Staying fit while you sit

February 5, 2009 by Jill Roth 

These useful tips will help students stuck in a desk job stay active

Your desk job should fatten your wallet, not your waistline.

Why not make the best out of sluggish situations by changing up your daily routine to stay active throughout the day?  

We all want to hit the snooze button for a few extra minutes in the morning, but why not take those 10 extra minutes and turn it into a healthy start?

Try skipping the Starbucks run and getting to work a few minutes early. Parking your car farther from the building will force you to work your leg muscles. Walking, combined with a healthy breakfast to jumpstart your metabolism, is a great way to get your endorphin levels up, giving you a kick of energy. 

“I always park out by Tropicana Avenue and walk to class,” UNLV student Sandra Wilson said. “It isn’t crowded that far away, and I get an early morning workout.”

If you don’t work on the first floor of the office building, opt for the stairs instead of the elevator and do some lunges on the way up.  If you want, take two steps at a time.

“It really irritates me when people take the elevator to the second floor,” Wilson said. “I understand if they were handicapped, but it’s just being lazy beyond that.”

Often, time is the excuse for ditching exercise.  Most jobs offer two 15-minute breaks and an hour lunch that are usually spent chatting with co-workers, eating or maybe reading a book.

 It is time to switch up your routine and make that time work for you. 

Take your first 15-minute break and go for a walk. If you work on campus, take your iPod and walk to grab a snack. If you are working off campus, take a few laps around your office facility.

“I work at a desk all day,” sophomore Dennis Rankan said. “I like to walk to the corner convenience store to grab a drink and granola bar.  I get exercise and healthy food.” 

A walk keeps joints from becoming stiff from sitting and gets the blood flowing through the body as you pump more oxygen into the lungs increasing circulation and blood flow.  

When your body is in motion, you become more energized and alert. When you return to your desk you are ready to focus. 

Just because you are at a desk doesn’t mean you can’t be active. By purchasing an inexpensive resistance band, you can work your biceps, chest and upper back right in your chair. 

A resistance band can be found at most sporting goods stores or local gyms and come in different levels of resistance. They are lightweight making them easy to travel with. 

The band can be stored in your desk drawer, backpack or in the back seat of your car. 

Here is an easy exercise anyone can do?

Spread your feet-under your desk about hip width apart. Now, with the band grips firmly in hand, adjust the resistance using your feet to clamp down to hold the band in place. Keeping your biceps parallel with your body, pull the band up and down; these are bicep curls. 

Doing three sets of 12 to 16 reps will keep your blood pumping. This is a discrete exercise, so it won’t draw attention from co-workers, and can easily be done when you are on a phone call. 

Because the band allows for a great range of motion, try stretching the band behind your shoulders to do push-up curls or take the band and stand up for wide arm stretches or squats.

“I’ve never thought about doing this at work,” senior Joshua Nesbit said. “I would find it funny to see a co-worker doing bicep curls at their desk.”

Nesbit admitted that he finds the exercise intriguing and wants to start doing easy band workouts at work.

The next 15-minute break may be spent doing jumping jacks in the break room or taking another walk around the building. Doing three sets of 25 to 30 jumping jacks will get your heart pumping and get your mind back into action after a carbohydrate packed lunch. 

A day at work doesn’t have to be spent sitting behind a computer.  With walks and resistance band strength training, you have accumulated 30 to 45 minutes of exercise into your work day.