How To Keep Active During The Work Day

Sitting down all day, every day in the same office can be boring, right? Not to mention incredibly tiring for your joints. After a while, your body can start to feel a bit stiff, so it’s incredibly important to make sure that you are keeping as active as you can throughout the working day. Obviously, we understand that you might not have time to go exercise after or before work, but there are a few things you can start doing which can help.

1. Switch Up Your Commute

If you can, it is always a good idea to walk, bike, or even run (depending on how serious you are about keeping fit) to work. We realise that being at work every day makes it difficult to go to the gym, so this is a great way of keeping active and ensures that you get some sort of exercise in your daily regime, even it is just for 20 minutes. Obviously, you might not be so lucky to live close to where you work. If that is the case, don’t worry, you can still incorporate some exercise by getting the train or car part of the way and then walking the rest.

2. Stand Up Desk

If it’s possible, sometimes it is a good idea to invest in a stand-up desk. This essentially means that you do all your work stand up rather than sitting down – when sitting down for long periods of time, you tend to hold a bad posture and this, as a result, takes a toll on your muscles. Not only will standing up improve your posture, but it also requires more energy, so it ends up burning a lot more calories – perfect for an at-work exercise.

3. Move More

This seems obvious, but it is surprising how quickly people forget about just getting up and moving about – even if it is just for 5 minutes. Instead of sending that email, why not go over to your colleagues and have a chat (we promise we won’t tell your boss). This gives you some time to stretch your legs a bit and gives you an excuse to talk to your friends. Also, sitting down all day and staring at your computer isn’t good for your health – you need to take a break away from any work distractions just to clear your head.

4. Stairs not Lifts

Always take the stairs instead of a lift if you have the choice. It doesn’t seem like a lot but trust us when we say it makes a whole of a difference. Using the stairs will get your heart racing and use more energy. Once you get into the habit, you won’t ever think about using a lift again!

5. Use Lunch Time Efficiently

Instead of sitting down for the whole of lunch, why not go out? This doesn’t mean have a big lunch every day, but just go for a walk with colleagues and buy a sandwich. This will get you moving, get you some fresh air and just clear your head. Also, it’s a great way of finding new areas to hang out at or eat at with friends! If you want to do more exercise, you can even use your lunch break to go to the gym or do mini-exercises.

People often get into the habit of not exercising once they have a full-time job and it makes sense – you suddenly have a lot less time and focus, but it’s important for your health (physically and mentally) to move a bit even if it’s just taking a 5-minute walk. Even though it’s not nearly the same as going to the gym every day, incorporating some of these tips at work is better than doing no exercise at all!