Sedentary Workers Help!!!

Use your breaks and lunch hour to get some activity in. Even if it's 5 minutes at a time, that's better than sitting the whole time. Use a printer farther away from your desk so you have to walk. Get up several times a day to fill your water bottle. Go walk over and talk to people instead of calling/emailing. Use the stairs, even if you don't have to - meaning even if you work on the 1st floor, before you sit at your desk in the morning, walk up 2 or 3 flights then back down. Park further away from the building.

All these little extras will add up.

Could Hubby take over any of your duties? Could you do more crock pot meals? That might at least give you an extra 1/2 hour to get a quick workout in. Could you do something for exercise after putting the kids to bed at night? No need to go to the gym. There are tons of workouts on YouTube or you could just walk in place and do body weight exercises like push-ups, sit-ups, planks, squats and lunges.

ETA: Technically you don't have to exercise to lose weight but it's definitely good for your health and you'll be more likely to be happy with the physical results (not just what the scale says) when you get to goal.

15 minute break in the morning/afternoon? Go for a walk.
Lunch? Eat quickly and go for a walk.

Need to ask a question? Get up and walk to the person instead of calling/emailing them.

Exercise before work

Exercise is not for losing weight...it's for health and fitness.

YOu never have to sweat or step into a gym to lose weight...you need a calorie deficit.

If you want to exercise for health and fitness and can only do it at home there are lots of DVDs and websites such as fitnessblender.com

Or even build a home gym.

Go for a walk with your child/children., bike rides, raking the lawn, hula hoop, soccer in the park

I hear ya! I don't have all those activities with kids after work, but I do a lot of sitting throughout the day - working at my computer most of the day, sitting in traffic in the car, or sitting on the subway. When the weather is agreeable (to me - meaning not hot/sticky or pouring rain/snow), I like to put on my sneakers and go for a walk on my lunch break. I have a great 2 mile walk that I like to do on cool days. I have a gym membership, but it is hard to make myself go after such a long day. My preferred activity at the gym would be 30-40 minutes on a stationary recumbent bike, at a mix of medium and vigorous intensity. Any good cardio activity, even in small increments, makes a difference and burns calories and fat. It all counts. I also like lifting weights either on the machines at the gym or at home where I have some dumbells and a kettle bell. A few reps with a kettle bell really gets my heart pumping! I highly recommend it. Good luck to you in your quest, and don't give up. :-)

P.S. - I found that for myself, the first order of business was to get control of my diet.

Ultimately to lose weight you have to focus on your calories in vs. calories used regardless of exercise (which only increases calories used). So since you are already eating every day, that is a good starting point while you try to incorporate exercise into your routine.

Personally I ride my bike to and from work, so I'm lucky to be able to do that and not have to worry about going "out of my way" to do cardio. For you maybe home work out videos would be best, just press play and try to keep up with Jillian Michaels.

When I get off work I have to rush home and get supper done because my husband goes into work at 7pm.

Is there a particular reason why your husband can't get supper done?

I feel your frustration. I have a similar job and lifestyle and I know how hard it is to get to the gym so I have 2 suggestions for you.

1) Try going BEFORE work. Gyms are less crowded and you could use the quiet time to start your day AND you will be more energized thru the day.
2) If that's just too early for you try going for a walk at lunch time. I pulg earbuds into my cell phone and put my work phone in my pocket and go for a 30 minute walk every day it's not raining outside. When it's raining outside I walk up and down a back set of stairs that almost nobody ever uses so I don't feel like an idiot with everyone watching me.

This is what I do. I get up 2 days a week before work and then do my workout at least once on the weekend. I also walk at lunch time - and have an alarm set in outlook to remind me to move every hour. The fitbit really helps me see how much I have moved during the day. At first, this all made me tired . . . but now I have so much more energy and actually feel way better on the days that I get up and workout before work.

I have a desk job too. I am probably in the minority here but I don't think you need a gym to work out. Here's my very personal opinion:

1) Get a Fitbit. This will more accurately count what calories you are expending.
2) Get in 5 or 10 minutes here or there of higher sustained activity--Fitbit again is good at telling you your "very active minutes"
3) Get some simple resistance bands. It's amazing what you can do with them, even during commercial breaks.
4) Find some strengthening exercises you can do at home using body weights, resistance bands or such.
5) Find a cardio activity you like to do and can launch into quickly from home or whereever--like I can jump on my bike and take a bike ride from my home; I also have an elliptical I can do at home. I also have a two-story house and go up and down stairs.
6) Be creative.
7) Set small daily goals.
8) Don't try to do this too fast.
9) See #1--get a Fitbit.

I have a desk job, working 8am to 5pm. I get up at 5am to either go for a run or lift weights at home. I then either walk or cycle to work (3 miles) and walk into town at lunchtime (just over a mile each way). Then walk/cycle home.

In my last job I had a 40 mile commute (so walking to work was out of the question!) so I joined a gym close to work and left home early so I could get there just as it opened at 6.30am. Worked out for an hour or so and went to work. I still went for a walk at lunchtime as well.

I know it depends on your individual setup but it is possible!

I know how you feel, I leave the house at 7am in the morning get back at 6pm and have a desk job, I make sure I walk around the office, I tend to go speak to people as opposed to email/phone (unless they are on a different site or it needs to be documented) and get up to get water at least once an hour. I also go wandering down to the warehouse for a chat to them.

I get up in the morning (recent thing) to go for a run, when my other half is at the gym at night I tend to do a programme in the house, current favourite is the tough mudders training, then when he has the lo I go to gym, I either cycle there and back (weather dependant) plus a session.

Another thing I go was a child seat on the back of my bike and take the lo in there and take her out cycling with me, she loves it she gets to see lots and we aim for somewhere specific ie play park, she gets to run around I get a rest and then we cycle back. I may add its probably best to do a bit of cycling before you put a child seat on the back as they are quite heavy.

I work a sedentary job. I wear a Fitbit One so and when I have time I walk at work as much as I can. Even if I just do a quick 5 minute walk once an hour in a circle around the ER where I work I'm good with it. Then after work I go straight to the gym and do recumbent bike, rowing machine, and assisted pull ups. I also have PiYo to do at home when I have time.

That does sound intense and legit reasons having a tough time getting to the gym. You only need to exercise 3 days a week for 30 minutes to get the health benefits. I would do something early in the morning like 20 minute Jillian Michaels work out videos at home for optimal convenience a few times a week. Otherwise, just eat at a deficit. I've been just tracking my food and eating less and not exercising with a desk job for a three months now and lost 20 lbs. Its 90% diet, exercise is healthy for you but it wont shed pounds what you eat will.

When I get off work I have to rush home and get supper done because my husband goes into work at 7pm.

Is there a particular reason why your husband can't get supper done?

LOL, and this.

I have an 8-5 desk job and my husband leaves for work at 3:30 am. With a 6 year old at home I cannot leave the house in the morning to go to the gym either, nor can I do it after work since my husband doesn't cook :-( As soon as I get home I need to start dinner because both of my boys (husband and son) have a 7:30/8:00 pm bedtime. Soooo... after several years of excuses I decided that I needed to just figure out a way to do this.

I now try hard to get to bed by 10:00 pm so I can get up between 4:30 and 5:00 am to walk on the treadmill. Since my son is 6, it's a little easier now because he can entertain himself if he wakes up early. I am usually done with the treadmill by 6:15 and then I can get things started for our morning routine. I also take full advantage of my husband's days off (Sunday and Monday) so I can walk outside, which I prefer.

I've been wearing a Fitbit fitness tracker since January and that has really motivated me. I've set the silent alarm for 10 am, Noon, and 3 pm which prompts me to get up and walk around the office. I also park the farthest away from the building every single day, even in the winter.

Finally, if I have a day when I don't wake up early I will try to do a quick workout while dinner is in the oven (the Crockpot is also a great tool -- makes dinner prep much easier so I have one less thing to worry about when I get home). I do something fun, like Wii fitness or Pound Rockout, so my son and husband can enjoy the show (me).

Just remember, even one little change is more than you did yesterday. Good luck!