I have a colleague who WFHs and he pays a fair whack for a David Lloyd subscription, which will be £130 when it renews. Years back I thought that was poor value for money, but now he goes there every day with his laptop and does his work in their lounge/cafe punctuated by swimming, weights, a bit of spinning, maybe a sauna etc. Now I am barely leaving the house, that is beginning to sound pretty damn good.

Looks like Bannatyne is only £38 and there’s a bit of a work discount; plus it’s a nicer ride to get there for me. They say they have a pool but it’s not clear if it’s a proper one you can train in.

Anyone else do something like this? Fitness related or othewise?

I don’t as I’ve fallen into the trap of WFH and working through lunch and also working during the time I’d be commuting to office – so an extra 2 hours a day. I sit at desk and don’t tend to move.

I do have a gym membership so I’ve started swimming at 6am twice a week and it is helping, but I’ve yet to get my head sorted to allow a break and go do something else.

Saying that, the fact I don’t need to commute which I’m grateful for, so it has positives and drawbacks.

As weather improves I’m hoping to get out on bike more so I’ll hopefully have a hard stop at end of day.

Ooo, no – but I LOVE the idea of that!

We’ve got an incredibly flexible attitude to WFH here – I think there would be question marks raised if WFH was actually WFG.  They may be legitimate (privacy, security etc) or just perception.    I also suspect that if you were to do this everyday and are not spending a fair whack in their cafe etc you might find someone having a word eventually!

I briefly worked for Bannatynes years ago – pool was 25m, single lane, so not great for training in unless you got it to yourself.

My ‘somewhere to go’ has been to go out on my bike before starting work – 6.30am departure from the house for 45-75mins or so. Recently restarted swimming training with local club after 20 years of no training (swam competitively when I was younger) and the early starts are killing me (5.45 in the water FFS) but really enjoying it.

Like the idea of getting out the house more often!

I’m back in the office 3 days. If the weather is OK, I’ll get out on the bike for an hour on those days at home. The office days, I commute on the bike.

That said, there are loads of places opening in my city centre for those that WFH, but don’t actually need to be in the house.

but now he goes there every day with his laptop and does his work in their lounge/cafe

Personally I can’t stand using a laptop (without proper desk and monitors etc) for any length of time (other than say watching a movie in bed).

I’ve been working on the dining room table for three years now and have to say, it’s the best office I’ve ever had!

There seems to be a common theme in a couple of threads lately with people WFH doing pretty much anything other than actually working.

Just curious, does this tie in with what your company is expecting you to be doing?

Sadly no. I’ve been wfh for nearly 16 years and it would be impossible to carry my workroom table, sewing machines, sundries and equipment into the garden let alone to a gym. However I used to be a member of a David Lloyd gym many years ago. It paid its way in networking, as I met so many women in classes and events that I was busy with work for many years, so that is the other side of being a gym member.

If the nature of my work meant I could do it easily on a single, small screen, I would be regularly working from a cafe/pub/etc that offer remote working deals.

A local cafe has a coffee/drinks/lunch deal that would be ideal. Another pub not far away does something similar with a beer at lunch or evening. All good ideas although not necessarily good for ones health if done regularly!

I don’t have a ‘nice’ local gym though 🙁

I could if I wanted to, but I don’t find it particularly productive working in a busy place off a small screen.

office is 50yds from the house at the bottom of the garden so I have separation. i left the coffee machine in the house so I get regular exercise. I run or do a short ride pretty much every lunchtime as well, I’ve blocked a recurring hour in my calendar over lunch so people don’t try to arrange meetings over that time.

There seems to be a common theme in a couple of threads lately with people WFH doing pretty much anything other than actually working.

Just curious, does this tie in with what your company is expecting you to be doing?

or conversely this shows how little work actually gets done in the office. they can be bloody distracting places when they’re busy. I’m in 4 days a week now but when it’s busy I find myself plugging into my headphones to shut everyone out.

Just curious, does this tie in with what your company is expecting you to be doing?

<ignores troll>

I do go to a cafe, often, but it’s dull, and there’s only one nearby. I want somewhere to work that’s not home, so I can actually go somewhere – but I don’t want to have to go to an actual office that’s not in a convenient location. The idea of a few hours of work then instead of nattering to someone for a break I could shift some weights sounds pretty good. Yesterday I spent the entire day on a critical situation sat in my bedroom, it was terrible. I end up fabricating reasons to go to the shop; I deliberately don’t buy much so I have to go back out again the next day but it’s not very far to the shop nor is it a nice walk.

Everyone in my part of the company is very mobile and always has been, so we’re well set up to work from all over the place – airports, cafes etc. It’s even specifically covered in our security training.

There seems to be a common theme in a couple of threads lately with people WFH doing pretty much anything other than actually working.

have you been to an office recently? if I wanted to look busy and do nothing, an office is a far easier place to do it..

How is…

I’ve fallen into the trap of WFH and working through lunch and also working during the time I’d be commuting to office – so an extra 2 hours a day. I sit at desk and don’t tend to move.

…which is what I do (I’ve stood up about four times today, making coffee and having a wee, not quite simultaneously) interpreted as

doing pretty much anything other than actually working.

?

I should probably arrange some sort of catheter type thingy. For efficiency not fun.

Just curious, does this tie in with what your company is expecting you to be doing?

Yes, absolutely. Most of what my company expects me to do is think.

Our DL has a 25m indoor pool and a 20m outdoor one; Bannatyne only has 20m indoor but it does have three double-width lanes so should be ok.

It’s even specifically covered in our security training.

I’m hoping you also get “Tactical” training and one of those ex-SAS camelbaks 😉

I go in to the ofice 2 days a week (Tuesday and Thursdays) and WFH the other days. I find this to be a good balance. There’s still people who haven’t yet been back to the office in the last 3 years, but that’s to their detriment as there’s a lot to be said for meeting people and getting exposed to other conversations in the office that you just don’t get at home.

WFH works for some but I don’t think its a one size fits all.

I’d be a nightmare working from cafe / pub / gym as I am a proper people watcher. I’d never get anything done. Better to have a lunch break and go out for a coffee then come back home.

<ignores troll>

Just because it’s a possibly awkward question, it doesn’t mean it’s trolling.

Doing a bit of work inbetween gym sessions may not be fulfilling the hours you are paid to work.

I’m not convinced gathering your mates together, going to a local bar for pizza and a couple of beers is condensed into a normal lunch break, or for that matter conducive to being productive in the afternoon either. I could be wrong

I’m hoping you also get “Tactical” training and one of those ex-SAS camelbaks

The tactical solution is always ‘call the person whose job it is to deal with these things’, that’s all the training I remember 🙂

I have just accepted a job that is completely WFH where I went in before maybe a couple of days a week.

I do make sure I take the dog out for a walk at lunchtime now.

Interestingly though when I did go in to the office x 2 days a week it was interesting to see those who spent more time there. Their work ethic was questionable, and they appeared to spend a lot of time doing not very much.

I suppose it’s frowned upon having all the core server passwords written on a post-it note stuck to your monitor..

Just because it’s a possibly awkward question, it doesn’t mean it’s trolling.

Doing a bit of work inbetween gym sessions may not be fulfilling the hours you are paid to work.

It looks like trolling because it’s a very obvious thing that I have clearly thought of, and I wouldn’t be considering such a thing if it weren’t compatible with my working arrangements because you know, I’m an adult.

they appeared to spend a lot of time doing not very much.

I can’t think of anyone called Dunc (or anyone remotely funky) at my office but it appears we may work at the same place.

I go into the office that most of the people I work with are at every few months, it’s 2hrs away, and I spend the whole time chatting to people and drinking coffee. It’s recognised that that kind of thing is important and it is encouraged.

Doing a bit of work inbetween gym sessions may not be fulfilling the hours you are paid to work.

I’m not paid by the hour. Or paid to do x number of hours a week.
I can nip out for a two hour lunch if i want (or won’t be long before i’ll be able to go ride my bike).

when working from home alot i had specific bike/trail maintenance mornings and evenings. i went out all weathers. just get the right kit.

now i’m back office based im trying to keep to these.

i could probably work from a cafe but doing technical drawings with only a single laptop screen is hard.

I wouldn’t be considering such a thing if it weren’t compatible with my working arrangements because you know, I’m an adult.

There are two distinct and polar opposite styles of workforce management.
On the one hand, there are the employers/managers who belive if they cannot see you sitting at a desk looking busy you are clearly not working and therefore need ‘managing’

Then there are employers/managers who treat you like an adult, and view productivity based on performance agains desired results. AKA actual work done.

I know which most of us prefer to be working for.

I’m not really a proper WFHer more an occasionally WFHer now, and TBH when I do it’s more often because I don’t absolutely have to be in, and have sufficient tasks to fill a day on my laptop not because I hate the workplace or my colleagues…

But I can’t imagine why you would want to logon and work from a gym (not really a fan of the places anyway though). Why not just got to the office a couple of days a week if you’re bored with WFH, or WFH and swing by the gym early/later or take an extended lunch break and do some exercise to break the day up…

You’ll be pleased to know that if I tried to work on a public WiFi system I’d be sacked for putting your tax details at risk.

WFH, I try and get outside for a decent break at least once a day, either a walk or even just having a coffee in the garden.

It looks like trolling because it’s a very obvious thing that I have clearly thought of, and I wouldn’t be considering such a thing if it weren’t compatible with my working arrangements because you know, I’m an adult.

Was it aimed at solely you? It was a general question

I’m not paid by the hour. Or paid to do x number of hours a week.
I can nip out for a two hour lunch if i want (or won’t be long before i’ll be able to go ride my bike).

Obviously different people have different working arrangements

A lot of people are paid to do 8/10/whatever hrs work though

My line of work is construction based, so not doing what you are supossed to be doing is costing money, I appreciate some solely office based roles will be different

Just because it’s a possibly awkward question, it doesn’t mean it’s trolling.

No, the shibboleth isn’t the question, it’s the name above the question. 😁

Obviously different people have different working arrangements

We really need to get away from presenteeism as a metric. Unless you work in a role which is time bound (like say a call centre) then what does it matter if you do your work in an office, on the bog or at your local leisure centre? What does it matter if you do a day’s work in six hours and knock off early?

A lot of people are paid to do 8/10/whatever hrs work though

I doubt many who can WFH are…

I work from home a lot and am a member of a local David Lloyd. I use the outdoor 25m pool a couple of times a week plus a few yoga classes. I have a couple of times taken my laptop and headphones if I’ve had a scheduled Teams call that I won’t be able to get home for, and the quiet lounge areas are well set up for this, with decent booths, sound deadening etc. Not something I’d do regularly though as prefer big screens at home, plus less people distraction !

We really need to get away from presenteeism as a metric. Unless you work in a role which is time bound (like say a call centre) then what does it matter if you do your work in an office, on the bog or at your local leisure centre? What does it matter if you do a day’s work in six hours and knock off early?

Maybe in the construction industry you (I) come across more people willing, nay as keen as possible to do as little as possible to see out their daily commitment to turn up. Call me cynical, but given the opportunity to do this dossing at home, or down the pub, unchallenged, there wouldn’t be much work done at all.

On a slightly different note

I’m doing some work in an office lately (not today) as an Operations Manager – I tend to find that if someone is not in the same/next room to you and can’t be arsed to answer a question, they just ignore emails/teams. And that’s not isolated to me because they think I’m an arse, it’s across the board. If they are there in front of you, they have to deliver the answers

I’m five minutes from a virgin active outdoor pool, just got back from a 1k swim. 3 times a week at lunch, in good weather I’ll do a 30k loop on the bike at lunchtime.
Have to work from home as I use 3 large monitors.

I wfh a few days a week, and I often pop out for a swim in my lunch break. It’s important to get away from the desk, and this gives me more time in the evening.  I’m not sure I’d want to work from a cafe though.

Maybe in the construction industry you (I) come across more people willing, nay as keen as possible to do as little as possible to see out their daily commitment to turn up. Call me cynical, but given the opportunity to do this dossing at home, or down the pub, unchallenged, there wouldn’t be much work done at all.

Any maybe that is it – you look at WFH from your own industry perspective. Which doesn’t have a lot of people working from home/wherever they please because they would in fact do nothing.

Those of us who work in industries must have a different work ethic, because there is no taking the piss, dossing or anything (well maybe a little sometimes). There is work that needs doing and that work gets done, regardless of location.