USANA Health Centre: Keeping Fit At the Office

It’s only in recent history that a typical workday consists of nothing but sitting for eight hours. Prior to the industrial revolution, most work involved farming, agriculture, or other labour. Even shop owners would be rushing back and forth through a busy market, lifting merchandise and making deliveries.

But since the rise of the factory and the computer, your typical workday probably involves leaving your house, sitting in a vehicle, arriving at your workplace, sitting for eight hours, and then sitting in your vehicle to get home again.

This sedentary lifestyle leaves you feeling lethargic, run-down, and incapable of doing anything remotely active. Instead of cooking your favourite meal or playing a game of soccer with your kids, all you want to do is sit in front of the telly.

Performing office exercises at your desk and on your breaks can revitalize your underused, underdeveloped muscles, and increase your energy levels. You’ll feel more alert, and your posture and energy levels will improve. Exercising at your desk provides relief from sedentary habits for anyone who can’t get leave their work to exercise.

Is there a park or courtyard near your office? You could eat your lunch there and spend twenty minutes strolling through the park. Perhaps you could try the coffee shop three blocks over instead of the one across the street? Who knows – their coffee might even taste better.

Did you know certain foods help your brain function at it’s best? It’s true – certain foods provide your body with the fuel it needs to function, while other foods feed the brain. Stocking up on foods like tomatoes, avocado, berries, salmon and leafy green vegetables during the day can improve your productivity and increase your brainpower:

Suggest your colleagues have a “walk and talk” meeting, where you wander around the neighbourhood together bouncing ideas off each other. This might be met with resistance by some colleagues, but keep explaining how having your meetings on the go can help their health and productivity. Getting out into the fresh air helps stimulate your brain and may result in some radical new ideas.

If your office doesn’t foster a healthy, active culture, it’s time you created one. Spearhead a committee of employees to brainstorm ideas to promote company-wide health schemes. You can organize events, facilitate a “fresh fruit” delivery every week, replace vending machines with healthy snacks, and create a workplace culture of health, wealth and well being.