"walk and work" office treadmill

[Ironslave]

Such a shame that this is what society needs, but it does. Hopefully it catches on.

 

[tim290280]

^^ I've heard bad things about this. Can't remember where I read it, but it increases all sorts of other office issues. RSI (or whatever the Occupational Health and Safety people call it now) motion sickness, eye fatigue, can't really remember. I'll see if I can find it.

I just remember that it was better to get up from the desk every 20mins and doing something. They suggested getting a drink or printing something or walking over to someone elses desk instead of phoning them, etc.

 

[tim290280]

Original research:

The energy expenditure of using a "walk-and-work" desk for office workers with obesity.

British Journal of Sports Medicine. 41(9):558-561, September 2007.
Levine, James A; Miller, Jennifer M
Abstract:
Objective: For many people, most of the working day is spent sitting in front of a computer screen. Approaches for obesity treatment and prevention are being sought to increase workplace physical activity because low levels of physical activity are associated with obesity. Our hypothesis was that a vertical workstation that allows an obese individual to work while walking would be associated with significant and substantial increases in energy expenditure over seated work.

Methods: The vertical workstation is a workstation that allows an office worker to use a standard personal computer while walking on a treadmill at a self-selected velocity. 15 sedentary individuals with obesity (14 women, one man; 43 (7.5) years, 86 (9.6) kg; body mass index 32 (2.6) kg/m2) underwent measurements of energy expenditure at rest, seated working in an office chair, standing and while walking at a self-selected speed using the vertical workstation. Body composition was measured using dual x ray absorptiometry.

Results: The mean (SD) energy expenditure while seated at work in an office chair was 72 (10) kcal/h, whereas the energy expenditure while walking and working at a self-selected velocity of 1.1 (0.4) mph was 191 (29) kcal/h. The mean (SD) increase in energy expenditure for walking-and-working over sitting was 119 (25) kcal/h.

Conclusions: If sitting computer-time were replaced by walking-and-working, energy expenditure could increase by 100 kcal/h. Thus, if obese individuals were to replace time spent sitting at the computer with walking computer time by 2-3 h/day, and if other components of energy balance were constant, a weight loss of 20-30 kg/year could occur.

Feasibility study: http://www.details-worktools.com/media/scms/Research_Feasibility_of_Walk_Work_BJSM_0108.pdf

Interesting that the most avid user of the walk and work stations only used it for 4hrs a day.

This was the one I was thinking of, but they didn't find any differences, just you have to manage the amount of time you spend on it:

Walking on an electric treadmill while performing VDT office work
Volume 21 , Issue 1 (July 1989) table of contents

Pages: 72 - 77
Authors N. Edelson
J. Danoffz
ABSTRACT
The physiological and psychological health problems associated with sedentary office work are well documented, but their solution has proved elusive. In this study a specially designed office permitted the comparison of conventional word processing (sedentary condition) to word processing performed while walking on an electric treadmill at 1.4 to 2.8 km/hr (active condition). Five subjects after several days of practice produced two test trials each consisting of six 20-minute intervals of word processing. For the sedentary condition the subjects were seated, during all six intervals. For the active condition, treadmill-walking and seated intervals were alternated. Variables measured included word processing performance score, stress and arousal indices, and body complaint count. The first of these was tested with a repeated ANOVA and Newman-Keuls post hoc, and the latter three with correlated t-tests. No significant differences were found between the two conditions for performance or body complaints. Stress was significantly lower (p < .05), and arousal was higher but not quite significant (P < .07) for the active condition. We conclude that treadmill walking and routine word processing can be performed concurrently without a decrement in work performance, and that certain physiological and psychological benefits may result.

I stand corrected....... by myself......

 

[Ironslave]

^^ I've heard bad things about this. Can't remember where I read it, but it increases all sorts of other office issues. RSI (or whatever the Occupational Health and Safety people call it now) motion sickness, eye fatigue, can't really remember. I'll see if I can find it.

I just remember that it was better to get up from the desk every 20mins and doing something. They suggested getting a drink or printing something or walking over to someone elses desk instead of phoning them, etc.

I'm sure it's not without some drawbacks, and as mentioned, it's a damn shame that something like this is even considered as having merit. Ideally, we'd like to see people eat less calories, more healthier food, and get regular "planned" exercise in their lives in addition to an overall active lifestyle.

But, I can't see any of those issues being a problem. Sure, i'm sure compliance isn't the best, but even doing it for maybe 2 out of 8 hours a day for the desk-potato is a good thing. I can't imagine eye strain or anything else being much different as this is going to be used by someone who's sitting at a desk all day anyways.

 

[tim290280]

^^ Yeh I completely agree. We have an OSH induction on how to set up our work-stations at work. RSI, neck pain and eye strain from incorrect setup loses business big $$ each year. One of the first things I noticed was that I can't read while in motion (walking, in a car, etc) without motion sickness, so that counts against it too.

I have heard good things about the standing work-station. You need to be in flat shoes and have the monitor at eye height (and be a touch typer not a sighted typer) but apparently keeps you very alert, you get less back and neck pain, and you are more active throughout the day.

 

[The Creator]

I wish something like this were very realistic and accepted. Many of my clients use the calorie management device, the Body Bugg, and I am amazed at how many more calories my clients with physically active jobs burn than those who have sedentary desk jobs. One of my guys burns 1500 calories more everyday when he is working in the warehouse than he does when he spends a day in the office. Its a shame that many people are so packed with work that a 20 min walk a couple times during the work day is out of the picture.

 

[PrinceVegeta]

These people would benefit more from eating better foods and sleeping better then walking at 1 mph all day, or exercising 30-45 minutes a day...i cant seem to understand how somebody with a sedentary job cant find ways to train 30 min 5 times a week....get a pair of dumbells for ur home and some basic excersices...or run/walk outside if the weather permits, this is just plain lazy, having a treadmill in ur office...but when ur done u have a nice big gulp and a hotdog to celebrate ur 5 hours of 1mph walking...

 

[tim290280]

^^ I always used to think the same way. But it is very easy to not have the motivation to spend time at the end of the day (or begining) to actually exercise. I do a standard work day, but my siblings are private industry, so after the 9-10hr day they have another 1/2-3/4hr commute then meals. So you could have had a 12hr day before you have had any time to yourself. If you have kids or wives/girlfriends then finding that hour of exercise time just doesn't have the same priority.

Now don't get me wrong, they still have the time to train, but they have to give up something else; like a lunch break or an hour with their kids or an hour less relaxation. So for these people to actually want to make exercise part of their lives requires some level of devotion, motivation and usually a history of exercise. I know that if I wasn't passionate about lifting I probably would have given up lifting by now. But you try and tell someone without that passion that they should have the passion to exercise and they see it as too much like hard work. And it is genetic for us humans to be as lazy as possible.

 

[The Creator]

Its really hard for people to get the ball rolling and understand the importance of exercise or even just being active at the least. In the long run I always use the modo "exercise doesnt take time, it makes time."