Buy Walking VideosWalk while you work
Dr. James Levine and his colleagues at the Mayo Clinic are testing workstations that allow you to stand at a computer and walk on the attached treadmill while you work. If the speed is set to something like 1.0 MPH, he’s found that you can burn an extra 100 calories per hour without losing your balance or being too distracted from work.
Other fit-at-work innovations they’re experimenting with include a carpeted track around the workspace to encourage walking and “a hockey net on the wall” so colleagues can play with something while talking to Levine. I get the impression that the Mayo Clinic is a fun place to work.
Of course, there’s no commercial product like these treadmill workstations available yet, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we see one in a few years. It’s also not too hard to rig something like this yourself if your employer doesn’t object—I’d suggest leaving the hockey net out of your proposal, though.
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June 13th, 2005 at 6:36 am
This would be a great idea for those of us trapped in sedentary computer jobs. I’d love to jump on the treadmill to read the morning email, then back to the workstation for “real” work.
June 16th, 2005 at 2:48 am
Reminds me of what a computer gamer did with his computer and treadmill. You can see the pictures at the bottom of the linked page.