new desk job making me fat(ter)!

I have worked a desk job for as long as I can remember. You just need to try to be active outside your job. Get up and try to move around when you can. Bring heathy snacks (I bring Fiber One Bars) to eat at your desk, so if you are hungry you wont be running to the snack machine. Also bring your lunch and dont eat out. I also have a 24oz insulated cup I drink several of those of water each day, so no sodas!

I gained almost 30 lbs last year! I have a desk job, but it is also stressful and I had to work late hours for a while. This led to McDonalds (super-sized everything) at 10 PM. I keep a bag in the fridge here of different snacks: fruit, celery, cream cheese, 100 calorie sweets, V8, etc. This way, no matter what craving hits, I have something for it. I "walk the halls" when I can (it is hot here in GA too), but that is never an everyday thing. If I have already eaten my snack and still feel hungry, I chew the heck out of a Mentos gum piece (under 5 calories) and drink more water. I make sure I do something active (swimming, Zumba or housecleaning) when I get home.

Good Luck!

I always had sweet tooth cravings in the late afternoon at my desk job also. It helped to chew some gum, I usually had some sort of fruity, extra sweet flavor and that seemed to help.

I felt VERY much the same way... I am NOT a morning person, and I was always so tired after I got home and got dinner for the family.

I have been doing at least SOME sort of exercise everyday (whether it be Wii Fit, walking, crunches... something) and was AMAZED at the change even in the first week!! I have much more energy now! So the initial "get off my butt and do something" is difficult, but once you start, it'll be easier...

Also, are you taking a multivitamin? I just bought One a Day Women's Active mind & body... that could help, too! And the water thing is difficult for me, so I have those crystal light on the go drink packets and add it to a bottle of water... they're 10 calories, and very worth it, because I can get my water quota in much easier!

Good luck!!!!

To avoid snacking on sweets, pack a healthy lunch and an afternoon snack, that way when the cravings hit you have something healthy to reach for.

As far as working out, I can understand not wanting to do the hot walk. I live in Michigan and our summers are hot enough for me, I don't like coming back to my desk sweating and looking like hell.

I hope this doesn't sound harsh, but your excuses about being too tired in the morning and after work are just that, excuses. No one else can work out for you and while eating right is important, some physical acitivty is important as well. I tried the morning thing for a while, it worked well for two months until I just couldn't get out of bed anymore so now I HAVE to work out after work, there is just no other alternative except never work out and be fat forever which I don't want. Sure there are some days I wimp out and don't do it, but on average I get out there because I just have to if I want results.

Planning is your best friend when working out. If you try AM work outs, pack a bag the night before so you have everything you need. Know what time you have to wake up, what time you have to be at the gym by and what time you need to hit the showers in order to get to work on time. I used to lay out my gym clothes so all I had to do was roll out of bed, get dressed, put flip flops on, brush my teeth and go. Once I was in the car I was much more awake. Tell yourself you'll try it for two weeks and if you really hate it, do a PM workout.

For that, make sure you have your gym bag so you can go straight from work, don't go home first or you won't go. If you work out at home, don't check your email first, don't turn on the TV, just do it. You'll feel better afterward and once you get a healthy routine going it will be easier to stick to it. Good luck!

I am going to sound rude and I don't mean to but as long as there are excuses, there is NOT going to be weight loss. I also work a desk job and had to go thru all the issues you are going through. I had to suck it up and realize that I HAVE to exercise and I HAVE to eat better if I want to lose the fat. Is it hard? Of course. If it was easy, everyone would would be lean and toned and not have weight issues.

Ah, basically what I was trying to say except yours was much more concise :happy:

Agree, mostly, with the above.

We are all a product of our choices. Healthy fit people are a product of their decision to exercise, their decision to pick up those sweets at 2pm and say "no thanks". We are a product of our bad choices, our decision to sleep an extra hour in the morning instead of going for that walk, our decision to sit on the couch after supper instead of going to the gym, and our decision to pick up those sweets and put them in our mouths at 2pm. We've all been too tired to WANT to excercise, but as a matter of reality, no one is ever too tired that they physically CAN'T excercise. "I don't want to" and "I can't" are two different things, and most of us have gotten to where we are because of the former, not the latter.

What will your next choice be?

According to Tosca Reno of the Eat Clean Diet, weight loss is 20% exercise and 80% nutrition. I realize that you do have limitations at the work place, but you have tons of personal choices. For example, (and I mean no offense if this is not the norm for you, I jsut mean for it to be an example : ) You can choose to turn off the t.v. a half hour earlier in the evening and go to bed so that you can get up a half hour earlier in the morning and go for a walk on your tredmill or eliptical. I understand being tired but once you get your body into a routine then you will be ready and raring to go each morning. You don't have to eat candy at 2pm. YOu can choose to eat an apple or a piece of cheese or a protein bar. Pack your lunch and determine that you are NOT going to eat anything but your own food. Make sure you eat breakfast each morning and be doubly sure that all your meals are nutrient dense. Your body is telling you it is starving for good, healthy food. I have read that if you eat a good breakfast and healthy snacks that you are far less hungry or craving junk later in the day. And maybe you could do some extra cooking on the weekends or cook double portions of healthy dinners so that you only have to reheat something for dinner. I am less likely to be tempted to eat out if I know there is something already waiting for me at home.

I agree with all my fellow desk compatriots. It's about choices and mindsets. I exercise after work, which I look forward to. Our company has free sodas, which I avoid like the plague. I keep a Nalgene (plastic, BPA free) water bottle at my desk and I walk down to the water cooler a few times a day to fill it up. I cut sugar from my life (except in fruits) and it help stave off the cravings for more sugar and avoids the 2PM slump. When I am sleepy, I get myself some green tea with stevia for sweetener. I pack and bring my lunch, keep healthy snacks in my desk & the fridge to avoid from going to the lobby downstairs to buy candy bars or other "bad" idea treats. It all seems like a lot of work in the beginning, but once you get into the routine, it's easy.

I've been there, but like another poster said, when I DIDNT exercise was when I was tired/lazy. Now I'm more active than I have been in a long time and I have MORE energy, not less.