Working at a desk and losing weight
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I have a desk job too. I'm able to get up once every hour and go walk for few minutes - get water, restroom, etc..on my lunch break I eat lunch fairly quickly and spend the next 45 minutes walking. I bring my walking shoes. I work in a large hospital, so I can walk the long corridors and do an entire walk indoors. I can get about 2-2.5 miles in during that time if I'm motivated enough. Somehow I manage to reach my 10,000 steps during my 8 hour workday. I also dedicate at least 60 minutes either before work or after work for a proper workout.0
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Lots of good tips here! If I don't get some exercise in during lunch, I am sluggish and less productive in the afternoon. I also drink frequently and so go to the bathroom frequently, which lets me interact with gravity regularly.
Jesse - if you are too tired to exercise after work, which is understandable after an 11-12 hour day, can you exercise before or at lunch?0 -
jesseviexo wrote: »I just started a desk job a month ago after having a job where I was on my feet all day and moving around. I lost weight before but gained it all back in a year. My concern is continuing to gain weight now that I'm not active as much and sitting a big portion of the day. I have a gym membership but haven't went since I started this job. By time I get home it's time for dinner, shower, then soon after bed then the cycle repeats. Sometimes I work 11 to 12 hours a day or 6 days a week. I'm normally so exhausted when I get home that I become lazy. I don't eat as much at work like I used to when I worked in a grocery store. I drink water all day.
Any ideas for getting my exercise in? And also ideas for work lunches? Thanks!
There are some good suggestions above. My advice would be to pick one or two that sound do-able, and go from there. I had a pretty sedentary job when I started my weight loss journey. I decided to add "steps" incrementally and did stuff like walk to a far-away rest room instead of the one right next door, make trips down the hall by going down a flight of stairs and then back up at the end of the hall, etc. Then I started parking further away, or getting off the bus a stop or two early on days I used the bus. At the grocery I parked closest to the farthest cart-return instead of nearest the store. As the weather got decent, I started walking during a few lunch hours a week ... the incremental additions did not seem too onerous.
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I have a desk job...I have lost 56lbs...yesterday was my rest day and I still got 12k steps in...without any exercise and I worked all day.
You don't have to be "chained" to your desk...bathroom breaks..water, lunch, breaks...I get my steps in easily.
But just eat less.
12000 steps in a rest day with out exercise at a desk job. Can you explain that to me?
Do we have a different definition of desk job?
How long is your lunch break? 2 hours where you just walk?
Just boggles the mind. If I was getting to 12000 steps I wouldn't need a desk because I would be walking around too much.
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I work at a busy Healthcare revenue cycle service center.... I get 30 minutes for lunch. I am still adjusting the the lifestyle and my routine. It's only been a month hopefully I will be able to figure out what works for me soon!!0
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I have a desk job and I've lost 52 lbs so far. You can totally. Seems that this thread has provided you ways to go about it. Good luck!0
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I have a desk job. I gained a ton of weight my first few weeks working here because all I did was sit on my butt AND go out to lunch every day with my co-workers. Yuck!
Now I work out as much as I can before work. Can't do the lunch time break thing because I want to shower. Also, my rule for myself is that I eat super healthy at work. Absolutely no cheating. I save that for my weekends when I have more time to work out!0 -
You can lose weight or maintain easy enough. I have worked at a desk for 12 years and have done it so I know you can to. Try parking the furthest away that you can so you walk more, take walks during you breaks and lunch, get up early and workout, workout after work, prepare your lunches a head of time so you have a health lunch. If you can take the stairs and instead of calling some one at work, get up and walk to their desk.
There are tons of other things you can do just get creative.
Best wishes.
DW.0 -
Make sure you're in a caloric deficit if you're trying to lose weight. Working out isn't the only way to create a deficit (though it does help your metabolism to lift some weights). I would try not to snack too much at work, and make time to hit the gym. It might be exhausting in the beginning, but once you're in the routine it's much easier. Also, make sure your lunches aren't processed crap - you want good food with protein and good nutrients in it. It's all about figuring out what your priorities are! If you're not making weight loss/eating well/going to the gym a priority, it's easy to say "I don't have time". Get a gym buddy who will go with you (maybe a co-worker) and who will keep you accountable. I work 10 hour shifts in a call centre, and I always find time to cook my meals and go to the gym. It never used to be a priority for me and I was lazy, but you just need to be in the right mindset to achieve your goals! Good luck, you can do it!
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jesseviexo wrote: »I work at a busy Healthcare revenue cycle service center.... I get 30 minutes for lunch. I am still adjusting the the lifestyle and my routine. It's only been a month hopefully I will be able to figure out what works for me soon!!
Can you eat at your desk and walk at lunch?
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My desk job is so busy I barely have time to go to the bathroom0
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I work in an office at a desk job. I am 63 years old and have lost over 1/2 of my current body weight on MFP (-160#). I have a 45 minute commute one way and work minimum of 10 hours/day, many days closer to 12, 5 days a week and sometimes weekends. Excuses are just that, and believe me, I had plenty of them to justify being sedentary for decades. When you want it bad enough, you do what you have to do to make the time to move more. I have had a fit bit for a little over 2 years now, and for the past 18 months I have averaged around 20,000 steps/day. I go to the gym every morning before work and use the treadmill or elliptical, most days. I get up very early each morning, and it is worth it to me.
At the office, I have a desk that I can stand at. I make a conscious effort to get as many steps as possible. Go to the copier and fax machine farthest away from my desk, park as far as possible from the door, go up and down the steps each time I pass by. You would be surprised how steps during the day add up.
I have come to the conclusion that no one will do this for you, you have to make the time and effort for yourself. How much, or little, you want to put into it is entirely up to each of us. We are worth it.0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »jesseviexo wrote: »I work at a busy Healthcare revenue cycle service center.... I get 30 minutes for lunch. I am still adjusting the the lifestyle and my routine. It's only been a month hopefully I will be able to figure out what works for me soon!!
Can you eat at your desk and walk at lunch?
Yea I can probably do that !0 -
This is a hard one. I am still trying to get it figured out. My day is very busy & I don't get much time to leave my desk. I do try to get in some walking or lift weights at lunch. Does your job have a gym for employees? Everything helps, even if it is only 20 minutes. I bring my own lunch too & eat that at my desk since I use lunch to workout. 12 hours to work is tough in general, it does not leave much time for you.0
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A friend of mine parks a mile away from his work to get in 2 miles a day walking. Rain or shine.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Seconding this. Though I have to walk because I don't have the luxury of parking close to work. I can easily get a 15 minute round trip power walk multiple times per week. I also get up from my desk during down time to wander around the office, go get some water, ect. I try to move whenever I can, because sitting for 7-8 hours can be brutal. Fit in exercise when and where you can!0 -
Can you cycle to work?0
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I have a desk job...I have lost 56lbs...yesterday was my rest day and I still got 12k steps in...without any exercise and I worked all day.
You don't have to be "chained" to your desk...bathroom breaks..water, lunch, breaks...I get my steps in easily.
But just eat less.
12000 steps in a rest day with out exercise at a desk job. Can you explain that to me?
Do we have a different definition of desk job?
How long is your lunch break? 2 hours where you just walk?
Just boggles the mind. If I was getting to 12000 steps I wouldn't need a desk because I would be walking around too much.
How many miles is 12000 steps? I live in the city and I walk everywhere. I must get in around 5 miles minimum a day just walking from point A to point B. By default I get in 3 miles a day just by taking my son to school..lol .I love living in an Urban environment
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sistrsprkl wrote: »Can you cycle to work?
Are you British?0 -
2 years ago I went back to work after having a baby, I weighed 66kg (I weighed 98kg before I gave birth, so had loads). Slowly, over a year of sitting on my *kitten* at a desk, my weight crept up to 76kg.
Sedentary lifestyle is a killer. I realized this year that if I wanted to loose weight and sit on my bum all day I could eat very little, 1,200cals a day only gives me a pound loss a week. So I have to be rigid about what I eat during the week. A typical lunch is one small fillet of mackerel, salad, no dressing, a small apple. When I get home from work after dinner I do a 30min fitness DVD, it is all I have time for. I get in 2x 22mins walk some days when my childcare arangements allow me to walk to the train station.
I now weigh 68kg. If I want to maintain at this weight I have to realise that my sedentary job means I only need about 1,600cals a day. Sigh0 -
I am also a 'desk' worker for the most part. To get my exercise in I walk to work (45 minutes), go to the gym in my lunch break (or at least go for a walk) and then walk home from work (another 45).
I try to get up to do weights before work, but that doesn't happen as often as I would like as I need to get up early enough as it is to walk to work (I could get the bus and save me some extra time, but I am very conscious of the whole being-at-my-desk-all-day thing). Even if it is absolutely p****ng it down outside, I will still choose the walk!0
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