump into each others because they
are in deep focus.

~~~
icc97
Isn't that the point of the desks with treadmills?

~~~
z3t4
you cant swing your arms while typing though. im thinking wrist censors for
input and vr like helmet or glasses for output.

~~~
icc97
Or some half decent voice recognition / brain implants when ever they arrive.

Not sure you'd want to do this walking around outside though, seems to
increase the likelihood of hitting trees.

~~~
z3t4
I usually walk around or do house-hold work when solving hard problems, it's
slow as my mind is _somewhere else_ but I think that with a brain implant or
voice recognition like you suggested it would be totally doable to program and
do other stuff at the same time.

A screen-reader might also be used for output.

~~~
icc97
Ah - I was thinking as a replacement for your wrist input and VR helmet. I'm
guessing you're not planning on doing house work with those on :)

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Naushad
How about using Squat Toilet and do the Grok Squat a part of daily routine
than a conscious effort...

~~~
cies
Squatty Potty for the win!

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbYWhdLO43Q](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbYWhdLO43Q)

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alexval
Semi unrelated but I like the art of manliness podcast

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orschiro
Does anyone else work at a standing desk?

~~~
frik
Does anyone use a small treadmill with slow speed at a standing desk?

I saw a video a year ago, looks like a good idea, I am planing to buy a small
one

~~~
wsc981
Linus Torvalds seems to use a treadmill with his standing desk:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuS-3HSnpq4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuS-3HSnpq4)

~~~
sevmardi
Hello wsc981, This one is off topic and I am sorry about that. A while back I
have read here somewhere that you are/were freelancing and doing so via
Computer Futures. Can we get in touch? I've got couple of easy to answer
question. Thanks fella developer.

~~~
wsc981
Hi sevmardi, we could chat over email. You could contact me on
wsc981@gmail.com

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Fire-Dragon-DoL
This is really nice but all these excercises are really heavy on your knees.
Are there alternatives?

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rorykoehler
This is exactly what I needed. The couch stretch is a miracle.

