So it turns out that if you’re sedentary (read: sit at a computer for a living), exercise doesn’t mitigate the risk of heart disease. Scary! That’s why I got pretty excited when I saw the treadmill desk made by the fine folks at Instructables. It turns out that tons of people buy treadmills and never use them, so you can find them for a bargain on Craigs List. After that its just a matter of putting together a few surfaces for your keyboard and monitor, and you’re good to go.
The epiphany is about 24 seconds into the video. First we see Eric working at his treadmill desk. Then the camera pans to his wife Sarah, also working at a treadmill desk. And here’s the kicker: a baby is strapped to Sarah’s back, and the baby looks wildly happy. That’s when it hit me: we spent thousands of years strapped to our mamas’ backs, walking across the savannah. Of course this makes sense. So much of modern life is about the mis-fit between the life we’re built for (hunting, gathering, fleeing saber-toothed tigers) and the life we lead (wake, shower, office, tv, bed). Treadmill desks seem like a reasonable step back towards a day-to-day routine that fits our bodies and keeps us healthy.
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