These past few years have completely flipped many of our worlds upside down. As a result of the pandemic and new work expectations from employees, several of us are now working from home. Though many of us are excited by this new reality others of us are finding it has greatly impacted our activity level throughout the day. This has left many of us living a rather sedentary lifestyle, but don’t worry.
I have five tips you can use to stay active throughout your day if you work from home, and the best part is you can start today.
Exercise Before Work:
Getting in a workout before you begin work will boost your energy for the day and help you stay motivated and focused throughout your day.
Schedule Breaks:
At the beginning of your day look at your meetings and workload. Then schedule your own 5-10 minute breaks throughout your day ideally at the top of every hour or every other hour. During this time stand up, stretch, and walk around for a bit. If you have easy access to the outdoors, and weather permits, walk around outside during this time period.
Keep Workout Equipment Close:
During your second or third scheduled break, grab a small set of weights, a yoga mat, booty bands, or whatever you have on hand. Then go to YouTube and search for a 5 to ten-minute workout. Even if you don’t have equipment, there are plenty of bodyweight short workouts on the platform as well. (Example: 10-Minute Core-Focused Yoga Workout With Christa Janine)
Stand More:
In between your scheduled breaks and meetings try to work standing up as frequently as possible. There are many options to support your efforts to stand more. You can stack books to sit your computer on, get a desk extension that lifts and lowers, or a standing desk.
Do Challenges:
Gather a group of friends or colleagues and invite them to do a fitness challenge with you. It can be something as simple as who can do the most pushups, sit-ups, seconds in a plank hold, etc. each day. These challenges can be incentivized by offering gift cards or cash prizes for the winner.
These five tips can be implemented in your daily routine right now. As you add them to your schedule, give yourself grace in the process and know that if you don’t get to them all that’s okay. Also, focus on starting small and then adding on once you master the small editions.
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Feature image by Luis Alvarez/ Getty Images