Work-in Your Workout
We all seem to find a million and one excuses NOT to fit in a workout into our day; I don’t have the time. I don’t feel well. I am too tired. I will do it tomorrow. I can’t afford a personal trainer or gym membership. You get the point. But the fact of the matter is you don’t have to have an expensive gym membership to workout. And believe it or not, you don’t need tons of time to fit in a work out… even when you are at work!
According to the U.S. Government’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans, it is recommended to:
- Engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity, above usual activity, at work or home on most days of the week to reduce the risk of chronic disease in adulthood.
- Engage in approximately 60 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity activity on most days of the week while not exceeding caloric intake requirements to help manage body weight and prevent gradual, unhealthy body weight gain in adulthood.
- Participate in at least 60 to 90 minutes of daily moderate-intensity physical activity while not exceeding caloric intake requirements to sustain weight loss in adulthood.
You are probably thinking, “When am I going to fit in 30, 60 or even 90 minutes of physical activity into my day?” One option you may want to consider is fitting in workouts while you are at work! Doing the little extras at work may not seem like a lot, but if you were to fit in four, five-minute workouts into your day (that’s only 5 minutes out of every 2 hours of your work day), you would have already completed 20 minutes of your recommended daily workout. Ok, so it may take some creativity to stay active at work, but there are plenty of opportunities if you carefully look around you.
About.com suggests the following:
- Sit on an exercise ball instead of a chair. This will strengthen your abs and back and you’ll work on your posture without even trying.
- Set an alarm to go off every hour to remind you to stand up and move around. Even if you just swing your arms or take a deep breath, you’ll feel more alert.
- Use the restroom on another floor and take the stairs.
- Use a pedometer and keep track of how many steps you take. Aim for 6,000 to 10,000 steps a day.
- Leave something important in your car (your lunch, your briefcase, etc.) so you have to run out to get it (and take the stairs).
- Deliver documents or messages to co-workers in person rather than by email.
- Go to the mall for lunch and park on the opposite end of the food court. Don’t forget to buy something healthy. Or simply take a walk somewhere nearby your office during your lunch break.
- Get a headset for your phone so you can move around while you talk.
- Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
- Park further away in the parking lot.
Check out the links below to see how you can start incorporating workouts into your work day!
Military.com – The Office Workout
ABCNews.com – Getting in Shape, in the Office
MayoClinic.com – Office exercise: How to burn calories at work