The colder months are upon us and it’s the number one time of the year when people get derailed from their exercise routine. How will you fare during the colder seasons? Will you succumb to the
winter blues or will you push through? If exercising in the colder months is a challenge for you, an alternative is to do what you can while you are in the office. Here are some easy tips to begin practicing immediately to stay active in the workplace.
#1 – Get a wireless headset
In today’s world of WebEx, GoToMeetings, and Skype we are inundated with conference calls. Who says you have to be sitting down when taking a call? With a wireless head set, you are free to walk around, clean your desk, water your plants and go for a stroll to the mailroom while still participating in the call. This is a great time to keep moving, so use it wisely.
#2 – Stand Up!
Office jobs always mean a desk and a desk naturally means a chair. How much time are you spending sitting down? The maximum time you want to spend sitting down in a chair consecutively is an hour. At the hour mark, it’s time to stand up and move around. Make it a point to get up every hour on the dot. Standing up will help your circulation while also giving you an opportunity to see what is going on around you at the workplace.
#3 – Go Out for Lunch
I always recommend people to pack a healthy lunch instead of going out and purchasing it but who says you have to eat your lunch at your desk? If possible, leave the workplace at lunch time so you can get away from the grind for even a couple of minutes. Best of all, you’ll be moving to make it happen and it’s a good time to clear your head as well. Regardless of how busy things get, take that 30 minute lunch break and remember to keep moving.
#4 – Skip the Email, Walk to a Colleague
In today’s office environment, we often sit beside desks and send emails to people who are just a few steps away. When possible, go talk to colleagues in person and reap the rewards of getting up and engaging them face to face. If you must send an email to document the transmission of data, you can still walk up to the person after to explain the contents. In most cases, the person you are speaking with will appreciate the fact that you took the time out to explain.
#5 – Take the stairs
Steps are a great way to continue to burn calories while at the office. If you are fortunate enough to have a workspace that has several floors, take advantage of that - climb and descend them as often as possible. Climbing stairs takes balance, energy, effort and above all, burns calories and keeps your knees moving.
#6 – Drink a lot of water
We have all heard that drinking water helps in many ways including flushing toxins out of the body, controlling caloric intake and energizing muscles. Perhaps another benefit that is often overlooked is the fact that it makes you go to the washroom more often! This provides you with another opportunity to step away from your desk, go for a walk and burn more calories!
Staying active in the office during the colder months is simply a means of applying the correct strategy and then following through. If going to the gym is a challenge for you during the colder months, then make sure you burn some calories off at work. Although the office will never replace the gym, however by keeping active in the workplace is better than no exercise at all. Remember the key to success in staying active in the office is to keep moving and trying to avoid sitting down for extended periods of time. The more you move, the more you burn, it’s that simple!
