What to Do During the Day so As Not to “kill” You
We’ve all heard the bad news that sitting will kill you . This might be a slight exaggeration, and hey, in the end, we will all die. But our lifestyle, associated with the passion for chairs, no longer helps us to live, that’s for sure. It has been linked to everything from heart disease to type 2 diabetes and even cancer.
And if you think you are compensating for your sedentary work at the desk with exercise, well: Your high-intensity workout is good for a lot of things, but it prevents you from staying at your desk for the rest of the day. A 2014 study found that frequent movement throughout the day is a more effective antidote to sedentary work than an hour of fitness. Think of it as intermittent weekly test preparation works better than cramming the night before.
How long do you need to move?
We asked Roland Denzel , health coach and author (with Galina Denzel) of Eat Well, Move Well: 52 Ways to Feel Better in a Week . He began his path of movement when he began to aches and pains from working at the table. It was then that he discovered the Pomodoro productivity technique , in which 25 minutes of work time is followed by a 5-minute break “to refresh the brain and restore concentration.”
Denzel then came across research that showed that using these breaks to move also lowered blood glucose and insulin levels in office workers. (More recently, the same researchers found that movement every 25 minutes along with a 30-minute daily walk also lowers blood lipids .) So this is the interval at which he encourages his clients to work. Set a timer for 25 minutes and then get up to walk, stretch, and move for 5 minutes before returning to work. (If getting up every 25 minutes sounds too much for you, Denzel recommends starting by getting up for a few minutes every hour and gradually increasing the frequency.)
Jill Henderzach-Mason, physiotherapist at Mayo Clinic ‘s Healthy Living, agrees that moving every half hour is ideal. “At the very least, you should get up and change your position for at least a minute or two,” she says. If you hold the same position for several hours every day, your body will break down over time.
Here’s how often you should move. What do you do when you get up? Just wave your hands or something?
Which movements work best
Denzel recommends 3 types of movement.
Stretching and light exercise. “This means raising your arms over your head, tilting your body to the side, leaning forward to open the back of your legs, and even letting your eyes look far out the window, which relaxes the eye muscles.” Those of us who spend a lot of time with our hands on the keyboard can use the tabletop to stretch our fingers and wrists. “It all comes down to creativity,” he says. Always look for mobility opportunities. (ABLMO, right?)
Henderzach-Mason likes to use the chair at the table for lunges, squats, heel and toe raises, and for standing balance. You can do shoulder rolls to relieve tension from your neck, and then do push-ups from the chair with your hands on the armrests. “It’s really just a matter of being as creative as possible and getting out of your comfort zone as much as possible.”
Walking. “Walking is a reflex movement of the whole body that engages all major muscles and organs in the body,” Denzel says. It’s also something you can do anywhere without looking weird.
Henderzach-Mason also encourages its clients to walk more. “Take a walking meeting, take a wellness walk. If you have something to do, work on it more. ” Send documents to a printer away from your desk. Choose a toilet at the other end of the office. If you are using public transport, get off the bus stop early.
Change of working position. It can be as simple as wiggling your legs and making sure you keep your spine high. Check your breathing and take a few long, deep breaths. Henderzach-Mason says changing work positions is just as important as moving more frequently. So when you get up for a break in movement, see if you can resume work in a different position, whether standing (if you can) or at least sitting in a different position. This, Denzel says, “keeps my body and mind fresh.”
If you can get the HR department to provide one, a standing table or even a treadmill table may offer more room for movement. Caution: do not stand at the table all day. Any position is detrimental to your health. But it is useful to have options for the working position.
I personally enjoy working with a yoga ball. In fact, if you can get away with it, see how far you can go in creating a work environment that supports standing and locomotion. “We recommend using simple fitness tools like a platform or dome to stretch your calf muscles,” Denzel says. You can bring a small foot massage ball or even a wobbler. When an entire office invites such objects to share, it helps create what Denzel calls a “workspace focused on the culture of the movement.”
If stretching and lifting your legs is too uncomfortable for your office
Okay, at this point, some of you imagine a jumpsuit room filled with mini trampolines and foam rollers and think, ” Hey, stop, stop . “ It might work for you kids in the media or advertising, but it won’t work in my office. Well, I’ve brought in a third expert for you: my partner. He works in a suit in an environment that doesn’t quite encourage table squats. But he still finds a way to move all day. These are his secrets.
Take a headset. If you have a conference call, especially a long one, use it to walk down the hallways.
Talk to people in person whenever possible. Instead of picking up the phone or instant messaging, get up and go to your coworkers. In any case, it promotes better communication.
To drink a lot of water. Try to refill your glass about once an hour. It will also send you to the bathroom quite often, which means walking more.
Use the ladder. I know this is the advice everyone gives you. Are you doing this already? Maybe you are on the 30th floor and going upstairs is crazy. You can go to the 27th floor and go up the last three flights.
Have lunch somewhere further away. Rather than walking to the closest, most convenient lunch spot, walk at least the entire avenue for a real walk after your lunch break.
The last obstacle you may encounter to movement is your clothing. For many of us, it has come to a point where business casual means sportswear, which means you can practically do yoga at your desk. But some of you are still expected to appear in real business attire.
“We definitely understand the limitations of clothing and footwear when it comes to moving to work,” Denzel says. He recommends building your work wardrobe from brands that create movement-friendly clothing. For example, Aella , Betabrand and the Department of Supply are re-creating basic products in much more mobile textiles.
There is one more thing you can keep in mind if you are still afraid of exercising in the office – you can start with simple stretches of your ankles, knees, wrists and neck and put off larger decompression movements at home. “Nothing can stop you from massaging your leg with a tennis ball,” Denzel says. Oh, I can think of something: the fear of offending my office mates by the sight – and perhaps the scent – of my bare leg. But then I can also imagine myself stealing a foot massage under the table while everyone else is leaving for lunch.
The point is, you have a lot of options. So figure out which workplace movement works for you and do it. Set a timer for 25 minutes and do any movement – your new routine. And see what difference it makes in how you feel at the end of the day.