Office Jobs and Weight Loss

Options
2»

Replies

  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
    Options
    I have worked at standard M-F office jobs, sitting at a desk most of each day (though not tied to it like in a call center), for the entire time I've lost 120-ish pounds and maintained it for almost 6 years so far.

    I have always been pretty active but it was my nutrition and calorie counts that changed, not my activity level so much. I try to get in brisk walks/jogs several weeknights and help out my mom who is disabled which means twice the housework of caring for my own home...but I really only do "serious" exercise on weekends, that's anything from an easy 1 hour stroll through a botanical garden to a fairly rough 4-5 hour day hike (usually more on the hiking side).

    As for yummy free meals and snacks, that doesn't apply very much to my current job. Thankfully we don't have that kind of office culture at all and we're attached to a manufacturing plant so any excess food or sweets is hauled out to the guys who are doing physical labor. We all know we don't need much/any of it in the office so we'll maybe grab a donut and send the rest out the door.

    When I travel for work (every couple months) I do find that more challenging, but try to stick to my same "80/20" type of plan as I follow at home...combining healthy stuff from the hotel breakfast, a relatively decadent business lunch, and then do dinner on my own with random bits from health food stores or supermarkets nearby. So far so good.
  • giancarlov1191
    giancarlov1191 Posts: 493 Member
    Options
    AquaMeow wrote: »
    So this goes without saying: anyone here working a 9 to 5 office job and maintaining and losing weight?

    What's your fitness like in and outside the office?

    How do you stop cravings for the free yummy food and desserts?

    Let me know!

    I work in an office. I do meal prep for my week and am very strict about it. I make a point to get up and walk regularly, usually to get water. I am in the gym almost every day as well. It's not always easy to avoid all the cakes and treats that are always around, but with a bit of resolve, it gets easier to say now.
  • T1DCarnivoreRunner
    T1DCarnivoreRunner Posts: 11,502 Member
    Options
    I have an office job 7a-4p (not that it matters) and have an incredible appetite. I run and hike on nights / weekends, and I don't eat carbs because that helps quite a bit with BG management (type 1 diabetic) and with appetite as well.
  • MikePfirrman
    MikePfirrman Posts: 3,307 Member
    Options
    I do an office job from 6 AM to around 4:30 every day now. I worked 7 to 5 for years. My hours have changed because I moved to AZ from the Midwest and I'm trying to be available to my clients on the East Coast.

    I originally gained all my weight working in an office, then lost it tracking and adding in exercise. I used to eat a lot of the office goodies. Luckily, I work from home now. My wife, for my first year or so, wasn't on board with healthier eating. She jumped on board after I lost 80 lbs. I've kept it off for 9 years.

    I have ever so gradually gone from a couch potato to working out six days a week. You do not have to workout to lose, but research has shown that very, very few keep it off without working out. I workout an hour a day at lunch. I have a home gym, so that makes it much easier. With workout, shower and lunch, it takes 90 minutes (thus, the extra half hour at the end of the day to make up for the missed time).

    For every 8 hours sitting, I read a study that you should work out one hour. Most of us already don't move enough. Working from a desk makes it even more important. It's not just about weight loss, it's about living and health too.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    Options
    i have an office job that i'm at 8-10hrs a day (depending on the crisis of the day)...and i'm maintaining/losing slowly

    i requested and got a standing desk which helps; i also make sure to walk every hour even if only for 5 minutes; i also drink lots of water so i have to go pee (which gets me to talk more)...

    i'm lucky (if you call it that) - that any meetings i have typically involve significant walking between offices
  • pondee629
    pondee629 Posts: 2,469 Member
    Options
    So this goes without saying: anyone here working a 9 to 5 office job and maintaining and losing weight? Yep

    What's your fitness like in and outside the office? I go to the gym 3 to 5 times a week for an hour, alternate days cardio and weights( strong lift 5x5) Once I get over a nagging small injury I plan to start running again, outside on the roads.

    How do you stop cravings for the free yummy food and desserts? Act like a grown up in control of me.
  • RandJ6280
    RandJ6280 Posts: 1,162 Member
    Options
    I should have looked here years ago.
    I've been chained behind a desk and 2 computer screens for 30 pounds, err I mean 11 years. I'm trying to increase water, decrease portion size of meals... but as I get older I'm finding it harder and harder.
    I'm looking for support, motivation and discipline.
  • AquaMeow
    AquaMeow Posts: 296 Member
    edited June 2019
    Options
    RandJ6280 wrote: »
    I should have looked here years ago.
    I've been chained behind a desk and 2 computer screens for 30 pounds, err I mean 11 years. I'm trying to increase water, decrease portion size of meals... but as I get older I'm finding it harder and harder.
    I'm looking for support, motivation and discipline.

    Same here especially when I eat very well in the office while avoiding cravings but when the weekend comes and my stress is down, I wanna indulge which keeps setting my weight loss back:/ self control is easier said than done.
  • RandJ6280
    RandJ6280 Posts: 1,162 Member
    Options
    AquaMeow wrote: »
    RandJ6280 wrote: »
    I should have looked here years ago.
    I've been chained behind a desk and 2 computer screens for 30 pounds, err I mean 11 years. I'm trying to increase water, decrease portion size of meals... but as I get older I'm finding it harder and harder.
    I'm looking for support, motivation and discipline.

    Same here especially when I eat very well in the office while avoiding cravings but when the weekend comes and my stress is down, I wanna indulge which keeps setting my weight loss back:/ self control is easier said than done.

    Yes I agree and it looks like we're all in this fight together. Too bad we all don't work in the same office.... keeping each other accountable.


  • pondee629
    pondee629 Posts: 2,469 Member
    Options
    "I'm looking for support, motivation and discipline. " To find these you must look within. They are not available from anyone else. You either want to do what is necessary to achieve your stated goals, or you do not.
  • AquaMeow
    AquaMeow Posts: 296 Member
    Options
    RandJ6280 wrote: »
    AquaMeow wrote: »
    RandJ6280 wrote: »
    I should have looked here years ago.
    I've been chained behind a desk and 2 computer screens for 30 pounds, err I mean 11 years. I'm trying to increase water, decrease portion size of meals... but as I get older I'm finding it harder and harder.
    I'm looking for support, motivation and discipline.

    Same here especially when I eat very well in the office while avoiding cravings but when the weekend comes and my stress is down, I wanna indulge which keeps setting my weight loss back:/ self control is easier said than done.

    Yes I agree and it looks like we're all in this fight together. Too bad we all don't work in the same office.... keeping each other accountable.


    Haha right! My office is in DC
  • beetrix
    beetrix Posts: 10 Member
    Options
    I actually started a job two months ago with 55 lbs down and I’ve gained five lbs. I’m completely traumatized. I don’t have my own office or desk, it is sort of an open place and we rotate jobs/positions. I am too tired to do it when I get home and even in the AM. I feel screwed. It is better than the very beginning but I have plateaued at this.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,345 Member
    edited June 2019
    Options
    Desk job here too. Been in maintenance 6 years.
    I workout before work for up to 40 mins and am generally active outside of work. However I do keep my NEAT up at work too by regularly going on walkabouts - any excuse really to get up off my seat.

    As for cravings, I've sort of lost my sweet tooth - prefer to eat my calories in filling and savoury foods. I do have hankerings for potato crisps/chips but find I am happy with a 20g bag and just savour each mouthful. I can fit 130 cals into my day for that kind of snack :smile:
  • ceiswyn
    ceiswyn Posts: 2,256 Member
    Options
    Desk job here too. 7.5 hours of work a day.

    I get public transport to work, which means a walk at both ends. And I take an extra-long lunch break so that I can sneak in a mile or so's walking then as well. I get up extra-early two days a week to get to the gym before work, and I also go to the gym on Saturday mornings. I spend some of my Sundays hiking. I'm changing jobs soon, so my routine will change as well, but I should manage to fit in about the same amount of exercise.

    Resisting the tasty treats that people keep bringing into work is rather trickier, especially as I'm a proper binge eater. The tactic I've found most successful is to stay busy enough to forget that they exist. The fact that this is difficult to do in my current job is one of the reasons I'm leaving :)
  • stricklee11
    stricklee11 Posts: 218 Member
    edited June 2019
    Options
    I currently work 7-4. A few days out of the month, it's more like 7-9. I have a drawer full of snacks which I budget for daily to avoid temptation. I gained 13 lbs in 3 months at my current job from all the food. Now I make a concerted effort to not indulge. If I do take dessert, I share it with a co-worker. There's a running joke where you look at people's ID badge picture from when they first started to now. Everyone looks like they put on at least 50 lbs.

    Fitness in the office- Thinking about getting a stand up desk but I am unsure of the benefits of doing that? To my knowledge, the added calories burned are minimal. I do take the stairs daily as I work on the fourth floor. I used to take daily walks on my lunch break but with summer came rain so no more lunch walks until September.

    Fitness outside of the office- Unfortunately, I have not been working out since after work, I am drained. My early start time combined with a long commute makes working out before work difficult. I'm still trying to figure out the best way to fit in exercise since my fat is getting "jiggly" as I am losing and I'd prefer to have a toned body by the time I reach my goal weight.

  • TheMrWobbly
    TheMrWobbly Posts: 2,531 Member
    edited June 2019
    Options
    So this goes without saying: anyone here working a 9 to 5 office job and maintaining and losing weight? No, my job is 7am-7pm

    What's your fitness like in and outside the office? Rubbish. Recently I gave up my parking space in the building and the nearest free parking is about 3/4 mile from the office. I am lucky enough to have a park near the office so I arrive early (it means I get a good space as well) walk for 30 mins to an hour depends on the day and weather and then do another 30-40 mins at lunch. Add in the walk back to the car, walking up and down stairs instead of the lift and you can easily get 10k steps in.

    How do you stop cravings for the free yummy food and desserts? Bring my own food in and I know what is in it. If I know there are goodies in the break room and I am already hungry I have some small snacks just to take the edge off which means I am not so easily tempted. When it I do rarely eat something from the treats table I will just be honest, log it in the diary and work on the daily total.

    To be honest being at work is better for me as I am much busier and don't really think about food.

Categories