The treadmill has been assembled, the desk has been partially constructed, and wonderfully, almost everything is going according to plan for the second treadmill desk project.

With regard to the desk, this is the part of the plan that I have changed. Originally I intended to use chrome shelving, but after measuring the treadmill and determining the position of the control panel and hand rails, which the user of the treadmill desk does not want to reposition at this time, the intention is to use a similar desk construction to the one I have on my treadmill. I am using the cheaper, though less sturdy plastic pipes and particleboard shelves, self-assembly shelving units from “Real Organized” that can be purchased at Lowes.

I will have to modify the lower part of the desk to make it fit snugly around the treadmill handrails and the heart rate monitoring handgrips. Other than that minor modification, which should not take more than 20 minutes with a band saw and a wood rasp, everything else worked out just great.

I would link to the parts that I used for the desk but unfortunately the Lowe’s website does not list the items. All I can do is give you the part numbers from the boxes and direct you to visit the nearest store, if you are interested in assembling a similar desk.

The parts that make up the desk portion of the treadmill desk, are:

• 2x (Item #253664) Pack of [Feet and tops] – You will need six feet and six tops.
• 3x (Item #253660) Pack of XL (16”) Tube Legs
• 1x (Item #253656) Pack of L (12”) Tube Legs
• 1x (Item #253654) Pack of S (8”) Tube Legs
• 1x or 2x 48”x16” Wood shelf
• 1x 48”x16” Glass shelf – This allows you to see the treadmill console below the 2^nd-tier of your desk.

If you have a narrow treadmill and do not require a wide desk, the 36” shelves would also work. I just happen to like lots of desk space to spread my work out on.

Total cost for the Real Organized desk parts should be between $50 and $90 depending on your desk and the city you purchase them in.

You require this many parts because if you are making desks like I have at the office, which are two-tiered, you will require six legs total.

The Real Organized free-standing shelving units are designed to have multiple shelves and this is how the legs of the unit maintains rigidity and strength. Unfortunately, unless you disassemble your treadmill, removing the upright arms that support the console and remove the handrails, you cannot put extra shelves in. My solution to this problem is to add in supports between the legs by taking a few pieces of wood and drilling them with holes the same size as the holes in the Real Organized shelves.

With that said, for the extra supports, you will also need: 3x 48” x 3” x ¾” pine and 2x 16” x 3” x ¾” pine, drilled at the appropriate locations to accommodate the legs of the desk. These pieces of wood will strengthen and stiffen the desk legs. You can drill these holes with a wood spade drill bit which can also be purchased at Lowe’s. You will need a ¾” drill bit such as the one found in this package.

The two treadmill desks that are in current use at the office are slightly different from each other because the treadmills are different models. For your own treadmill desk, I recommend purchasing the plastic shelving parts and just two shelves at first, construct the desk, and then determine what other wood will be require to strengthen the legs. If you buy too many legs or shelves, you can always return them directly to Lowes once your treadmill desk construction project is complete.

Total construction time for the first treadmill desk was about 2 hours, for the second treadmill desk, it was 20 minutes. The first desk I had to experiment with and figure out what wooden supports needed to go where. With the second treadmill desk, it was just a matter of measuring, cutting and drilling the extra support.

You may need to cut small corners out of one part of your desk, on the shelf that holds the keyboard and mouse. This necessity will be dictated by your particular style of treadmill.

On my Nordic Track Solaris I had to cut out a long hole in the middle of the keyboard shelf (shown in the picture before sanding and painting) to accommodate the heart rate monitoring bar.

I could have raised up the desk height by 1” which would have solved this problem, but then I would not be able to determine my heart rate without an external heart rate monitor.

This is now a moot point, the shelf cut out and treadmill heart rate handgrip bar are now obsolete as I use an external heart rate monitor. The handgrip bar is no longer used and I will be removing it in the next week or two as it just takes up desk space.

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You own a tricked out treadmill desk and you have lost pounds upon pounds of weight walking all day, every day, whilst you play World of Warcraft or blog about your life.

But… you just seem to be missing that essential “something,” that would make your treadmill desk just the perfect little place to work and play.

Hey, I have been there too, it has taken me the better part of a decade to figure out everything I need, to make my treadmill desk the perfect place to be. I spend the better part of my life walking and working and playing, but what does it take to make it really comfortable?

1. Rest Your Wrists

Because a lot of your upper body weight will be placed on the underside of your wrists that are constantly in motion and being rubbed by the surface of the desk as you walk, good padding is an essential addition to your desk.

The walking motion dictates that to have reasonably accurate fine motor control over your fingers and hands, you need to rest your wrists on something. A thick, padded, neoprene covered, wrist rest placed in front of your keyboard will save you days of blisters and calluses, do this now, you will thank me for it later.

When you are considering which wrist rest to purchase, find one that is machine washable, or at least be prepared to throw it out every few months. Treadmill desk wrist rests get filthy and worn out pretty quickly. You might be tempted to purchase a fancy rest, with a cute design that matches your office chair, carpet and drapes and costs upwards of $60. Do not do this. The moisture from your hands and the constant motion of your wrists as you, walk will wear it out in about four months. Trust me, I am on my seventh wrist pad in four years.

2. Document Holder

If you read magazines or have to refer to research papers on a regular basis a good, sturdy document holder from an office supply store can take strain off your neck and frustration off your workday. I also use my document holder to hold a hardcopy of my daily TO DO list, objectives, a summary of my goals, or other motivational material. Get a good one with a stiff arm that does not bounce around, and a base design that either clamps or is very solid.

3. No Wires A-Go-Go!

Yeah, sure, you work on a laptop with your fancy WiFi, you have an Apple iPhone, your SONY PSP and PS3, and Nintendo DS and Wii along with a bunch of other gadgets that are all wireless too.

No need to tell you to get rid of the wires, right?

So go get a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse for the ultimate in comfort and usability. No wires means you will not be tripping over them, and no wires removes all of the ugly cables draped across your treadmill desk.

When you are walking at a moderately slow pace and typing away or browsing the web, you should not sweat very much, but it is worth investing in a “spill proof” or “splash proof” keyboard, such as those by Microsoft or Logitech. It is incredibly easy to knock over soda cans, glasses and mugs, even when walking at a slow speed, the human body has an inherent je ne sais quoi that induces clumsiness when walking and thinking at the same time.

4. Cooking The Books

Computer books are large and unwieldy at the best of times, trying to work from one at your desk is a nightmare, and then you compound that by walking and attempting to strain your neck down to read teensy-tiny typography.

No thanks.

The best gadget I ever bought for my treadmill desk was a chrome cookbook stand from Williams & Sonoma, it is an ideal addition to any regular desk as well. You do not have to go that fancy, something simple and practical from Target will do just fine, so long as it can support the size and weight of the books you are intending to put on it.

An even better solution is to have the physical book and Adobe Acrobat PDF copy of it that you can keep open on one video monitor. O’Reilly does a great job of providing PDF versions of their books in their digital library. Sometimes though, digital versions are not available, so a cookbook stand is the way to go.

5. Let There Be Light!

It is your desk, not a sterile place that you hate to visit where you workout. This is a place where you work and play, so light your workspace appropriately.

A desk lamp, overhead spots, though watch out for heat generation, or any other method of making your treadmill desk a more pleasant experience works wonders. I use regular but very nice desk lamps on my treadmill desk, which adds a pleasant touch to what could be a sterile and boring area for spending so much of my life in.

6. Uninterruptible Power!

This goes for your regular desk too, but one of the first accessories you buy for your shiny new treadmill desk should be a UPS, and use it.

Hook all of your computer equipment up to it, but not your treadmill. Your treadmill should go on a regular and very separate surge suppressed power outlet.

If you have a small accident with water, a bad cable or just sub-standard wiring in your home, powering up the motor in a treadmill can cause a circuit breaker to flip, a short, or any other of a number of potentially equipment damaging, electrical problems.

Putting your computer equipment on a UPS is preparation for that inevitable day.

7. Travel Mugs

If you guzzle soft drinks, coffee, tea, water or any other beverage of choice, do yourself a favour and get a good travel mug, but most of all, get a travel mug with a wide base, like you can get for boating.

These types of mug are great, because they are pretty much impossible to knock over by accident, unlike every other beverage container out there that tapers at the bottom for aesthetic reasons or to fit your 64oz of Mountain Dew in to a standard size automobile cup holder.

Bonus Tip!

8. Your Fan

Even walking at a moderately slow speed in an air-conditioned office, you will tend to generate a lot of personal body heat, and if you are like me and enjoy a brisk walk or jogging between Azeroth flight points on your treadmill, your office A/C will have to run at Arctic temperatures to keep you cool. So why not get a whisper quiet fan that can move the cool air around, in just your area? My suggestion is to invest in an oscillating, vertical, tower fan, because:

1. They are amazingly quiet for the amount of air they move around
2. The air is not constantly being blown across your body, hence it does not cause chilblains or chafing of its own
3. You get a “whole body” cooling effect, instead of the blast of air from a regular circular fan that concentrates on only one zone, so your face is freezing, your upper body is cool[1] and your legs are burning up.

So go purchase a good fan that is whisper quiet, save a bundle on your electricity bill and make everyone else in the office not hate you for making them work in sub-zero temperatures.

[1] And your nipples are pointing the way to Rome.

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