I've Seen The Future - And It's A "Deskmill"

A desk + A treadmill = A "deskmill"

One of the things I like about working from home is that I can take exercise breaks when I need them. I’m not confined to lunch hour.

These days, I take exercise “time outs” when I’m frustrated, experiencing writer’s block, unable to concentrate or feeling sluggish. If I want to go to the gym mid-afternoon, I can, time-permitting. Other times I go on a jog, take a quick walk around the block or run an errand on foot. Getting off my tush even for just a few minutes helps me reenergize and refocus.

So things are a much better than when I worked in an office – from a flexibility and blood flow standpoint – but the sedentary nature of my job still bothers me. Like many, many people, I sit in a chair and look at a computer screen 40 hours or more a week. It’s kind of ridiculous when you think about it. Our bodies were designed to move, not sit still. But unless I’m going to change careers and become a tennis instructor (I wish) or a landscaper (yeah, right), what to do?

That’s why this article about “walkstations” (or "deskmills," as I prefer - sorry, occupational hazard) really grabbed me. Thanks to Scott Elder for the forward. I’d never heard of upright workstation-treadmill combos that allow you to walk at low speeds while you work on your computer. The idea sounds a little preposterous, even challenging, at first. I mean, what if I drop my pen, it gets stuck in the treadmill belt, and I go flying?

But upon further reflection, it’s not nearly as crazy as workers sitting motionless all day, letting their muscles atrophy, their spines get out of whack and their weight balloon to the point of illness and disability.

On that note, I'm going for a jog.