Saturday, August 2, 2008

Walking While You Work....De-de-de-de-de-de-de

I exercised this morning. 50 minutes of cardio & strength training. I'm drenched with sweat but it feels good.

I was thinking about this blog. I wanted to say something about exercise. But before logging in, I checked my email. And I found my topic, thanks to Chicki, my crit partner and fellow soldier in the War Against Weight!

You remember "Whistle While You Work", the song from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, right?

Well, how about "Walking While You Work"?

Doesn't have quite the same ring but this ditty could yield tremendous results!

Chicki saw something on ABC's 20/20 last night that could revolutionize the workplace and obliterate obesity in our country.

The Walkstation. Check it out here.

They're pricey, at $4k per desk but man, would it be worth it!

First, I've always been a walker. I like walking. When I was a teenager, it was nothing to walk what I now know is 8 miles one way to the local mall. Nothing. I'd walk to the mall, shop for a couple of hours, and walk back. Probably did a total of 20 miles or more each time.

But as I've gotten older, I've walked less and less. In fact, I've moved less and less, given 20+ years in a desk job. Occasionally I walk across campus for a meeting. A co-worker and I walk two laps around the parking lot in the months when it's not hot enough to bake.

That's not too many months in central FL.

So mostly I sit.

And the one thing I do know is that in order to lose weight, no matter what I eat or don't eat, I have to exercise. I have to move.

So the walking desk would be perfect for me. I'd get at least some exercise in every day, including those days when I'm just too tired to get up early for my pre-work exercise. And when I wake early enough for a workout, I could focus totally on strength training to build muscles.

Of course, there still would have to be regular desks for when you just can't or don't want to walk. But gee, it would be hard to sit all day while your co-workers are exercising their butts off, wouldn't it? Wouldn't you be inspired to do at least an hour or two?

I love this. Gotta look into getting one for home. Then gotta figure out how to keep Hubby off it when I want to work/walk.

Great idea, Chicki! Let's pray for walking desks, whether someone gifts us with them, God blesses us with unexpected financial largesse, or we come up with some creative, more affordable ways to make them ourselves. And while we're praying...let's walk!

Peace & Blessings,
Patricia

4 comments:

Mariposafan said...

Yes, it's expensive, but at some point I have to decide that my health is worth something. Unfortunately the Steelcase version is too large for the home office that we're currently finishing. Fortunately there's another purpose built setup that allows you to use a less expensive desk if you wish. It's called the Tread Desk. I think that this will be what I go for, though there are also plenty of home-brew options for people who already have a treadmill.

PatriciaW said...

Mariposafan, I like the bigger desk but I'm going to check out the Tread Desk too. I just think this could be huge for home offices, if not the work place.

Mariposafan said...

Patricia, if you've got the space for it then the Steelcase version looks nice. One person mentioned that he wasn't fond of the placement of the controls - he said you can hit them if you happen to move a little too fast and walk into the desk. Steelcase uses True treadmills which are supposed to be about as good as it gets - no idea whose Tread Desk uses.

The thing I love most about your original message is that despite the $4k cost, it would be worth it. So many people seem to place a low value on their health. Note that it's only recently - as in the last couple of weeks - that I've found the Steelcase version available online. They've supposedly pretty much stuck with marketing to corporations which has made even getting one of these problematic for many of us. They're supposed to be putting together a retail dealer network over the next year but I was glad to see at least one place that just plain had them for sale.

PatriciaW said...

Steelcase has always seen their primary customer as corporations.

I do value my health although I must admit that that's a recent development and I still struggle with doing the right things to support that statement. Maybe it was youth, lack of knowledge, lack of discipline, or all of the above but we get one life to live, and I've not done the best job with my health so far. I wake up everyday now, praying for guidance and trying to do my best on that day.