CORVALLIS, Ore. — Interested in investing in one of those treadmill desks, which let their users work while strolling along?
It might be worth it, says an Oregon State University researcher, especially for sedentary workers who get little other exercise.
At 1 to 2 mph, they aren’t the type of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity that experts advise, said John Schuna, an OSU assistant professor of exercise and sports science, who was part of a study recently published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
The treadmill desks (and similar devices, such as desks whose users pedal as if on a stationary bicycle) are ways for increasingly sedentary workers to get at least some exercise during the workday. “Something is always better than nothing,” Schuna said.
The researchers organized a small study with overweight and obese employees of a health insurance company. The workers were encouraged to take advantage of the treadmill desks twice a day for 45 minutes each session.
The idea was to run the treadmills at about 2 mph, not enough for the workers to be so out of breath that they couldn’t perform their jobs. The average speed the workers used was about 1.8 mph, Schuna said.
But the workers used the treadmill desks for only about half the recommended time, he said: “They averaged a little over one session a day for approximately 45 minutes or so per session. It’s about half of what we initially wanted them to do.”
A number of factors help explain the reduced use, Schuna said. For one, the workers had to share the desks, which the researchers thought was a better representation of how companies likely would bring in the units, considering their cost — from $750 a pop to about $2,000.
The sharing proved a problem, Schuna said. There were some conflicts with work schedules, and “there were times when workers were literally unable to leave their own desks for a four-hour period, because they had to be there for the call center.”
The researchers did not notice any significant weight loss or changes in body mass index during the 12-week study, but Schuna noted that was not a primary goal of the study. He added that, properly used, the devices could help prevent weight gain.
Installing treadmill desks throughout a workplace could challenge employers, he said.
In addition to the cost, widespread use could mean new layouts for offices — and might trigger liability issues, he said. “What happens if someone falls?”
“Being realistic,” he said, “it’s not going to work for a lot of workplaces.”
But he does think that the trend has traction.
“I think you’re going to see more and more people using them,” Schuna said, but he added: “The adoption rate is not going to be massive. I think we would be fooling ourselves if we thought that everyone was going to start installing these things in every office building in the country.”
