Many of us have jobs that put our bodies in poor positions for 8-10 hours a day. By the time you get home, you plop yourself on the couch, reinforcing that poor position. You come to the gym for an hour in the evening, but that’s not enough to undo all the bad. So what can you do? You can’t quit your job just to spend the day stretching and keeping your hips loose. Then how would you be able to pay for your gym membership? Here’s some tips to help you get in that mobility even when you’re busy trying to meet deadlines and deal with cranky clients.
Disclaimer: You may feel silly, like people are watching you wondering, “I always knew there was something off about him”. Embrace it. Invite those people to join you. When they no longer have back pain and feel better at the end of the day, they will have you to thank. Or at least they’ll have a story to tell their family at the dinner table.
- Stay hydrated
- Get a giant water bottle. Fill it up and drink the whole thing. Twice. I carry my water bottle with me everywhere. Every room I go into, every time I jump in the car to run an errand, to friend’s houses, sometimes even in restaurants (just in case they run out of water…). If you have a water bottle with you, you will be more inclined to drink water. Without, you may go the whole day and never take a sip. Staying hydrated is crucial to staying healthy and maintaining the function of every system in your body, including your heart, brain, and muscles.
- Stretch: I could give you a laundry list of ideas here. Not all of them are mine. Why reinvent the wheel when you are surrounded by stretching geniuses?
- Go into the handicap restroom. Touch your toes. Do some quad stretches. All those quick stretches that your coach puts you through when you’re prepping for class. Anything that you may need a little extra space for.
- Use the space around your desk (here’s where the disclaimer comes into play). Get on the floor and do a perfect lunge, pigeon stretch, and pike position.
- Bring a roller to work. Roll out your back and your legs.
- Sit up straight, pull your shoulders back, grab your hands behind your back and pull your arms up. These motions will help to correct the hunched over position we tend to settle into over a keyboard. On a similar note, be conscious of your posture. Whenever you feel yourself sinking, sit up straight!
- Stand up and sit down without using your hands. Doing this over and over will begin to become a challenge. Do it while you’re on a phone call and remember that disclaimer!
- Don’t sit all day!
- Get rid of your desk chair. If possible, use a stand up desk. You don’t have to stand all day but even off and on standing is better for you than sitting for 8 hours a day. “Standing is like walking: It increases energy, burns extra calories, tones muscles, improves posture, increases blood flow and ramps up metabolism.”
- Can’t stand? Get an exercise ball and replace your chair. The benefits: you will activate your core, back, legs, and butt, be forced to fix your posture, and, let’s admit it, you might have a little fun.
- Walk to the water cooler. “But you just told me to bring my own water bottle!” This is more about the walk than the hydration. Once an hour, get up and walk. Walk to the bathroom, walk to the end of the office and back, walk to say hello to your friends. Just move. “Even if you are a fit athlete who exercises regularly, you may still endanger your health simply by sitting too much.”
- Replace email with a walk. Instead of emailing the guy that’s 3 cubicles down, walk to his desk and deliver the message face-to-face. Social interaction and exercise; two birds, one stone.
Written By: Blair Bayne