How to move more when you have a desk job
If you have a demanding desk job that involves computer work, emails and phone calls, you have GOT to make an effort to physically move more while you’re at work. Here are my tips on how to do just that.
I recently started a new role in a busy, corporate environment where it’s not unusual for me to work solidly from my desk, stopping only for lunch or a meeting, to then return back to my desk to pick up where I left off.
Some days, it feels like I have not moved from my desk at all which I know is poor form, especially with the volume of research and media that confirms we’re living more and more sedentary lifestyles.
The adverse effects of the lack of physical activity are that great, that the Australian Government Department of Health has developed Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines to encourage us to move.
So to ‘future proof’ my work days, I’ve made a habit of squeezing in pockets of activity to counteract the sitting. And what I’ve found is that it makes a big difference to my energy levels and how I perform at work each day.
Here are my five tips on how to move more in your desk job, especially if you’re time poor.
1. Stand up on the daily commute. This is a great one if you take public transport to work. This can go a long way to cancelling the negative effects of sitting. I catch the train to and from work, which is 30 minutes of standing each way.
2. Take the stairs between floors. I know – this is incidental exercise 101 – but it’s simple, it works, it gets the heart rate going.
3. Schedule a lunch time walk. Another no-brainer, but hard to commit to if it’s not diarized or you haven’t managed expectations. In my first week on the job, I let the team know I’d be power walking at 1pm on my break, and this is the timeslot I stick to as regularly as I can.
4. Downsize your water bottle. I swapped out my 600/750ml water bottle to one that holds only 375ml. Why? So it forces me to get up and refill every hour or so. Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it – it works!
5. Get off the bus/train one stop earlier. Another goodie if you’re a public transport commuter. If I know I won’t be able to do my 1pm lunchtime walk, I always do this at the start of my day. And if it means I start work 10 or so minutes after my usual clock in time – so be it!
If you’ve got a great tip on how you keep active in a desk job, please share. Just post your tip in the comment box below.
Until next time,
Maryanne K
