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Freeware: Take a Break From Your PC with Workrave

Sitting on your chair, typing for a long time without breaks has been scientifically proven to increase the chance of having body injuries for example, Repetitive Strain Injury or RSI in short. Sometimes we are too busy with work / enjoying being in front of a computer for long hours (instant messaging?) but we forget to take care of our body and health. That is why freewares such as Workrave exists.

Workrave is a free program available for Windows and Linux to assist / reduce the risks of computer users of having RSI. Workrave will constantly alert you to have some small micro-breaks in a short period of time (3 minutes), to have a rest break (45 minutes) and restricts you from using the computer based on your daily limit. The default rest time is of course, editable to suit your needs.

I really love the feature when Workrave shows example exercises that you can use during your breaks. This information is also available on demand. To prevent users from ignoring Workrave break alerts, you can set Workrave to block keyboard input during rest breaks, efficiently forcing users to take some rests. There are many editable settings - you can even prolong micro breaks time limit if you find the constant alerts annoying - or just turn it off and depend totally on rest breaks (more practical). For more information on its features, check out Workrave comparisons page.

In my opinion, Workrave is suitable for hardcore computer users / web workers that spends most of their day in front of a computer. You never know when injury strikes so having a freeware like this is good for yourself. Remember, prevention is better than cure!

Download Workrave

Bonus Tip: Make Workrave auto start with Windows to make RSI prevention exercise a habit!

Tags: workrave, rsi, exercise, tips, freeware, free software

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