HI! My name is Allison and I am a receptionist at a company in Minneapolis. I work 8:15 - 4:45 Monday - Friday and sit most of the day. Lately, I have been walking at lunch with a coworker which helps a bit, but for the most part I am sedentary during the day. I try to scrounge up the energy to work out after I get home but have found that getting up in the a.m. before work and working out then seems to work much better for me. I agree Anthony, that customer service positions can be mentally draining! Being nice all day takes a lot out of me! :-)

Great group! Have a wonderful day!

Hallo Everybody!

My name is Steph and I work as an administrative assistant in an annuities brokerage firm from 6:45 until 3 or 4. (Varies due to a very kind or grumpy boss, it changes constantly) Our office building is a gem. It has a full gym and locker room in the bowels of the building. Except for most of last week and M & T of this week, working out in the middle of the day saves me from a complete mental breakdown. This is a family business, so working with my father is both stressful and worrying. (His health is steadily declining due to stress) Just getting out of the office for an hour and listening to some ridiculous pop-y or happy music and reading a terrible horror books does wonders for my mood. Then back to the grind of talking (read: yelling) to half-deaf 90 year olds on the phone and telling them to turn down their radio/tv so they can hear me. Fun had by all!

Nice to know that most people in the customer service industry are a bit exhausted by dealing with people as I am. :happy:

My name is Pris and I have been in customer service 1984. Yes, I'm old as well as heavy. Right now I am on a 4 month temp job at Measured Progress for Kelly Services. M-F 8-4 They actually have a beautiful campus. I try to go out on my lunch break when I am motivated to do so. They have a great exercise room too but it's off limits to Temps. I really do love working here though!!!

I'm Julie, 25, living in Kansas. I work as a Contract Admin for an aircraft company. I love my job! BUT... It is completely computer dependent so I sit in an office chair all day! Mon- Fri 8am - 5pm. And only 30 min lunch so no workout there. I try to come home and cook, eat, and head to the gym by 6:00. Of course it is in the town over so I dont even get home until 8ish. And 2 kids in bed by 9.
Very busy lifestyle now. I have only been doing this about a year. Feel like I never get to see my kids which is horrible guilt, but I am making myself a better me so we can at least do family stuff on the weekends.
Hopefully there are people here that can relate!
I'd love to hear from others that can relate!

Hi! I'm Aimee. I'm 25 and living in southeast Michigan. I am a dispatcher for a car hauling company that hauls cars for chrysler. I am here Monday - Friday 7 am to 3 pm. I have to admit I actually like my job on most days! Probably since I grew up around this kind of stuff.

I am Client Services Assistant for 2 busy Financial Rep's. 90% of my job is on the computer however I am fortunate in that they encourage me to take 15's and my 1/2 hr lunch. Usually here 8-4:30. I get up and walk around at LEAST every hour for about 2/3 minutes. Even if it's just pacing around in my office. On days it's nice out I walk on my 15's, if it's gross out I did bring in a jumprope and will go down in the spare office and try to do that or run in place or whatever I can to get my heart rate up a bit through out the day. I also use a ear piece for the phone, which makes it easier to stand and stretch a bit as well. I find it very hard to make me time at the end of the day, the kid's somehow seem to have something going on or need to be fed etc.. So if I get in another 1/2 walk or whatever I feel pretty good.

I'm an administrative assistant at a law firm. I spend aboput most of my day sitting down at a computer.

Hi, I'm Chris. I am a full time student and I work 4 days a week as an Office Manager for a disaster restoration company in Southwest Michigan. I really like my job. It is very flexible with my school and kids. I have 2 boys, my youngest is 7 and my oldest will be 9 in April. I sit down so much of my time. I am getting better but it has been an almost 5 month battle to do it.

I'm a Sr. Business Analyst for a large retailer. I was a web content consultant before this. So my workday involves a lot of time spent at the computer. However, I break it up because I drink tons of water and green tea at work. So I make frequent trips to "pay the water bill". I also get up to talk to people instead of emailing, when possible. I take the stairs when I can. Really trying to improve my health overall. My weight has steadily climbed since I had my last child and with the stresses of work. I've gained 50 lbs over the last 14 years. But I'm determined to lose the weight.

Hi there! I work at our local university as a Midnight Service Desk Clerk for the Residences - basically a glorified hotel desk clerk with lots of paperwork! I handle any problems or issues that come up between the hours of 1230am and 830am. The downside is it is the middle of the fricking night and I can't just wander outside for a walk! But the upside is the students wandering in from the bars at all hours are hilarious! lol. :laugh:

Seriously, other than wandering the halls of the residence which would be creepy for the students, I really don't have an opportunity for an exercise break.

Hi my name is Jackie & I work as Marketing Specialist & Graphic Designer in an Italian restaurant but I'm just here at the head office sitting down for 8 hours. What I do to compensate this aside from my formal workout sessions is to always walk around during lunch breaks and walk around 2kms from my office to the bus station instead of taking a ride whenever I go home. I don't have a car and so I always commute which is also a good thing.

Hi, I'm Suzanne. I am a writer who owns a small business. I taught English at a Big 12 university for 16 years where I stood and/or ran around campus a lot. Teaching burned me out so I decided to sit down for a while. My clothing size increased 4 sizes while I was sitting. So now I'm working on getting rid of the excess poundage by not sitting so much.

Hi y'all...my name is Denise and I'm from Kentucky...I work for a non profit agency that helps parents and families. I am a supervisor so most of my day is spent sitting in front of my computer. Does anyone have any suggestions on exercises to do behind a desk?

I know this sounds silly, but hey we're here to be real. Clench your butt while flexing your stomach!! I was told years ago to do that while driving for a work out, and it works great at the desk too. You might feel silly, but who cares?? And who's going to know? It's also a good practice to focus on your posture at the desk. I know I never do unless I make a point about it -- I might THINK I have good posture, but when I focus on it I always find there's room to sit straighter. Just maintaining that is it's own small kind of workout - and it's good for your back too.

My name is Michelle, though some call me MJ. I am a sign language interpreter, currently doing Video relay interpreting (think skype for the visual aspects of the calls). I am typically at the "call center" from 8-3 then evenings I work in a college (again, sitting...) from 6-10:30. The college will be ending in June and at that time I hope to spend more time swimming and walking the dogs. When I'm not working, i'm driving the kids somewhere or heading to do SOME kind of shopping (usually grocery with teenage boys consuming all I earn at work..., though only slightly LESS often is buying new clothes and shoes as they outgrow them WAY too quickly.)

TOTALLY agree with everyone that the brain work causes physical exhaustion. It is all too common for me to come home at 3:30 and fall asleep before I leave at 5:20 for my evening gig. With my slight weight loss so far, I have noticed an increase in energy. I have also added B complex and a multi vitamin to my morning routine. I had a LOT more energy when I was thin...so I'm hoping that comes back. I have begun to think of myself as carrying around a 130 pound backpack that I can't put down...and little by little every week I am unpacking more so I carry around LESS. NOT lugging around that extra weight is BOUND to help me feel more energetic.

THANK YOU ALL for being here. I appreciate the support and encouragement. I only hope I can give as much back!