Getting more out of your commute bag

Small changes to how you pack and carry can make the daily commute feel a lot less like a chore.

Most commuting stress isn't about the journey. It's about being underprepared for it. Wrong bag, wrong packing, and you spend the train ride digging for your headphones while your laptop teeters on your knee.

The La Pendla Commuter Bag was designed around the specific problems commuters run into. Here's how to use it properly.

Don't have one yet? See the La Pendla Commuter Bag with its laptop, shoe and lunch compartments and two cup holders.

Use the compartments with a system

The bag has dedicated sections for a reason. Laptop goes in the padded laptop compartment, shoes in the separate shoe compartment and lunch in the insulated compartment. Keep the small things you reach for most in the three inner pockets. Once you get into the habit of putting things in the same place every time, you stop losing ten minutes a day looking for them.

Pack gym gear the night before

If you plan to work out before or after work, pack your gym clothes before you go to bed. Put your trainers in the separate shoe compartment, away from your work clothes and your food. You also avoid the usual morning panic of forgetting a sock.

Bring your own lunch

The insulated compartment fits up to two lunch boxes, which means you're not dependent on whatever the office canteen is serving. Over a working week, that also saves a reasonable amount of money.

Switch carry modes when it makes sense

The bag converts to a backpack. On mornings when you're cycling or need both hands for something else, make the switch. On days when you're going into client meetings, the shoulder bag mode works better. Switching makes the bag work harder for you.

One bag for the whole day

The point of the bag is that you don't need a separate work bag, gym bag, and lunch bag. That's three things to keep track of, three things to leave on trains. If you're still carrying multiple bags, you're not using this one properly.