Call centers jobs have wrecked my body. Who can relate?

Dragonfairy23

Also, have you found anything that helps keep your energy up during the day? I was in decent shape (I was 150 and biking 16 miles a day. ) before I started working at them and now between the stress and the sitting I now have about 100 to lose. I weigh 250 when at 5'9 I should weight about 145-150.

Had anyone else had this happen to them? Have you lost the weight? Any suggestions for things I can do while being confined to a desk to help at least burn some calories?

I have two 15 minute breaks and a 30 minute break, otherwise I've got a 3ft tether attached to my skull at all times during my 8 hours so typical 'office space' advice is sometimes farfetched.

jacksonpt

it's not the job, it's the eating

mjhedgehog

it's not the job, it's the eating

^this. I had a phone job for a while and I just had to eat less because I wasn't moving as much as I had at my retail job.

Doctorpurple

I sit on an average of 8-10 hours sometimes 12 hours of studying. I haven't gained any weight since I started med school 2 years ago. 8 hour job is not that bad at all. You have plenty of time to workout out after work or wake up early to workout. Assuming you sleep 8 hours a night. You have 16 hours a day awake and with the 8 hour job. You still have 8 hours left to do other things. Why can't you squeeze in just an hour a day to workout. Also I'm going to echo what the others say. It's about the diet. No one gains 100 pounds just because they are sedentary unless they are consuming loads of calories a day. Don't blame your job with the weight gain. Take responsibility, be accountable and start dieting and exercising.

mhcoss

don't blame the job bro. I work shift work (12 hrs) of chained to a desk and i've never been in better shape in my life. You got a few years of steady weighty loss ahead of you.. good luck

shaunwewege

I'm confused? Are you eating the phones?

A sedentary lifestyle leads to weight gain. Make a plan to exercise before or after work, control your calorie intake and you'll be fine. Many of us on this forum have dayjobs that require little energy expenditure. The trick is to adjust your lifestyle to include exercise. This is vital if you are desk bound.

badtastebetty

I definitely went through a transition with working in a call centre.

My best advice, stand whenever possible (I'm lucky enough to have a sit to stand desk, but it's not 100% necessary, bring lots of fruits and veggies to snack on (always pack a lunch), and go for walks on your breaks, if you have to choose between stairs or the elevator: choose stairs!

It can be tough to stay motivated when it's a high-stress, or just downright boring day, but you can do it!

lacroyx

I work at a desk in IT, graveyard shift. As others said, it's how much you eat. Nothing to do with the job. Is it hard? Sure, but not impossible.

Kirkajuice

I know others are saying don't blame your job, but it does deserve a teeny bit of blame. When I worked in a call centre, it made me feel so tired and generally annoyed that I didn't really have the energy to do anything after work or before work. It just sucked all the energy out of me. You couldn't pay me enough to work in a call centre again. It's just mind numbing to talk to people all day, completely exhausting.

Dr Purple is right though, you do have time to workout, but you may need to force yourself, it's what I had to do. I pretended I was training to beat up my team leader :laugh:

awtakontrl

i can see how you have gained weight. it happened to me too.

i have lost most of the weight i have gained, to include my baby weight (16 and 14 1/2 YEAR OLDS) hahaha! anyway, it's certainly not easy to do in that environment. there're potlucks, ordering out, going to the drive-thru before work, etc. i know ALL ABOUT that!

i decided to stop that and start doing something more than just changing what i ate. i started exercising more often. it wasnt so easy initially, but it became a habit.

in 2.5 years, i lost 98 pounds!! for the last 2 years i am still working out, still eating clean, and still working this "desk job" where i have a headset attached to me... the difference now from then is that now i''m working the graveyard shift, i have gained 15 pounds back and am struggling to lose it. i can not, no matter what i do, or change (short of no longer enjoying life). i dont get nearly as much sleep as i did when i was working my way down to fit. make sure youre getting your rest, but also, try to do things while you're on your breaks at work, if you cant get to the gym on a consistant basis.

long story short- even though you're sitting all day, you can still do it. you just have to have the mindset and willpower to overcome the obstacles.

good luck!!

lacroyx

Clicked on the profile, was going to send a message with tips and info to help them, and the OP deactivated. That was pretty fast.

kijoneko

Do you drive to work? I started to increase my activity levels by parking elsewhere and walking twenty minutes to work (then obviously I had to walk 20 minutes again at the end of the day as well).
It kind of snowballed from there, once I was moving I seemed to gain the motivation to move more and more!
You can do this!

Lialena

I work from home as a rep and I know just what you mean about that tether, lol.

During my shifts I try to get in a little lifting (arms and legs) and flexing (butt, abs, etc). It's pretty easy to do a little lifting with the bottle of water you probably have at your desk anyway, but your boss might raise an eyebrow at that. Leg lifts and muscle flexes are easier to do without anyone knowing.

On your breaks you can do a couple minutes of lifting as you walk to and from the break room or bathroom. If there are stairs you can go up and down the flights on your lunch break.
A resistance band can be carried with you and used on breaks (or, if your boss is supportive and doesn't mind what you do with a free hand so long as it doesn't affect the callers, you can use it at the desk).

For the reason of improved posture and less strain you can see if they will let you bring in an exercise ball to replace your desk chair. It'd have the side benefit of burning more calories from the small movements needed to maintain balance.

CarlieeBear

I worked in a call center for 5 years and the only physical issue it gave me was chronically itchy ear canals. You can stand up, walk/march in place, squat, lift barbels, etc. between calls unless there's never a break between calls or your employer doesn't allow those things. Any chance your employer would get you a treadmill desk or one that raises and lowers so you can switch between sitting and standing?

I agree that it's not the job that's making you fat. It's the choices you make. Eat less and healthier and make time to exercise and you'll lose weight.

Oh...I had a couple co-workers who lost weight while working there by changing their eating habits..

karensdream

I work from home as a rep and I know just what you mean about that tether, lol.

During my shifts I try to get in a little lifting (arms and legs) and flexing (butt, abs, etc). It's pretty easy to do a little lifting with the bottle of water you probably have at your desk anyway, but your boss might raise an eyebrow at that. Leg lifts and muscle flexes are easier to do without anyone knowing.

On your breaks you can do a couple minutes of lifting as you walk to and from the break room or bathroom. If there are stairs you can go up and down the flights on your lunch break.
A resistance band can be carried with you and used on breaks (or, if your boss is supportive and doesn't mind what you do with a free hand so long as it doesn't affect the callers, you can use it at the desk).

For the reason of improved posture and less strain you can see if they will let you bring in an exercise ball to replace your desk chair. It'd have the side benefit of burning more calories from the small movements needed to maintain balance.

These are all excellent suggestions!

kazzsjourney

I work in a call centre...and yep I did put on when I initially started working there...but it was only due to what i put in my mouth I have worked there for nearly 12 years and have lost 183 pounds over the last 6.5 years...so working in a call centre wont stop you from losing weight. And of course I get the tethered to a phone scenario...i will stand up and pace a lot while on calls...I notice I am one of the few who do that....I am also one of the few whose weight has gone down since working there And im not saying the pacing contrbutes to the weight loss lol...more its a indication of mind set....I dont wanna sit on my butt all the time if I can help it...even standing and just stretching etc i will do


kazz

erin_vuk

I have just recently started a call center job and it is actually helping me lose weight! I have always worked in bars and restaruants and all the snacking and free food was hard to say no too. Now I can make my own structured meals and am able count my calories a lot easier when I am not faced with food all day. Now that I am working in an office, I am not getting my knock off drink at the end of the night, and not drinking as much either. All those beers add up!

symonspatrick

Exercise is for health and looking good. Even with no exercise at all you will lose weight with eating less calories than your body needs. And patience is required, it takes a long time to lose a lot of weight but it is worth it when you get there.