7 Office Exercises For The Working Person!

Work-Life vs. A Fit-Bod

Are you finding it hard to find time in your work life to exercise but, still want to get back in shape? Maybe, you feel this way after taking a good look at those old photographs of you in college/school, when you were slim and trim. Or maybe your just health conscious! Either way, here are the perfect office exercises to lose weight the healthy way! No starvation diet and no expensive gym equipment required!

Office Exercises For The Working Person

1. The Shoulder Squeeze

First things first, let’s get right down to business! Sitting at a desk all day can really mess with your posture. And let’s face it; no one likes a hunched back! Here is an extremely simple office exercise to help straighten up that spine! This is also a great shoulder exercise!

Here’s How To

1. Imagine you have a pen or pencil, maybe even a chopstick (for a tighter squeeze) resting between you shoulder blades.
2. Squeeze your shoulder blades back to grasp hold of that imaginary object.
3. Hold it for 10 seconds and release.
4. Repeat it throughout the day.
5. Be careful that your tummy doesn’t stick out while doing this as it will arch your spine the other way and make your belly appear bigger than normal.
6. Also be careful that your shoulders don’t arch up to your ears, instead let them sweep straight back.

2. Standing Calf Raises

We all need that little break from sitting in one place. Why not use that time to stretch out your calves to get that perfect ‘carved calves ballerina’ look that you’ve always wanted. It is also perfect for those who want to fake an athletic profession to impress that person you’ve been eyeing!

Here’s How To

1. While you hold that conversation with your colleague seated beside you, simply stand behind your chair, holding it for support.
2. Standing with your feet touching, raise up onto the tip of your toes.
3. Hold this pose for 10 seconds and then slowly lower yourself back down.
4. Repeat this several times a day for a better stretch and to strengthen your calve muscles.

3. Leg Raises

Imagine being able to build up your abs while you stay seated in your chair! This office workout is perfect to obtain that ‘Superman-Clark Kent’ look, minus the glasses and the iconic curl!

Here’s How To

1. Sit on the edge of your chair and hold the sides of the chair firmly, with both hands.
2. Raise both your legs together, making sure your feet are joined.
3. Keep your back straight and take a nice deep breath.
4. Lower your legs back to the ground after approximately 10 seconds.
5. Repeat until you begin to feel a burn in your tummy.

4. Wrist Rotation And Stretch

We often do not realize how much stress we put our poor wrists under during the day. Working at a desk job only makes things worse and, if not taken care of, it can lead to carpal tunnel syndrome. Here are two easy office exercises to help bring your wrists back to their neutral position.

Here’s How To

1. Start off with slow wrist circles on each hand.
2. Begin clockwise and then after 30 seconds, switch to anti-clockwise circles.
3. Interlace your fingers together, right thumb on top of the left thumb, and allow your elbows to join.
4. Form a right-angle at your elbows as your hands come up in front of your face.
5. Continue to make wrist circle, once again clockwise and anticlockwise, while your fingers are still interlaced.
6. Once done with the circles, allow your palms to face away from you and stretch your arms, wrists and fingers out.
7. Repeat from point 3 onwards, interlacing your fingers in the opposite direction now.

5. Feet Exercises

Much like our wrists, our feet are often ignored and pushed aside, despite their hard work of carrying our heavyweights everywhere that we go. Here are a few easy office exercises for your feet. This is especially useful for those girls who wear heels on a daily basis or people who have to drive a long way to reach their offices. Not t forget, this can be done while reamianing seated in your chair!

Here’s How To

1. If you work on calls, then this will be easy for you to do. Simply stretch your feet out, while you talk to your client on the phone.
2. Begin with pointing and flexing your feet. Don’t worry if your legs begin to cramp, they’re just not used to these exercises.
3. Do this about 20-30 times.
4. Then move on to make slow circles with your ankles, both clockwise and anti-clockwise.
5. When you’re done with your ankle circles, and your footwear allows you to do this next exercise; flex your feet and bend your toes so that your toes are touching the soles of your feet.
6. Keeping your toes bent point your feet, and then, keeping your feet pointed, flex your toes to make a Barbie-like-foot.
7. Return back to your flexed foot and repeat for 15-20 times.

6. Hamstring Bow-Down Stretch

If you’re a Harry Potter fan then you will get this exercise, easy-peasy! Remember how in the third movie, when Harry meets Buckbeak, the Hippogriff for the first time, how Buckbeak bows to Harry? This exercise is pretty much the same but, you can remain seated! If what I just said sounded like Greek or Latin to you, then simply follow the instructions below. This is an easy office exercise for your lower back.

Here’s How To

1. Sit on the edge of your chair and extend one leg out in front of you, allowing your heel to touch the floor, while your other leg remains bent and firmly planted on the floor.
2. Bow down, allowing the leg that is stretched out, to get an even better stretch.
3. Hold the stretch for 10-15 seconds and then return to your starting position and repeat with the other leg.
4. Repeat 5 times on each leg for better results.

7. Water Bottle Weight Lift

At the best of times, we all have a water bottle seated beside us (If you don’t, then you should as a reminder to keep yourself hydrated). Use this water bottle as a simple weight lift, to gain some muscle strengthening in your biceps and triceps. These are great office exercises as you can do it while you’re on a call! Remember that you can also borrow another bottle from a friend, to exercise both arms at the same time.

Here’s How To

1. Begin with a simple dumbbell curl, or in this case, a water bottle curl. Simply hold your bottle in one hand, with your bottle facing you and your arm at a right angle, in front of you.
2. Bring the bottle to touch your shoulder and then back to central.
3. Repeat this 8 times and then switch hands.
4. From here, bring your bottle to your shoulders, making this your central position, and then raise the bottle straight up.
5. Bring it back to central and repeat 8 times, before you switch your arms.

A Few Things To Remember While At Work

1. Make sure that you get your necessary requirement of water for the day. The minimum requirement being 8 glasses of water.
2. If your office supplies unlimited snacks and goodies, try to hold yourself back from those chips and chocolates. Instead, opt for some fresh fruits or nuts.
3. I know coffee is delicious and supposed to be great for those long nights at work but, do you know that green tea does the same for you? In fact, green tea even boosts your metabolism, allowing you to lose more weight, while coffee makes you gain weight!
4. While taking the stairs is definitely a better option that taking the lift, limit yourself to climbing two floors, as too much stress on your knees can cause problems for you later on.
5. Most importantly, remember to leave a 30-minute gap between your meals and your office exercises.