Deskbound
"Dr. Kelly Starrett unveils a detailed battle plan for surviving our chair-centric society. Deskbound provides creative solutions for reducing the amount of time you spend perched on your backside, as well as strategies for transforming your desk into a dynamic, active workstation that can improve your life."--Page [4] of cover.
Stats for nerds
7recommend
13mentions
9people
2015–2024years
69% recommend31% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- I had not heard of Deskbound, but his other book on stretching is an incredible resource (Becoming a supple leopard).
- Buy and use a standing desk. 1 hour of gym will not fix sitting 8 hours a days. I did that as an experiment in covid home office time and after a few months it fixed all my back and neck problems.
For many more details I can recommend
Starret(2016): Deskbound: Standing Up to a Sitting World
https://www.amazon.com/Deskbound-Standing-Up-Sitting-World/d...
- I've been a software engineer for over 15 years and so have been working at a desk for just as long. For the first few years I never thought twice about it, just sat all day long, no big deal. Eventually that started to catch up with me and my health began to noticeably decline.
I eventually made a conscious effort to combat the sedentary nature of knowledge work and have since seen significant improvements in my health, both physically and mentally. I now have this dichotomous relationship with computers: on one hand I love programming but on the other I can't stand being sedentary and I don't like that the default mode for computer work is sitting at a desk completely stationary.
So I'm always looking for the most effective way to maintain my well-being while also working at a desk all day and I've been writing about it on my blog. It's rough at the moment but am actively working to improve the content and quality; but I think this article in particular may be of interest: https://healthyhacker.co/how-to-improve-your-health-with-an-....
I think there are the obvious answers like: go for walks, go to the gym, do active things, etc. I'm 100% for all of those, but for the most part you can't really do any of them while working. But movement is the key and so I think the most important thing you can do at your workspace is to create a movement-rich environment where you are constantly able to shift positions and fidget. Ideally get a standing desk; this sets the foundation... you'll have a difficult time being sedentary while you're standing. This keeps the lower half of your body active; i.e. muscles are engaged and circulation is flowing. And then from there you can add additional activities such as putting a ball under your desk that you can prop your foot on and move around.
It's also vital to actually step away from your desk once in awhile as well. One of the most effective things you can do relatively easily is go for more walks. No equipment necessary; just get up and move (with a standing desk you're already half way there). It also has the added benefits of clearing your head, which as we know mental clarity is vital to knowledge work.
To answer your specific question, what's the cutting edge of doing knowledge work while not being stationary... it might not be a fancy answer, but I think it's simply just moving more.
Also, I highly recommend the book Deskbound by Kelly Starrett (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01E1HDJ64). It is my main resource so far for all this information and I have found it incredibly helpful in learning how to become a healthy hacker. And here's the presentation he gave that inspired the book: https://youtu.be/kfg_e6YG37U.
- Deskbound: Standing Up to a Sitting World [0].
I've always been fascinated, and driven by, good health; particularly in the context of working at a desk on a computer all day long.
This book has helped me to understand the implications and negative impact of typical habits surrounding working at a computer; specifically sitting all day.
By considering, and practicing, the advice presented in the book, I've changed the way that I physically work which in turn has significantly impacted my efficiency and performance.
I now stand a majority of the day and have learned methods for doing so effectively without simply tiring out my legs and causing a different set of problems. I've learned much about posture, particularly in the context of typing, which has helped reduce various aches and pains. And I've also learned various mobility exercises which have reduced stiffness in my arms, shoulders, and neck.
All in all, I feel better, which in turn has helped me to gain mental clarity and stay focused.
- I realize you're interested in hearing from others dealing with the same problem; I, myself, am not, however, I am extremely interested in our general health as deskbound hackers and would like to offer some thoughts that may prove helpful:
1. Reduce optional sitting.
Sitting for extended periods of time compromises our musculoskeletal system and in particular our spinal health.
When we sit, the muscles in our lower body basically turn off leaving only our core to support our spine which is not sustainable. We eventually collapse into poor posture with our shoulders rounding forward and hips rounding backward putting the body into a c-shape. This position adds a ton of extra pressure on our vertebrae which can lead to various amounts of pain.
Plus, the more we sit the less we move; and we need to move to keep muscles engaged and blood circulating.
2. When you do sit, choose the right chair, and sit properly.
The ideal chair is one with a wide square seat made of wood or metal. It may sound uncomfortable, but that's the point; the goal is to encourage movement, a chair shouldn't encourage you to sit all day but to simply give you a place to temporarily rest.
The square shape allows you to sit along the edge without sliding off which makes it easier to maintain a neutral upright position. And the hard surface allows for great mechanical feedback; you get uncomfortable which reminds you to move.
Before you even sit, engage your core to stabilize your spine, then sit without collapsing your rib cage.
All of this will help keep your pelvis rounded forward taking the direct pressure off of your coccyx.
3. Shift positions often.
This one's simple. Our bodies will stagnate and atrophy when still for too long, especially when sitting. Shift positions to get your blood flowing to those areas. Even better, get up and actually move around a bit every 30 minutes or so.
4. Try some mobility exercises.
Despite our best efforts muscles are going to get stiff and our joints are going to become restricted if we don't maintain them regularly.
Daily mobility work is a key preventive and restorative practice to stay ahead of these problems.
I'm actually just starting to look into this myself so I don't have an easy go-to list of exercises, but here's a giant resource I just came across that looks promising: https://www.heromovement.net/blog/mobility-exercises/.
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I highly recommend the book Deskbound by Kelly Starrett (https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01E1HDJ64). It is my main resource so far for all this information and I have found it incredibly helpful in learning how to become a healthy hacker. And here's the presentation he gave that inspired the book: https://youtu.be/kfg_e6YG37U.
Edit: fixed incorrectly pasted link.
- People may find this book helpful:
Deskbound: Standing Up to a Sitting World
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31683999
Skipping over some of the rha-rha zeal there's some helpful ideas in making standing less static and more sustainable.
