WFH will cause more obesity

[BalloonCityBaseline]

I can't see how it wouldn't. Stuck at home, alone, mostly based a desk. Not even a walk from a tube station or up a few flights of stairs. Access to more food. Usually I just bring what I know I should eat and then I don't buy more or use the vending machine, but at home I'm eating much much more.
What does everyone think? I'm sure there's some counter views.

I'm far more active at home. I gain 30 minutes each end of the day so I now run / do body combat/ body pump in the morning for 45 minutes and take the dogs out then take them out again for 20 minutes or so at lunch then they get an extra half an hour in th evening. I put out the washing, tidy about between things in my schedule.

I have a mildly active in work and a sedentary one at home but I still get more at home activity.

I don't know, it depends on your personality.

For me, the office is full of temptations: brought in cake, people eating haribo, bistro lunches etc. I don't have that stuff at home so not too tempted (unless someone is eating on a video call, there's a special place in hell for people who do this).

Plus, I can do some squats while the kettle is boiling. Wouldn't be caught dead doing that at work.

@Prisonbreak

You cannot blame working from home for obesity. It’s your choice what you eat and it’s your choice how you exercise

This!!

Wfh does not 'cause' obesity. People need to take some personal responsibility here.

@BalloonCityBaseline

I think that if you like exercise and try to work it into your routine anyway then wfh gives you more time to spend achieving this. I was thinking more of those who do no exercise, but previously had to walk at least from the car park to the office (to use an extreme example) and now don't have to move anywhere. Also there is the freedom to eat more without judgement. I've always been the fat person who says no to the biscuits for fear of being judged but at home I could eat half a packet of hobnobs in one sitting and no one would know (except the cat.)

Agreed. I am this person. Its not good ☹️

@MrsTophamHat you also have access to the junk cupboard, not just to the allowance of one packet of crisps and a chocolate bar you’d usually pack yourself.

At work I assume you don’t really snack through the day, only on breaks. While WFH I often find myself with a couple of Jaffa Cakes every time I make myself a cup of tea or coffee.

When I’m working in office I tend to make myself a salad, or a pasta salad, sometimes I’ll buy pitta breads or thins to make healthier sandwich type lunches. At home I just graze through the day throwing in the odd pasta or pot noodle.

[quote LifesLittleDeciders]@MrsTophamHat you also have access to the junk cupboard, not just to the allowance of one packet of crisps and a chocolate bar you’d usually pack yourself.

At work I assume you don’t really snack through the day, only on breaks. While WFH I often find myself with a couple of Jaffa Cakes every time I make myself a cup of tea or coffee.

When I’m working in office I tend to make myself a salad, or a pasta salad, sometimes I’ll buy pitta breads or thins to make healthier sandwich type lunches. At home I just graze through the day throwing in the odd pasta or pot noodle.[/quote]
Oh, I agree with this as well. WFH did me no favours. On good days i'd make the healthy salad and go for the walk, but as time went on I was getting too busy and juggling small children so it got more indulgent and I was choosing to try and get ahead with work tasks rather than get outside. It's not something I would like to do long term, certainly not full time.

It’s a worry.

DH often doesn’t leave the house for days at a time.

I think OP you may sadly be right for a number of people. There needs to be self-discipline and not just in not answering emails at all hours. I have banished biscuits from the house, am making sure I have a cooked meal middle of the day not evening, and go for a walk every day.

The person who referred to self-responsibilty was right though. Awareness of the possibility however can be the first step.

I agree. Steps add up quickly when out and about, and having access to the fridge/cupboards all day takes more willpower imo than avoiding an overpriced vending machine at work.

I've found the opposite, I eat healthier and better when I'm WFH. I think because I have more time and access to a good kitchen and ingredients which you often don't get at work. You may have a kitchen with a fridge and microwave for everyone to share at work but you're really limited. Also, at work someone was always going to Macdonald's/Greggs/any fast food store, or there's cakes for someone's birthday etc, so I was always tempted at work in a way I'm not at home. I lost weight!

Wfh (especially when the schools were closed) is not great for my waistline. At work I am up and down stairs, around the room setting up, walking 1 hour (in chunks) on my commute.

Yes I have gained time but I have young kids so it is swallowed up. I could go for a walk after work but they want to come, so we have a short meander instead. Doing the school run before my work day helps.

I eat more varied lunches but snack more. I don't have time to buy snacks at work but do have time to walk to the kitchen!

I am actively trying to adjust my wfh routine, especially with lighter evenings, but I have to motivate myself in a way I didn't have to before, as I had to commute. At times when mental health has been suffering and it's been winter, it's understandable this isn't an easy thing for many. OP well done on your weight loss!

It's fifty fifty for me. I assume (hope) that working from home during a pandemic is not reflective of how it will be once things unlock. I am not a natural exerciser and am motivated by training for a goal, so parkrun, races. I prefer running longer sessions with friends for the distraction. I have a love/hate relationship wih exercise classes but they are useful for getting me to push and try different things. I lift weights, but I go with a friend so we can spot each other. None of these things are currently possible. I'm trying to run a couple of times a week and alternate with a stretching/weights session. I go out for a daily walk, but like everyone else I am sick to death of the local routes. So all the ways I can exercise at present feel like a chore. And I agree there's much less incidental exercise.

That said, I don't have to commute, which means I have more time and energy. And my job is sufficently flexible that I can fit in a run when the weather looks good rather than waiting until I get home from work. Likewise the stretching sessions. People would look at me a bit oddly in the office if I started doing lunges.

Food wise it's a mixed bag. Not having access to canteens and vending machines is a definite plus for me. I am eating less junk food as a result. I'm not sure though, that I am eating fewer calories. Clothes don't appear to have shrunk, but haven't got baggier either, and I have been avoiding the scales because, to be frank, I'm just getting through this now. I haven't got the motivation to go on a diet. Things are restricted enough. Nice food is one of the few highlights of the day and I'm not restricting that too.

@MrsTophamHat absolutely. I keep promising myself I will get out for some fresh air (I don’t count walking DD up to nursery!) - hoping on my lunch break as the weather gets nicer I can sit outside and have some lunch.

That said I also think the cold weather does help. Humans naturally tend to eat more in the winter and less in the summer. So hopefully we’ll all be a little healthier come summertime! 😁

I used to WFH in an interesting and well-paid job. I owned my own home, lived in a nice village, had a dog who needed walking 4 times a day, and had the space and money to shop for and cook decent food, have a treadmill, store several bikes and keep a car to get to the seaside for lovely walks and runs. I was the healthiest, happiest, fittest and slimmest I've ever been. Now I'm in a dead end job on crap money, I live, sleep and work in one room in a shared house, can't have a dog, have nowhere to keep a bike, don't have the facilities to wash running kit every day, don't even have the floor space to do a sit-up, have limited kitchen facilities and nowhere to store batch-cooked food. It's not a 'lifestyle' that lends itself to being healthy and active.

It really depends. Now that DH has to WFH he goes on a long walk for lunchtime to get out of the house. He already cycled in the weekends for exercise so he's actually moving more at the moment.

Not for me. I now walk my daughter to and from nursery, and sometimes have time for a quick walk at lunchtime. I’m also not tempted by all the cakes, sweets, and chocolates that people bring into work. According to my Fitbit I now get 7000 steps on an average working day vs 3000 when I went into the office.

I agree OP. Before lockdown I was back to back in meetings, often travelling to meetings during the day so had at least a bit of exercise. Now WFH for one year, I've basically been going back to back in meetings the whole day just sat in my chair. Which is close to the fridge. The pace of work is intense. I need to get away from my desk more. I've put on shed loads of weight.

I've stayed the same weight whilst wfh but have upped my exercise by more running and dog walking as when at work I'd easily get 7000 steps a day even if I parked at the car park, by walking up the stairs and going out to get lunch.
I've now changed my routine so I go for a short walk before I start working as well as the running and dog walking.Doubt I'd be able to walk up 8 flights of stairs without breaking a sweat which I used to do 3-4 times a day when in the office.

Those that actively seek to do exercise will do this but unfortunately a lot of people probably don't notice that they do a lot of hidden exercise by going to the office and will sit all day at their desk at home with a break in between, maybe sat in front of TV and will probably eat more. I know which camp I fall into

On the days I WFH I do at least 3000 less steps than I do when I'm at work. I don't gain anymore time as I live close to my workplace anyway. So yes I'd hate to wfh full time.

I've lost 3 stone since the first lock down. My diet has changed for the better. Diet is key, but excerise is still important.

Will it? Probably. Should it? No.

Because if the commute was an hour then that's an hour to use for exercise. People will likely use it to do something else though.

If the issue is easier access to junk food then not buying junk at the supermarket will force the same environment change as an office - it won't be there.

I agree and have put on weight and developed painful back problems WFH. I'm in online meetings all day, barely get 10mins to leave the house and rarely get a lunch break. Then when the meetings finish I still have loads of work to do and am too exhausted to exercise (plus the weather being crap doesn't inspire me to go out)

When I was in the office, I was walking to and from the station at either end, walking between sites (20 mins each way) and between buildings for meetings. 10,000 steps easily without even noticing it.

Only a few people go out of their way to do exercise though, if I had a spare hour I wouldn't spend it exercising.

@An0n0n0n

Will it? Probably. Should it? No.

Because if the commute was an hour then that's an hour to use for exercise. People will likely use it to do something else though.

If the issue is easier access to junk food then not buying junk at the supermarket will force the same environment change as an office - it won't be there.

Where I work this has been an excuse to start meetings from 8am and have them running as late as 7pm some days. But hey we have all these online well-being resources to make up for it