Very interesting chart. Note how long student debt follows people throughout their lives. Also, mortgage debt for people in retirement age can't be a good thing.
I work from home and run my own consultancy. When not meeting face-to-face with clients, I'm in my home office anywhere from 8-12 hours a day.
Like most people, I worked while sitting down. Talk on the phone, sit. Do busy work, sit. Invoice clients, sit. Pay bills, sit. Research, sit. Write, sit.
In fact, for my 15 years of professional life I always sat down at a desk. That's a lot of hours of sitting. Last year about this time I had a pregnant wife and two young kids...getting out to get some exercise became a challenge. It's a challenge that I did not overcome as the last part of 2010 I got ZERO exercise. Our dog was lucky to get a walk around the block. I was getting fat, had low energy, my back hurt and my thinking was muddled.
In January that all changed. I began researching this goofy thing of walking while you work. It's called a treadmill desk. Basically you walk between 1-2 miles per hour while working. I was skeptical but my fitness and mental situation was getting bad so I decided to take the plunge and invest in a treadmill desk setup.
Pictured below is the setup that I have in my home office.
As of today, I've walked 502.4 miles in about a year - and that's with 15 weeks of travel or not being in the office. I'm averaging now about 20-25 miles a week and regularly walk at 1.5 miles per hour. I'll do 2 mph when on conference calls. If you're counting calories, I burn about 100-125 calories an hour walking 3-5 hours a day.
It is the best change I have ever made to the way I work. I'm 20 lbs lighter, my back no longer hurts (I feel taller actually), my energy is high, I sleep well, and I'm far more alert and creative with my work.
The skeptics laugh when I tell them about or show them this set-up. I too was the total skeptic a year ago. Now I'm the biggest endorser of walking while at work. In fact, I can't imagine going back to just sitting.
If you're looking into changing your work habits to incorporate walking, here are some useful links and resources:
This is my desk. I bought the largest one they have. Even though I walk at least five miles a day, I thought it was important to be able to sit down every now and then. This desk has a motor to lift and lower the desk. It's very cool.
They make custom treadmill desks, a treadmill, and flush flooring for an office. I only bought their tread as I wanted a small footprint treadmill. This is made just to walk - no arms, control panel sits on your desk and max speed is 3 mph. I recommend this over traditional treadmills. It's quiet too.
LINKS AND RESOURCES
Office Walkers - Lots of good advice, photos, and set-ups here.
