How do I remind myself to take breaks while coding?

Question

Sometimes one hour is like one minute. It scares me.

How do I remind myself to take breaks while coding?

Answer 1

Set a recurring alarm in MS Outlook or email/calendar program that you keep open throughout the day.

Answer 2

I bought one of these Invisible Clocks a while back. Lets you set multiple alarms, repeating alarms, etc.

I had it set to vibrate every ten minutes to remind me to unclench my jaw and relax my shoulders and neck. :P

(The advantage to this versus computerized alarms is that it stayed on my belt while I stormed around the office, rather than only working while I was sitting at the computer.)

Answer 3

There are lots of programs out there that remind you to take a (user customizable) minute break every (user customizable) minutes. If I recall correctly, there's an applet that comes with GNOME that does just that. Similar programs exist for other environments and operating systems, some which lock you out for the duration and others that just nag you.

If you find that you lose track of time that badly, I'd suggest you look into using one of these programs, or creating one yourself (as long as you don't get carried away).

Answer 4

Use workrave (http://workrave.sf.net). It's a tool that helps to avoid RSI by regularly popping up to take a minibreak or coffee breaks, and has daily time limits. It detects whether you are doing anything on the computer, and it has the ability to block the input during breaks, it shows tips what to do during breaks, and more.

Runs on Windows, Linux, et. al. Is Open Source Software.

Answer 5

When an hour feels like a minute, that's because you're in a programming flow. As Peopleware documents, certain parts of your job can only be done when you have a good flow going. Getting back into that state if you're interrupted takes an average of 15 minutes.

Therefore solving this problem is likely to substantially reduce your productivity. But if you need to (eg because you have carpal tunnel issues), set an alarm, and then while you take your break, if you're in a flow try to stare into space and maintain your mental state.

And, of course, when your flow is interrupted by something else, take advantage of that for a break. :-)

Answer 6

Take a look at http://www.dejal.com/timeout/. Timeout is for Mac, sort of a cool tool to get yourself in the habit of breaking during work.

Answer 7

I use a program called Workrave (http://www.workrave.org/welcome/).

Answer 8

Workrave is a nice tool that helps you take breaks at regular (configurable) intervals. It monitors your inactivity so that if you naturally take a break without being prompted, it won't remind you until you've reached the next break interval.

Answer 9

Drink lots of water. You will go to the bathroom often.

I have a 32oz(1qt) bottle that I fill about four times a day.

Answer 10

Concur with the water suggestion. Combined with a healthy coffee habit, this makes for very "regular" (excuse the pun) stretch/bio breaks. Also, a non-technical hobby like running will make you sure you guilt yourself into stepping away at least once a day to do just that.

Answer 11

Keep checking your Stack Overflow reputation score like a madman...