Electrolicious

14 Responses to “Occupational Hazard”

1. dori
   July 15th, 2004 at 6:34 am

   

   i’m with ya, girl - what a nightmare, right? i just started, get this, DIETING - something i have *never* done in my life (you remember that ‘bony’ picture of me on friendster, right? no need to diet, at least not until i started this desk job - that ‘bony’ pic is the natural me). it’s a killer.

   so i try to grab exercise *wherever* i can (i suck for ‘forced exercise’ like the gym tho) - i.e. take the laptop and walk a mile or two to a cafe with wireless, ride bike instead of taking the subway (or in your case, maybe, driving), etc.

   also, i just recently drastically reduced my calorie intake to coincide with how few calories i actually burn during the day when i’m at my desk. turns out i can actually stand to eat half of what i munch on at my desk all day…

   ahhh well, we KNOW what i’m doing, lol (i’m coming in september, btw, right after the RNC’s over)… hopefully i’ll be able to even find ANY kind of job in portland…

2. megan
   July 15th, 2004 at 7:48 am

   

   i seriously feel your pain. i’ve got it too. ever since i started this computer job thing (what 5 years ago?), my office ass has really grown. the first office i worked in, i used to look at the older ladies and fear the “office ass.” theirs’ were HUGE! but alas, after this many years of being chained to the desk, it eventually starts to happen.
   my recent scare:
   unbuttoning my pants under my desk the last two days! OH GOD NOOOOOO!!!
   please let me know if you find any alternatives to this crap. i need to know too!

3. allie
   July 15th, 2004 at 8:57 am

   

   Yeah, well you think you’re getting “office ass” now, just wait… I hate to tell ya, but it just gets worse as you get older and your metabolism slows down. I’m only a couple years ahead of you, but things are slowing down rapidly and it BLOWS!

   I can’t ever limit myself foodwise (I love food wayyy too much!), so I finally started running around 2 miles, 3-5 days/week. It has helped IMMENSELY, and I used to *HATE* running.

   Anyways, in terms of careers, I always thought it would be fun to run a surf shop.

4. yara
   July 15th, 2004 at 9:55 am

   

   child care? gardener? llamas spit. a better trick is to incorporate exercise into your day in sneaky ways. get a pedometer (they’re cheap) and see how much you’re walking–people who walk at least 10,000 steps a day tend to be able to ward off that 1-2lb/year creep that comes from office donuts and sitting around. walk to work or up and down the stairs instead of the elevator or at lunchtime.

   come winter though, that’s gonna suck. so maybe wintertime pick an indoor “sport” that you like? yoga? swimming? dodgeball? whatever. something to keep the winter from dragging on.

   the other way to get motivated about not turning to mush and actually picking something to do is to think about what you want to accomplish with your life. if you want to have kids, then maybe take up pilates and pushups and lots of walks to prepare for all the lifting, carrying, and strollering. i want to go backpacking around europe, so i’ve been hiking and trying to strengthen my back & butt to carry my stuff around.

   remember, only you can prevent office ass.

5. Ariel
   July 15th, 2004 at 10:04 am

   

   Yeah, I’ve got exercize worked into my day and life. I walk home from work most days, which is 1.5 miles, almost every block of it uphill. Dre and I still run stairs twice a week. But it just feel like ultimately I’m fighting an uphill battle.

   I was actually inspired to write this by a blogger I know who just got a pedometer. On an average day, she walks over 4 miles (about 13,000 steps). She has a job where she’s on her feet a lot, though…as opposed to my job where I’m on my ass. All the time.

   Five years ago, during a brief contract at Microsoft, I saw a woman who had a standing desk. At the time I thought that was ridiculous, but I’m starting to think it makes sense.

6. Meesha
   July 15th, 2004 at 10:43 am

   

   OMG, this couldn’t come at a better time. I’d always been really, really active, and so could eat (mostly) whatever I want. But between the office job and a sports injury, I have ballooned far beyond my wildest imaginings. I saw a new doctor yesterday, and one of the first things he wanted to talk to me about was the fact that I was overweight. Me?! The former cross-country runner?

   I’ve pinpointed two areas for improvement, though: (1) frequent breaks, because most of the snacking I do during the day is really just an excuse to take a break and walk to the kitchen; and (2) mindful eating, because I had gotten into the habit of just wolfing down food so I could get back to the mound of work on my desk.

   As far as other careers go, it’s a tough one. I know guys who work in construction and make quite a bit of dough for “unskilled” workers. Back-breaking work, but they are in great shape. A friend of mine who’s a barista is on her feet 8 hours a day and she’s in pretty good shape just from that. Of course, when the weekend comes all she wants to do is sit around.

7. Amy LeBlanc
   July 15th, 2004 at 12:03 pm

   

   outside of the Fat Ass Syndrome (FAS), i’ve recently started suffering from some pretty bad shoulder/neck pain, or carpal tunnel, or something. bad enough to where i had to stay home one day because the back of my neck down through my shoulder blades hurt so bad. i constantly move and adjust my monitor angle, my seat height, etc. to give myself a wider range of motion throughout the day, but it doesn’t seem to be helping. i need some ergonomic help!

   if it doesn’t get better, or i can find a way to fix it, i may have to quit my job for a while. seriously. i’ve always like manual labor jobs, but you’re right. unless you join a union or something they don’t pay for shit. sometimes i think of giving it all up and becoming a construction worker (a la Office Space). for real.

8. Amy LeBlanc
   July 15th, 2004 at 12:07 pm

   

   p.s. two alternatives:

   i’m also hoping to open up a coffee shop/vintage clothing/yoga studio/book store near Tahoe someday. interested? we’ll have wi-fi. (dream…..)

   seriously though - a friend of ours’ parents has recently bought a big chunk of real estate in Puerto Rico. they need someone to manage their ecotourism business…. we’re thinking of seriously leaving for PR if BushCo gets re-elected. you’re welcome to join

9. esther h.
   July 15th, 2004 at 3:06 pm

   

   Any kind of repetitive motion, whether sitting all day and typing, or standing is gonna be bad for you . . . I know plenty of chefs/cooks/restaurant workers who end up with knee problems, shoulder problems, wrist problems etc.

   Maybe the key is to do something else part time. YOu already seem to manage OK (financially) doing free lance stuff, and want to continue in that, maybe you could cut down the hours and find something else to do, either split up by season (go WWOOFing and working on you friend’s vineyard in summer/fall, freelance in winter), or by day (freelance some days, work another job some days)

   I’ve been volunteering a lot and I notice that a lot of nonprofits and community arts or service organizations are close-knit and jobs tend to be part time, and handed down within the organization. I volunteer at both the Food Bank and a local nonprofit historic art Deco Movie Theater, and I bet that with being responsible and reliable, I could end up with a part time job at either place within a couple years (not that I want to, but–) That might be a way to branch out into something you’re not so familiar with - I’m sure there are plenty of opportunities in the Seattle area!

10. amanda
    July 15th, 2004 at 4:02 pm

    

    It’s my current plan to become a high school theatre teacher. It seems to be the perfect balance of sitting when I’m tired and activity when I want to move around.

11. Vera
    July 16th, 2004 at 7:46 am

    

    Screw dieting; timing is everything. Here are two timing tips:

    1. Eat dinner early. Basically, try not to eat anything after 6:30pm or so. It really helps. A lot of people eat dinner at 9 or 10. That’s just CRAZY. Your body will never be able to burn it by the time you go to bed.

    2. If you have to eat high fat foods, eat them in the morning. If you’re going to eat a candy bar, for example, eat it at 11am, not 11pm.

    Also, a fun thing for exercise is to put on your favorite music and dance for an hour or so in your living-room on a Saturday afternoon. If you need a shower afterwards, you know you did it right.

    Re career: I guess you will have to become a professional hooper after all. Or you could start teaching writing classes. As a teacher, you’d be on your feet at least part of the time.

12. bushtit
    July 17th, 2004 at 2:38 pm

    

    How about being a massage therapist (the legit kind)? You spend a lot of time on your feet, plus you work out your hands and arms all day. On top of that, people talk about really freaky stuff with their massage therapists, so it might give you some good inspiration for your writing.

    Or you could open a hoop aerobics studio. Hell, I bet you could be selling a Hoop Yourself Healthy workout video via tv infomercials within a couple of years. Then you could get rich, retire and just write. Which would leave you sitting on your ass all day. Hmm. Nevermind.

13. Dani
    July 21st, 2004 at 11:13 am

    

    I am so much happier ever since I started working outdoors. Is there a way you could do freelance ass-sitting work part-time and then lower-paying but more physically gratifying work the rest of the time? Or you could live outside the city, somewhere you could work the land/garden/etc.

    At least you’re realizing this issue now at a wee age of 29, instead of a few decades later when your vertebrae are all fused!

    love,
    dani

14. xaotica
    July 21st, 2004 at 4:19 pm

    

    i am in the same situation. and it blows. i can’t wear any of my clothes and i feel awful. i go through periods of working out regularly but it’s so hard with school full time + work full time