Active at Work

Millions of people across the UK work in offices, and it’s the norm for office-based workers to spend most of their day sitting at their desk. Our workplaces can be one of the biggest contributors to a sedentary lifestyle, with adults of working age in the UK spending about 9.5 hours a day on average in a sedentary position.

In short, we’re not moving enough in our everyday lives! We need to build more movement back into our days if we’re going to become more active and improve our physical and mental wellbeing. The video above shows some simple and fun ways you can build more movement into your workday.

How about trying some of these tips, and encouraging your colleagues to join in as well?

Home stretches

Before your workday even begins, you can start the day well by doing some stretches as part of your morning routine.

Car exercises

Even sitting in traffic gives you the opportunity to do some activity. Glute squeezes, shoulder rolls and lifts can all be done while the car is stationary and safely secured, so why not give them a try?

Active 10 walk

A 10-minute brisk walk can do wonders for your mental wellbeing as well as getting your breathing rate and stretching your legs during on otherwise sedentary day. Try to find time to build at least one 10-minute walk into your day, whether at lunchtime, to or from your mode of transport, or perhaps with a walking meeting.

Phone call squats

Many of us spend much of our day on the phone, so why not try breaking up the day by standing during your phone calls, or even performing some squats?

Standing meeting

Similar to phone squats, holding a standing meeting rather than everybody reverting to sitting can help you stretch your legs, while also helping to keep the meeting brief

Take the stairs

If your building has multiple storeys, and if you’re able to, try taking the stairs rather than the elevator.

Tea break, microwave and photocopier exercises

While you wait for the tea to brew, the microwave to warm up your leftovers or the photocopier to print out that report, you have a great opportunity to move more – walking or jogging on the spot, calf stretches, standing crunches, or even some fancy dance moves!

Active At Work

There are plenty of ways to get creative and build more movement into your workday – these are just some suggestions to help you get started. All of these suggestions are made easier if you and your colleagues are in this together, so take a look at Active Kent & Medway’s Active at Work programme for loads of resources to help you make your workplace a more active environment.