If you spend most of your working time sitting then back problems are inevitable. 

A chiropractor friend of mine, turned writer, spends much of his day sitting at his computer and to protect his back he invested in a treadmill.

Now I know that at treadmill at the office sounds a little unusual, but let me explain . . .

I commented to Dr. Mike that I had thought about buying a drafting table to work at - to stand at while working and he said the reason a treadmill is better (aside from getting exercise in the process) is that it keeps your body moving.  In other words, standing in the same position all day is as bad for your back as sitting in the same position.

Who am I to argue with a trained professional offering free advice?

Anyway, what he did was essentially take a board and place it across the armbars on the treadmill, then placed his laptop on top of the board.  This way he could work while walking.  And yes, even though it sounds tough you really can walk at a leisurely pace and type without any problem.

I came up with a simlar setup on my treadmill (I found a GREAT deal on Craiglist - I bought a $1200 retail machine for $275 - in like-new condition) and it feels great to spend even an hour of my working day getting some exercise ,and to relieve my back from sitting.

The problem we both have with our setups is primarily aesthetics - it’s ugly, especially in an office.  Also, it took a fair amount of jerry-rigging (my board is attached with a bungie chord so it doesn’t get knocked off with my laptop on it and although it sounds simple is took 2 weeks to get everything setup so it was workable).

I’ve seen custom made holders that go for several hundred dollars and that’s why I’ve lived with my “ugly” setup.

Until now that is.  I just discovered an ingenious and inexpensive (and attractive) alternative called the Surf Shelf.

The Surf Shelf is made of a durable acrylic material.  The SurfShelf will accommodate any laptop on the market including 17 inch wide-screens (which is what I work on).

If the laptop is wider than the SurfShelf, that should be no problem, because the SurfShelf comes with a Velcro strap that ensures your laptop is completely secure.
The SurfShelf has been tested to hold over 50 lbs, so there’s no way it’s going to break under normal usage.

The Surf Shelf works with most treadmills, and many exercise bikes and eliptical trainers too.

To learn more, about the SurfShelf visit the official site here.

Although I’ve talked about us folk who work at a desk all day, this is great if you’d like to get some exercise while chatting with your friends on Twitter or Facebook.  Or if you want to catch up on your reading while exercising - I like to watch training videos or read ebooks during most of my workout time.  It really helps the time pass and I can scratch two things off my to-do list at once.

And because of that, this is one of those investments that pays for itself right away - aside from making my time more enjoyable.

Go ahead and take a closer look at this one:  SurfShelf