Would you rather...

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AdahGreen2022
AdahGreen2022 Posts: 264 Member
in Health and Weight Loss

Would you rather... 22 votes

work from home job sitting down 8 hours per day
50%
AthijadeWynterbourneMouse_PotatoMaggieGirl135LenGrayisaottAermorgenthreewinsMsCzarddsb1111mareeya88 11 votes
drive 30 minutes to work at an easy, but active job(healthier) making the same $
40%
kshama2001csplattnewhealthylife1234lnort0618herblovinmomMischanteBeanieBean93cgree1627Nathawesome 9 votes
have a very physical job 5 minutes away, same $
9%
12Sarah2015mrmota70 2 votes

Replies

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,906 Member
    edited June 2023
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    drive 30 minutes to work at an easy, but active job(healthier) making the same $
    I've had all three types of jobs. I do love working from home, but it was great to get some activity on the job. I had a fun job at a yoga retreat center, well, it was more of an assortment of jobs - I taught yoga, and worked in the kitchen, office, and in marketing. Office was mostly sit down and marketing 50:50. Yoga and kitchen lightly active. There was also a lot of walking around the campus and to my house. This was as a volunteer in lieu of room and board - getting paid the same as the job for which I had computer and business degrees would have been great!

    The very physical job was boring, and it was a relief to get laid off and be able to go to school full time and finish my business degree, which led to a serious of office jobs, during which time I got my computer degree, with a brief detour at yoga places when I was recovering from an illness and a divorce.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,195 Member
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    I can't answer that.

    For one, you left off "Be retired and commute to things when it's fun and affordable enough" which is where I am now.

    When I worked, I had a very physical job for around 5 years, and I lived close to it. I could walk or bike there. It was pretty fun, the management tolerable, and I was pretty happy.

    Later, I had a job that got more and more sedentary as the years rolled on, and that had health consequences because I didn't make it a point to increase movement in my personal life, so I got fat and out of shape. But most of the time the management was OK, I liked my colleagues, and the work was interesting challenging (if sometimes pretty stressful). It was a little further commute, but still only a few minutes away by car.

    But more on point: I don't really care how physical my job is or isn't, as long as it isn't injury-causing and I'm competently capable of what's required. I don't think I'd care whether it was at home or out (never had an at-home one). But I hateHateHATE a long commute, especially if it's a drive. Don't enjoy driving so it's stressful, we have severe-ish Winter besides, and it's a major time suck.

    I don't think it's my job's job to keep me active enough for general health. The job is allowed to prioritize other rewards (enjoyment, challenge, good management, good colleagues, higher pay or benefits, etc.). The "move enough to stay healthy" is on me. Early in my career, I let myself down.

    After a major health crisis (cancer) in my mid-40s, I kept working at the same job, but got much more active in my personal time, and actually became reasonably fit. I could've done that earlier, and that would've been a better plan.
  • AdahGreen2022
    AdahGreen2022 Posts: 264 Member
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    There's a lot of pros and cons! The work from home makes the most sense to me, financially. Could shave off at least 30 minutes-1 hour getting ready for work and an hour driving plus gas costs...so more money per hour, but would it be worth the health risks?
  • Mouse_Potato
    Mouse_Potato Posts: 1,495 Member
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    work from home job sitting down 8 hours per day
    I work from home, but I don't sit for 8 hours a day. I do regular workouts before work and over lunch and I pace during calls, so I get at least 20k steps a day.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,195 Member
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    AdahGreen2022 wrote: »
    There's a lot of pros and cons! The work from home makes the most sense to me, financially. Could shave off at least 30 minutes-1 hour getting ready for work and an hour driving plus gas costs...so more money per hour, but would it be worth the health risks?

    What are the health risks? Just sitting for 8 hours? There should be ways to counteract that risk, seems like.

    Even if you're glued to a desk literally every second, there are standing desks, under-desk mini ellipticals or pedallers, and that sort of thing. If you can break for a few minutes now and then during the day, there are opportunities for so-called "exercise snacks" where you do something active for that few minutes. If you're saving time by not commuting, some of that saved time could be used for some kind of fun movement.

    Lots of fit people have sedentary jobs, IME, and some of them have a commute as well (though maybe not huge long ones).
  • ythannah
    ythannah Posts: 4,365 Member
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    My current arrangement suits me fine. I work at an office desk job but get up and walk a lot to use the printer/copier, go speak with someone, check my mail bin, and I make a point of walking to the furthest bathroom downstairs. My commute is 10 - 15 minutes and most of it is on main roads that are priority for plowing so not even that hazardous in winter.
  • MsCzar
    MsCzar Posts: 1,042 Member
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    work from home job sitting down 8 hours per day
    You had me at "sit." :D
  • BeanieBean93
    BeanieBean93 Posts: 55 Member
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    drive 30 minutes to work at an easy, but active job(healthier) making the same $
    As enticing as "work from home" is, I actually like getting up, getting dressed and going to the office. Then when I'm done, I can leave my work and sign off for the day. Our software is locked to the office WiFi and server so I can't log in outside of the realm of the business and it's actually nice to be able to tell people,"I'm out of the office and I'll respond when I'm back." It helps to differentiate between "work" and "home." Sometimes I wish I could work from home temporarily but I wouldn't want that for the long term. Sure, I'd get a lot more working out done if I worked from home but having an office job doesn't prevent me from still having an active life.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,906 Member
    edited June 2023
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    drive 30 minutes to work at an easy, but active job(healthier) making the same $
    AdahGreen2022 wrote: »
    There's a lot of pros and cons! The work from home makes the most sense to me, financially. Could shave off at least 30 minutes-1 hour getting ready for work and an hour driving plus gas costs...so more money per hour, but would it be worth the health risks?

    I never spent more than 5 minutes getting ready for an active job. To me, that's a "shower after work" job, not "shower before."
  • AdahGreen2022
    AdahGreen2022 Posts: 264 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    AdahGreen2022 wrote: »
    There's a lot of pros and cons! The work from home makes the most sense to me, financially. Could shave off at least 30 minutes-1 hour getting ready for work and an hour driving plus gas costs...so more money per hour, but would it be worth the health risks?

    I never spent more than 5 minutes getting ready for an active job. To me, that's a "shower after work" job, not "shower before."

    That's true!:D
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 8,998 Member
    edited June 2023
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    Hmm, am no good at choosing between 3 options, none of which actually apply to me.

    My job is mildly physical - it certainly isnt desk sitting for 8 hours but I wouldn't really call it active either.

    It is a 5 minute drive from where I live - my previous job, similar job but for different employer, was sometimes close enough to walk to (we had 2 locations, one was close enough to walk to/from, which I did when I was knocking off before dark)
    I miss being able to do that.
    have never worked from home or been in a job that could work from home
  • mareeya88
    mareeya88 Posts: 32 Member
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    work from home job sitting down 8 hours per day
    The jobs I've had that were active (meaning, being on my feet the whole day) left me feeling extremely drained and sore with absolutely no desire to work out. I think I kept my same weight instead of losing any pounds, too. So... computer jobs all the way!
  • Aermorgen
    Aermorgen Posts: 10 Member
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    work from home job sitting down 8 hours per day
    Movement on the job is irrelevant to my choice. I enjoy the work I do, and it's a sit-down job. If I wasn't sitting to do it at home, I would be sitting to do it in a windowless office. I did that for years. Home is nicer!

    I can get movement I like easily enough when I'm not working at my desk.

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