Exercise Tips for the Office

The Department of Health and Human Services recommends at least 150 minutes a week of moderate exercise for optimum health.¹ This can seem quite a daunting task to achieve if you work a sedentary job. However, it’s important to try. A recent study published by the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine shows that office workers who did not meet the exercise recommendation were twice as likely to develop metabolic syndrome.² This means a higher likelihood of developing high blood pressure, obesity, and cardiovascular disease.

Luckily, there are some simple ways to fit exercise into the daily routine.

• One way is to wake up a few minutes earlier and work in a warm up routine. It doesn’t have to be extensive.
• Five to ten minutes a morning could get 35-70 minutes of exercise added to the weekly total.
• Simple exercises such as lunges, pushups, and wall sits are good for warming up in the morning.

Even taking one-minute breaks throughout the workday to do one small bit of exercise is beneficial. Take a minute to do squats or wall sits and the next to do leg lifts in the chair. Doing it this way makes it so that you are active all day long. It also helps sneak in more exercise minutes.

If there are health conditions that may limit the ability to exercise or a specific pain you are trying to combat, feel free to schedule a consultation with a physical therapist, to customize a safe and effective routine.

References:

1. How much physical activity do adults need? Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/adults/index.htm#:~:text=Each%20week%20adults%20need%20150,Physical%20Activity%20Guidelines%20for%20Americans.&text=We%20know%20150%20minutes%20of,do%20it%20all%20at%20once.

• Hirakawa M, Arase Y, Amakawa K. et al. Relationship between Alcohol Intake and Risk Factors for Metabolic Syndrome in Men. Intern Med. 2015;54:2139–45.