how i snuck in exercise at work

MyJourney1960 · June 2013

no, i wasn't doing B*tt clenches at my desk.:laugh:

But, i do sit alot, all day. I try as much as i can to walk a bit during the day but the nature of my job is that i have to SIT.

Today, I had to prepare about 15 reports to submit for a grant (wrote, scanned etc and then I had to print hard copies to physically submit them). About half of the reports included some photos that i inserted into the forms and then printed. So - the printer in our office is black and white but the pinter downstairs (one flight) is color. SO, i decided that instead of sending the files to the color printer all at once, i sent them one by one, walked down the stairs to retrieve, walked up the stairs to put into the file and then went on the next one.

I know, it's not a LOT of exercise, but it kept me moving the entire afternoon.

So how do you sneak in extra exercise when you're stuck at a desk job?

mizpoke · June 2013

That's a clever way to fit in exercise!

WaxMama · June 2013

Very clever! My boss would be wondering wth I'm doing! haha I drink lots of water which forces me to take trecks to the bathroom every hour haha Keeps me moving

RobP1192 · June 2013

Not stuck at a desk job, but...

I do some of the lamest stuff, it's pretty silly. I work as a truck driver, and have like a stepvan truck with one of those sliding doors on the side. Well... i do this at random, but when i'm at a stop, before getting out of the truck, i'll open the door, grab the door frame and start doing pullups. I've gotten my pullup reps up by doing these. I did them a LOT last summer, i cut back this year because i strained my lower back doing it so much. I guess overtraining is for real. Sometimes i do these in bathrooms, lol. Weird, i know, but whatever. Grab the frame above the door, use paper towels to keep my hands from getting dug into from the metal. And knock out some pullups before someone else comes into the bathroom. lol. But hey, gotta get it in!

Oh and btw, last year, i actually recorded it one time and put it up on youtube. I think it's on private, but if you are REALLY REALLY interested... i'll link you. lol

KimINfortheWin · June 2013

I work in an office too, and have to sit a lot.

When I go to the restroom, I walk a couple brisk laps around the building. I also do the same when I refill my water bottle.

I have another post on here where the company offered a list of "desk exercises" So I've been squatting in my office off/on for weeks now!

mytime1986 · June 2013

I also havea job that requires Iam at my desk all day. i work in a callcenter answering phones. I work on the fourth floor so on break I take the stairs down to the basement then walk across the building and go out a side door and around the block and back in the front door and then back up to my desk twice a day. Then on lunch I go up to our gym and do something in there for about twenty mins.

JessieNeutronGirlGenius · June 2013

I work at a bank and were supposed to stand when dealing with customers because its polite and professional. For the most part I like to stand mostly throughout the day but I do like to sit down on the occasion :-P

janessanessa · June 2013

My coworkers are pretty cool and understanding, so when I don't have appointments on the books and I am idle (I am a small animal veterinarian). I look for little 10-15 minute workouts I can do in a small space sans equipment on YouTube and do them in ,y office.

Whipppets · June 2013

We work at an IT call center so between calls we do push ups. We do over 3000 a week in waves of 50

diana_marie8302 · June 2013

It might seem pretty ridiculous but I started the 30 day squat challenge last week so every time I go to the bathroom, as long as no one else is in there, I do 10 squats.

I also try to get up and walk around as much as my job allows me. Walking to the printer to get each document separately than all at once, walking to a different floor to go to the bathroom, stuff like that. Sometimes I will walk around the block my building is on just to get some fresh air.

daniellemm1 · June 2013

What a great idea!!! I wish I could do that but both copiers are right near my office

When I go for water or bathroom breaks I take the long way back to my office. That's about as good as it gets. Fortunately my company has a gym that I am able to use on my lunchbreaks so i usually walk on the treadmill and do some weights. Just enough to start to sweat but not get stinky

Thank goodness for the health and wellness goals!!!

pwnderosa · June 2013

That is awesome! When I worked in a large office, I used to take a walk around the whole place a few times a day holding file folders and looking like I was on a mission, stopping occasionally to talk to people in different areas of the office about small projects or questions, no one was ever the wiser!

Now I rig a standing desk occasionally in my cubicle, I just raise my keyboard and monitor on a cardboard box. It makes my coworkers nervous sometimes though because I can see what everyone is doing over our low-wall cubicles, but it's worth it!

I also do a lot of proofreading and I try to do all of this standing at a counter rather than sitting at my desk.

alexisdc · June 2013

I have this contraption at my desk that actually allows me to stand at my desk and do work. I try to do that throughout the day.

michellechawner · June 2013

I'm a small office manager (we have 9 total employees) and I'm in charge of dispatching and project engineering (installing and servicing business telephone systems). We have a bathroom upstairs and downstairs. My office is downstairs - i use the 2nd floor bathroom though, unless I REALLY have to go and time is of the essence!

I walk the parking lot as lunch too. I love getting back to my desk and syncing my fitbit to see how I did.

Mario_Az · June 2013

i usually well go get some water and take the stairs then do about 100 pushups then get my water i try to do that at least twice a day no one is ever in the stairwell area so nice to get a quick workout

chandanista · June 2013

Planking! 30 seconds the first few days, then increases.

Oh, and squats--I time how many I can do in 3 minutes. It's amazing the difference a month ago and now!

norahwynn · June 2013

Hey, anything helps! Great job thinking of something like that.

Fortunately we have a full fitness center where I work, and it's open from 5am to 8pm (even though the average workday for most people here is 8-5). We have a 24hr manned security desk, so that people can come and go pretty much anytime they want, even on the weekends.

But, prior to this job, I had another desk job and we had pretty large cubicles. I, along with a few other people that worked there, was able to get in pretty decent 'workout' sessions right in my cube (push ups, crunches, chair dips, I kept 5 lb weights in my desk, squats, planks...)

Anyway, just moving burns calories, so the more you move, it's a win-win situation!

Songbirdcw · June 2013

Love that idea. I usually do some of the challenge of the day exercises in the bathroom. I use the last stall or wait and go to an empty bathroom. Lol. I told a co worker and she did like 30-50 squats in the bathroom yesterday. I also take the stairs during my errands, and try to do chair dips when no one is around.

jaz050465 · June 2013

My coworkers are pretty cool and understanding, so when I don't have appointments on the books and I am idle (I am a small animal veterinarian). I look for little 10-15 minute workouts I can do in a small space sans equipment on YouTube and do them in ,y office.

I hate you! ???? I would have LOVED to have been a vet but wasn't clever enough- became a teacher instead. I REALLY, REALLY envy you!

ks4e · June 2013

Very smart!

I have a desk job too. I look for ways to hand delivery mail nearby when I can. I walk briskly to the post office when I need to. I take the stairs. I do squats in the lunch room. Today I did goblet squats with my coworker's box of soda cans.

Wienerbua · June 2013

Always take the stairs.

Get some hand grippers.

You can do incline pushups using the frame of your desk if it is sturdy enough.

You can use a door frame to practice "beginner pullups." This is a beginning step on a path to doing full pullups. It basically entails standing with your feet close to the edge of a door frame (the one without the actual door hinges), holding on with bent elbows, then let your upper body fall gently back while holding on, then pull yourself back with your arms. Try doing 50 reps with a 2-1-2 cadence.

Do deep knee bends or lunges.

Google "How to get stronger at work when your boss isn't looking" by Josh Hanagarne, title says it all.

how i snuck in exercise at work

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