Dr. Julie Chen, M.D.
If you are one of those people who just can’t manage to drag yourself to the gym after work or before work, then let’s start talking about getting in your work out while at work…that’s right, at work.
A lot of people think you have to go to the gym to work out, but that’s just not true. Many people get a relatively moderate work out while during work hours…and here’s how.
One of the ways you can work out your core is by sitting on a balance ball at your desk. This allows you to strengthen your core without having to do one single sit up.
You may also want to consider getting light hand weights and ankle weights so that you can work out your arms and legs while using your phone head-set during conference calls.
Even simple exercises like gluteal squeezes while sitting at your desk over time can add up to a tight and toned rear-end. You can perform these every hour or two for a set of twelve or until you feel fatigued to really get your gluteal muscles in gear. Another option is that you can stand up and stretch and do some squats or lunges every few hours to help relieve stress and to tone your legs.
When you set your mind towards the goal of making sure you stay active even at work, you’d be surprised at how many things you come up with for exercises while at work.
Besides strength training, you can definitely get in some cardio exercises to get your heart pumping while at work. You can take the stairs instead of the elevators and park farther in the parking lot just so that they can get some extra cardio into their day.
These activities not only help you to tone up and become lean, but they are great as stress relievers as well. Consider asking some work colleagues to form a noon time walking group so that you guys can get in a few laps around the office building or block to help with stress management as well as getting in some daily exercise. Finally, one of the easiest ways to add more steps into your work day is to walk to your colleagues office for discussions rather than calling them on the phone.
When you set your mind to it, you can always find some method for incorporating activity into your work day. This way, if you end up working late on any given day, you don’t have to feel defeated about missing that gym class you had wanted to go to because you’ve already been working out in various other ways during the day at work.
