Why ev decided to stop exercising in the morning

http://blog.lift.do/post/52576829173/workout-when-youre-least-productive-productivity-tip

by jasonshen • 13 years ago

46 15 13 years ago

blog.lift.do

Ev has a lot of good productivity tricks. I think this is one of his favorite topics, plus he's had a long career with important things to work paired with tons of people trying to get his time.

I tried to get him to give his philosophy on saying no. He's apparently very good and systematic about it. But somehow he still manages to know when to say yes.

bravura• 13 years ago

If found this brief bit: "Say no to most things: Features. People. Partnerships. “Coffees.” Projects. Only a few of them really matter. (Yes, it’s hard to know which.) Don’t get distracted."

http://addicted2success.com/success-advice/evan-williams-the...

But it would be great if you could get him to speak about this in more depth.

state• 13 years ago

I completely agree with this (although I did happen to exercise early this morning). Nothing is better for a long day of coding than a good ride, climb or surf in the middle. Lunch can really slow me down, and taking time to get exercise is a great remedy.

bluedino• 13 years ago

I was doing this for a while. I used to go after work, then started going at lunch.

But the place I go doesn't have a shower, so even after I dry of with a towel and take a hobo shower with some baby wipes, I'm still kind of icky when I get back to work. I don't really like being even a little bit stinky out of respect for my co-workers.

It also causes me to take another 20 minutes for lunch or eat at my desk, and in the summer it takes me a good 20 minutes for my body temperature to come back to normal.

It works but as always there are compromises to be made.

bitwize• 13 years ago

Ah yes, welcome back to The Highly Effective Work Habits of People Flush with Silicon Valley Cash.

How does this help the rest of us who have to be in the office during core hours, no more than an hour for lunch, or else look for a new way to feed our families? In a down job market?

chollida1• 13 years ago

Ah yes, welcome back to The Highly Effective Work Habits of People Flush with Silicon Valley Cash.

I think this is very unfair and a bit childish. Many programmers have flexible work hours they can use. You don't need to be in Silicon valley or have a pile of cash to work in a flexible work environment.

How does this help the rest of us who have to be in the office during core hours, no more than an hour for lunch

Well in this case it doesn't. However, it doesn't mean the advice isn't good advice for people who can use flexible hours.

I used to work out at 2pm each day at work. My work had no problem with it.

My current job means I can't leave my seat during trading hours( 9:30 until 4) so I now work out at 4.

However, the old saying that everyone has the same number of hours in a day to use, its up to you to choose how to use them.

Like tptacek said about pricing earlier today:

The most common pricing fallacy on HN (perhaps after cost-plus pricing) is the idea that every product must be targeted at all people to make sense.

You can generalize this to advice as well. Advice doesn't have to be targeted to all people to make sense. If you can't or won't take the advice then its just not for you.

CodeFoo• 13 years ago

Many programmers have flexible work hours they can use. You don't need to be in Silicon valley or have a pile of cash to work in a flexible work environment.

Yes and no.

Many programmers can start work when they want, and end work 8-10 hours after that. One segment.

Only the very well off or upper management are able to truly work flexibly. Show up in the morning for a few hours, take off and go to the gym or home, show up later and work for a few more hours. No problem for the founder of Twitter.

rollo_tommasi• 13 years ago

This is a smart idea, but it made me think: I'd like to see some productivity/exercise/lifehacks for those of us who are stuck with inflexible managers or retrograde office cultures. I know I'd be vastly more productive if I could knock off around 2:00pm for a thirty-minute nap (or jog, depending) every day but unfortunately my company takes an Office Space-style approach to personnel management. It'd be great to see what people who have worked years in similar environments have been able to come up with.

erinfrey• 13 years ago

Even at flexible workplaces, it's hard to find a place to nap unless there is a free room/couch somewhere. I tried taking a nap on a bench at Yerba Buena Gardens once but was kicked off the bench by the Park Guardians. :(

When I can't fit in a nap, a brisk walk gives me a good energy boost or even switching to standing at my desk... in fact, I'm about to switch to standing now. Have you tried that?

Chris2048• 13 years ago

Need a standing desk?

Dirlewanger• 13 years ago

"If there were more travel time involved, it might not be worth it (or it might be worth switching how you exercise)"

Which for 95% of us out there, is the case. So this is a rather pointless article.

izendejas• 13 years ago

I have found that working out in the morning is very good for my productivity. I've written a blog post about it: https://medium.com/better-humans/50c835e15244

The keys for me were doing so for only 10 minutes, with 2 of those being very intense, otherwise you get too exhausted.

I've lost 15lbs in 3 months also. By working out in the morning you get over the cortisol peak, grogginess and get off to a good start.

I need to finish that blog post series, but I'm actually working on a mobile app to help me keep track of some data.

To manage those energy/focus swings (especially after lunch), instead of working out, I go for a walk or step outside the office to work with fresh air and some sunlight.

jasonjei• 13 years ago

I think it really depends on the person. I always get an energy boost heading to the gym and I find my mind is clearer from the endorphin rush. Some people are clearer out of bed; I have had allergies to pollen and the environment all my life, so going to the gym clears it for me and I find I am more productive as a result. I go to the gym twice a day, akin to getting a cup of coffee to helping me focus.

Exercise and fitness is different for everyone. I don't think there is a single categorical way to approach exercise other than that you do it.

pdog• 13 years ago

Evan Williams isn't even swole. Why is he qualified to give workout advice?

Axsuul• 13 years ago

It depends on what works for you. I find that working out in the morning is better just so you can get it out of the way. I tend to be the in the zone throughout the whole day when coding so it would feel like an interruption for me.

Why ev decided to stop exercising in the morning

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