Hi, fellow coders! Hope your codes are running error free!

We, coders, love the time we spent in front of VS Studio but what about your health? We at least have some kind of pain every other day. So what can we do to run our bodies code-free as well?

Let’s take a quick moment to stop and reflect on how well we are taking care of ourselves by adopting these 7 programming habits on this World Health Day.

7 Programming Habits to Adopt on World Health Day:

1. Good Posture

Let’s start with the basics!
Maintaining a good posture boosts your productivity as you feel more energized, reduces headaches, and even reduces injuries to the wrist, back, neck, or arms. It is also a major confidence booster.

Here are the steps to maintain a good posture:

• Keep your shoulders back and straight.
• Keep your back flat against the chair.
• Keep your knees at the same height as your hips.
• Keep your eyes flat on the ground.
• Keep the screen at your eye level.

2. Protect your eyes

Not taking care of your eyes may lead to dry eyes, blurred vision, headaches, and in some extreme cases even neck and shoulder pain. Ignoring these might ultimately lead to you getting sick and taking your eyes off the screen.

Let’s make sure our eyes are protected using the below steps:

• Make sure the room is lit properly.
• Use the 20/20/20 rule. This means if you look at the screen for 20 minutes, you must look at something at least 20 feet away from you for 20 seconds.
• Reduce glare by using an anti-glare matte screen on your laptop or use anti-reflective glasses.
• Reduce blue light by special glasses or reduce the color temperature of the screen.

3. Take breaks

Although we coders have the Flow State, pushing yourself even when you are experiencing physical strain will have long-term effects on your health. Forcibly breaking the flow state is also going to affect your productivity.

Here are some steps that I follow that have helped me in taking effective breaks:

• Take breaks when they are natural like you feel hungry or you need to hit the loo.
• Take a break for 15 min to 20 min.
• Do spend the break time on electronic devices.
• Look at something that is far from you, this will help your eyes get relaxed.
• Stay active, talk to your family, and friends, or play a small round of fetch with your pet.

4. Eat healthy

Diet is always going to be an essential part of being healthy. Eating unhealthy can lead to brain fog and feeling lethargic while a good diet does lead to improved memory and an energized body.

Make sure you have these steps included in your diet for a healthier lifestyle:

• Reduce Sugar and Caffeine intake.
• Include foods with Omega 3 Fatty Acids, Vitamin C, and Vitamin D in your meals.
• Include fruits and vegetables in your diet.
• Drink plenty of water. Have water to sip on at your workstation.

5. Stress management techniques

This is going to be the make-or-break deal for a programmer in his life. We have even heard instances of programmers quitting as they were under immense pressure.

Let’s start stress management today so that our love for programming stays intact using the below steps:

• Maintain a journal that has your goals written in the morning so that you can complete them on time and not stress about them.
• Maintain a clean desk. Stop cluttering the desk with unnecessary things.
• Make walking a habit be it in the morning or when you come back from the office.
• Exercise at least 3 hours a week.
• Start Yoga or Meditation for a piece of mind.

6. 8 hours of good sleep

Maybe you’ve had instances where you’ve been able to figure out errors in the early morning with a fresh mind that you couldn’t the previous night. Well, that’s the power of a fresh mind!

Here are a few steps that can help you in improving your sleep patterns and be energized:

• Stick to a sleep schedule
• Sleep for at least 7 to 8 hours.
• Make sure your bedroom is quiet, dark, relaxing, and at a comfortable temperature.
• No screen time before an hour to bed.
• Stop intake of caffeine products in the evenings.

7. Joining Unikaksha

At Unikaksha, we track our students daily. Our mentors guide students in their most stressful challenges and ensure that they are provided with an ample amount to work and chill. We also encourage them to follow all the above-mentioned healthy habits as we understand the healthier you are the healthier you work. Hurry, join UniKaksha’s upskilling courses and give your tech career a head start while staying healthy.

Follow all these 7 programming habits today and become a healthier and smarter version of your coding self!

About the Author

Luqmaan Shaik

Blog Author

Luqmaan Shaik serves as the Blog Specialist at Unikaksha, where he leads a team of technical writers dedicated to researching and providing valuable content for blog readers. With a wealth of experience in SEO tools and technologies, his writing interests encompass a wide range of subjects, reflecting the diverse nature of the articles. During his leisure time, he indulges in an equal balance of web content and book consumption.