5 Easy Ways To Stay Active At Work

It’s all too easy to slump behind your desk all day, drive home, and then slump down on your sofa, feeling far too tired to even think about the gym. If you’re starting to think your jeans can’t take another creamy latte and cake from the café, then it’s time to adopt some healthier office habits.

Here are 5 easy ways to stay healthy and active around the office:

1. Meetings on the move

If you’ve been keeping your seat warm for the best part of 8 hours, then it’s time to start moving.

Take your colleagues on a walking tour while you catch each other up on the latest project developments. A change of environment and getting your heart pumping might be just what you need to spark some new ideas.

While it may seem a little daunting to multitask like this, we’ve got some tips to get it right.

• Make sure the meeting is with a maximum of 2 other people, otherwise you’re going to lose people.
• Plan a route. You want your focus to be on the meeting, not where you’re going.
• Keep the visuals to a minimum. This isn’t the ideal environment for a PowerPoint presentation.
• Get your follow-up notes down immediately. It’s easy to forget everything that’s been said when you’re not writing it down.

2. Take the stairs

When you’re hauling your bags through the door at reception, the lift can feel all too appealing. Before you press that button and take the easy way up, stop and think about how much better you’ll feel for taking the stairs.

Granted, the actual quad-burning, heart-fluttering experience will be far less than fun, but as you throw open the door at the top, with a slight rosy sheen to your cheeks, you’ll be feeling pretty good about yourself.

In fact, you can feel exactly this good about yourself:

Walking up one flight of stairs burns between 2-5 calories. Let’s be honest, there’s rarely just one flight. Multiply that by every weekday, plus the few times you pop down to the post room or printer and you could be looking at an extra 100 calories burned in a matter of days.

See ya later, elevator — today we’re taking the stairs.

3. Cut back on the snacks

Have you got one hand in a packet of crisps while the other one taps away email after email? Overeating because you’re bored, or not really paying attention is all too easy from an office desk.

So, how can you conquer the mindless snacking?

First off, keep them off your desk. If you can see them, it’s pretty much guaranteed you’re going to eat them.

Keep them in your bag, or in the fridge so that you really have to think about whether you want them before you crack them open.

Next, are you really hungry? Not sure? Have some water, or a coffee and give it 20 minutes.

If you’re still feeling like you’re about to slip under your desk and pass out from starvation, then it’s time to crack open that snack.

4. Cut out the creamy coffees

Realising that half of your bank balance has gone on pumpkin spiced lattes and your jeans aren’t the only thing feeling the pinch is nothing less than devastating. Mostly because you now can’t afford to buy jeans in a bigger size.

Before you take out a second mortgage and resign yourself to wearing those stretchy grey joggers from the back of your wardrobe, you may want to consider your coffee consumption.

You probably already know that drinking extra-large coffee cup of cream and sugar probably isn’t that great, so why are you adding this to your coffee?

If you can’t bear to drink it black, then switch to plant milks. An almond milk latte is the easiest way your calories and saturated fat, but still doesn’t double your bank balance.

Your best bet is to buy some filter coffee, add a dash of milk, and if you’ve got a hankering of something sweet, then ZERO-CALORIE Flavdrops are your new best friend.

5. Pick up the pace

It’s time to stop plodding and start power walking. Fast walking means better fitness and a longer life, according to this study.

To be living ten years longer, you need to be doing about 100 steps a minute and walking at about 3mph. It also has other work-related benefits, like making you look like you’re off to do something important, or just a really busy and hard-working person. Ideal.

So, the next time you’re shuffling along to the café, get a stride on and pretend that you’re off to somewhere important. If you’re not bothered about looking busy, then do it for your fellow colleagues — nobody likes a slow walker.