20 Ways to be more active at work: Incorporating activity into your sedentary desk job

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Why should we be active at work?

So many of us are at our computers for hours on end everyday, or involved in other sedentary work.  Dr. James Levine, director of the Mayo Clinic-Arizona State University Obesity Solutions Initiative and inventor of the Treadmill desk, has called sitting ‘the new smoking’. It is bad for our health.  Research suggests that prolonged sitting increases the risk of developing heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers. Like smoking, the effects of long term sitting are not reversible. 

“Sitting is more dangerous than smoking, kills more people than HIV and is more treacherous than parachuting.  We are sitting ourselves to death.”

Dr. Levine

According to a study in the American Journal of Epidemiology*, “The time spent sitting was independently associated with total mortality, regardless of physical activity level. Public health messages should include both being physically active and reducing time spent sitting…Because a sizeable fraction of the population spends much of their time sitting, it is beneficial to encourage sedentary individuals to stand up and walk around as well as to reach optimal levels of physical activity.” (A.V. Patel, et al, 2010)

According to Dr. Levine, Non-Exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy spent on everything we do but sleeping, eating or sports-like exercise. Increasing NEAT contributes to our energy expenditure and can help reduce obesity and other chronic conditions mentioned above.

Have you checked out my post on Exercising Safely?

Some fitness buffs may go to the gym before or after work and spend up to a couple of hours there. That is great, but research says that activity should be spread out throughout the day.  Let us see how we can incorporate exercise and activity during our work day and be more active at work.

20 ways to be more active during your work day.

1. Use a pedometer or step tracker like the fitbit.

Nowadays, several smartphones have built in pedometers. For example, many Samsung phones have an app called Samsung Health, which includes a step count, and also measures your speed and pace. 
Set a goal between 6,000-10,000 steps per day, depending on your ability. For example, if you have knee problems, 6,000 may be your max. Know your body and check with your doctor.

Activity level classification based on number of steps
C Tudor-Locke & DR Bassett Jr developed this classification in 2004

Number of Steps	Activity Level
0-5,000	Sedentary
5,000-7,499	Low-active
7,500-9,999	Somewhat active
10,000-12,5000	Active
12,500 or more	Highly active

2. Park your car further from your building so you can add in more steps.

3. Have a step challenge with your co-workers. See who can track the most steps and be more active at work.

4. Take public transit instead of your car when the weather is good. You’ll get many more steps in.

5. Take walks during breaks. You could walk in the hallways of your building or if the weather is good, step outside for some fresh air and to walk. 

6. Use the restroom on a different floor.

7. Walk after a quick lunch.

8. Have a friend or colleague as an accountability partner, with whom you can take walks during lunch.

9. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

10.Have walking meetings when it’s just 1 or 2 other people. Instead of sitting, walk with them and discuss the agenda.

11. Bike to work

12. Stand during meetings. Remove the chairs. The meeting will probably be shorter, leaving you more time to do your actual work.

13. While working in your office alone, or on the phone or on zoom calls, try standing. Use a desk with an adjustable height feature if necessary. If you’re working from home, using a tall kitchen counter or island as a desk allows ‘standing time’.

14. Stand on a foam pad if you can maintain your balance while working.

15. Set a timer for 30 minutes or every hour to take a short walk to the mail room or do other exercises such as mentioned below.

16. Do ankle pumps while sitting at your desk.

17. Pace the room while on the phone.

18. Sit on a stability ball instead of a chair.

19. Practice isometric exercises while sitting in a meeting. During isometric exercises, you aren’t necessarily moving, but you are contracting or tightening certain muscles. You should not hold your breath while doing these exercises. Those with high blood pressure or heart problems, should avoid performing isometric exercises.

20. Perform stretches while sitting. Basically, the posture your body is in while sitting, should be reversed if possible. Hold the stretch for 30 seconds.

Friends, let’s get moving!

Examples of exercises to do in your office:

1. Calf Raises
   

2. Lunges

3. Squats

4. Jumping jacks

5. Seated or standing vertical push-ups at your desk

6. Tricep desk dips

7. Tricep chair dips

Examples of isometric exercises:

1. Tightening your glutes/buttock
2. Drawing in maneuver in which you draw in your belly and hold for a count to 10 then release. Perform 5-8 repetitions.

3. Chair leg extensions

4. Isometric hand clasp

Flexibility/Stretching Exercises:

1. Seated side bend

2. Sitting cross arm stretch

3. Neck stretch

Please comment below if you found this post useful. Also, check out other posts about Exercise Recommendations, Benefits and Risks of Exercise and Aerobic Exercise.

If you are a woman in her 50s needing help getting on a plan to reclaim your health,

SCHEDULE A FREE CONSULTATION to find out if my programs are right for you.

Resources:
acsm.org
heart.org
getfit.unm.edu
medicalency.com
*Leisure Time Spent Sitting in Relation to Total Mortality in a Prospective Cohort of US Adults. Patel, et al, 2010

No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician.