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Coding on the Go

•4 min read
techworkflowaiproductivity

The best code I've written lately? On my phone, while my dog sniffs every tree on the block.

I never thought I'd be the person who codes on their phone. But Claude Code on the web changed that — and honestly, it's been a game-changer for how I manage my side projects.

The Problem with Context Switching

Here's the thing: when you're working on side projects around a full-time job and family life, you don't get long, uninterrupted blocks of coding time. You get fragments. Fifteen minutes here, half an hour there. Maybe an evening if you're lucky.

The traditional approach? Let small tasks pile up until you have a "real" coding session at your desk. But those small tasks — the ones that sit on your todo list mocking you — they add up. And they create friction that kills momentum.

Enter: Pocket-Sized Productivity

With Claude Code on the web, I can knock out tasks from anywhere. And I mean anywhere.

Walking the dog? Perfect time to:

  • Fix that typo in the README
  • Update dependency versions
  • Refactor that utility function you've been meaning to clean up
  • Close out those lingering GitHub issues

The magic is that Claude Code doesn't just execute commands — it understands context, creates branches, writes tests, and commits changes following your project conventions. All from a mobile browser.

How It Actually Works

Here's my typical workflow:

  1. Morning dog walk: Open Claude Code on my phone, pick a small task from Linear
  2. Let Claude handle it: It creates a feature branch, makes the changes, runs tests, commits with proper conventions
  3. Back at my desk: Review the PR, merge if it looks good

The beauty is that Claude handles all the tedious parts — branch naming, commit messages, test setup — while I just provide direction and review the output.

What Works Best on Mobile

Not every task is mobile-friendly, but these are perfect:

  • Todo list cleanups — Closing finished tasks, updating issue statuses
  • Dependency updates — Bumping package versions, fixing breaking changes
  • Documentation fixes — Typos, outdated instructions, missing examples
  • Small refactors — Renaming variables, extracting functions, simplifying logic
  • Test additions — Adding missing test cases, improving coverage
  • Bug fixes — Fixing issues with clear reproduction steps

The Unexpected Benefit

The real win isn't just productivity — it's momentum.

When small tasks don't pile up, your project stays in motion. You come back to your desk with a clean slate instead of a backlog. PRs get reviewed while they're still fresh. The codebase stays healthy.

And honestly? There's something satisfying about finishing a dog walk with three closed issues and a cleaner codebase.

Does It Actually Work?

Skeptical? I was too. But after a few weeks of this workflow, I've:

  • Closed 40+ minor issues that had been sitting for months
  • Kept my test coverage above 90%
  • Shipped features faster by breaking them into mobile-friendly chunks
  • Actually enjoyed my dog walks more (multitasking guilt-free)

The quality hasn't suffered either. Because I review everything at my desk before merging, I catch any issues while maintaining the speed boost.

Not a Silver Bullet

To be clear: I'm not writing complex features on my phone. Deep architectural work still needs focused desk time.

But for the maintenance tasks, the small improvements, the "I'll get to it later" items? Claude Code on the web turns dead time into productive time.

The Setup

If you want to try this:

  1. Open claude.ai/code on your phone
  2. Connect your GitHub repo
  3. Use your existing Linear/GitHub issues as a task list
  4. Let Claude create branches, write code, and handle git operations
  5. Review and merge PRs when you're back at your desk

That's it. No special setup, no complicated config. Just point Claude at your repo and start knocking out tasks.

Final Thoughts

Will this replace traditional development? No. But it complements it beautifully.

Side projects die from friction, not lack of ideas. Anything that reduces friction — even by 10% — compounds over time. And when that friction removal happens during time you'd otherwise spend just walking, it feels like found productivity.

So next time you're walking the dog, maybe pull out your phone and close a few issues. Your future self (and your project) will thank you.

Tools mentioned:

Written mostly on my phone. Edited at my desk. Published while the dog napped.