In today’s fast-paced work environment, spending long hours at a desk has become the norm, often at the expense of our physical well-being. However, staying active during work hours doesn’t require a trip to the gym. Incorporating simple desk exercises into your daily routine can help combat the negative effects of prolonged sitting, boost your energy levels, and improve overall health.
Let’s explore the best exercises you can do right at your desk to keep your body moving and your mind sharp, all without leaving your workspace.
You might have browsed a recent post of mine about the top 5 fitness careers or maybe you just want to work in the fitness industry. Here is a list of physical jobs, mostly not in the fitness industry, but still require a high level of fitness.
Many people strive to find jobs that are the least physically demanding. Whether you’re sitting behind a desk all day or filling coffee orders at break-neck speeds, you have enough stress to deal with. You don’t want to heap physical exertion on top of it.
However, there are those people who would rather toil all day than wear a suit and be confined to a cubicle, and for these people, the thought of being paid for physical activity is preferable. That said, there are plenty of physical jobs that demand a high level of fitness, and they will likely appeal to different segments of the working class.
Here are a few careers that require workers to be in peak physical condition.
We’re all guilty of it. You’re focused on the task at hand, completely engrossed in your latest project and you don’t realize how much time goes by. That is until you can’t turn your neck, your back is stiff, and you feel your shoulders slouching. Don’t let too much time pass without some form of movement. Set a timer on your phone, computer, or smartwatch that gets you up and moving every 15-30 minutes. Even if you have to walk laps around your cubicle or take a stroll to the bathroom, any movement is better than none. Fitness trackers are great for this too. Most are equipped with alerts that tell you when you’ve been sedentary for too long. Pay attention to these queues. It’s your body’s way of telling you that you need to get moving.
Life is a wonderful journey. Each step comes with some new opportunities. Tests and tools both are its constant companions. However, sometimes life slows down. Sometimes nothing makes sense. People come to a point from which nothing but thick gloom comes to view. Most don’t understand this is the point of change.
From this point begins another life, another journey, lest you are willing to make some conscious effort to change. Anyone can get a job and stick to it. But, everyone cannot build a career. This is a difficult task which only a rare few succeed in making.
So, what are the changes that you need to make to build the solid foundation upon which the castle of your career will stand?(more…)
Although for some people a week or two’s vacation in the sun represents an opportunity to sit back and relax, if you’re someone who places importance on maintaining your fitness and physique through exercise and training, this won’t be you. Instead you’ll see it as another chance to work out.
While you might try your hand at some new activities when you’re abroad, if you have access to a gym where you’re staying, you may well want to keep up with your current training regime. However, while you may think that you can just pick up from where you left off at home, there are a few issues to be aware of. This will ensure that you can work out safely to avoid injury and ill health, allowing you to enjoy the rest of your vacation and not put your fitness back. Follow the tips below and seek out further advice on staying well before you travel.
If there’s one part of a bodybuilder’s lifestyle that’s more important than the workouts, it’s got to be nutrition. If you’re not giving your body the fuel it needs to build muscle, all your efforts are going to go to waste as you burn out and lose both your energy and your muscle mass.
Traveling makes it even more difficult to stay on top of your nutrition, especially when you’re mostly limited to the offerings of airlines, terminal food courts, and restaurants. To keep your fitness routine up while you travel, it’s important to keep training and eating clean all the while.
Get acquainted with sludge.
It may not sound like the most appetizing food in the world, and it might be a bit tough to stomach at first, but it’s the traveling bodybuilder’s best friend. Most builders make their sludge by mixing whey protein and peanut butter or almond butter with with water until it reaches a pudding-like consistency.
Since you can’t bring liquids through airport security, pack enough pre-measured bags of whey and almonds to last through your flight, and a Tupperware container for mixing. Either buy bottled water in the airport, or take advantage of courtesy cups on the plane. Use a little less liquid than you would normally, and you can make your own protein-rich sludge anywhere.
Kinesiology is ostensibly the study of human movement, but there’s a lot more to it than looking at variations in gait or the way people tilt their heads. In fact, kinesiology, as a science, tends to be far more concerned with how an in-depth knowledge of movement, including the interdependent roles of physiology, psychology, and body mechanics, pertains to the study of human health, including applications for physical therapy, rehabilitation, and orthopedics, just to name a few areas of potential benefit.
So why might someone be interested in obtaining such a degree? And how can you go about getting one that is the most likely to net you your dream job?
Here are a few pointers to help you obtain the degree in kinesiology that’s right for you.
If you’ve ever wondered just what it is that makes humans function the way they do, what keeps our bodies and minds up and running, then you might take a shine to the academic field of physiology, which is basically the study of living systems.
Human physiology, in particular, focuses on the physical, mechanical, biological, and chemical makeup of the human body, including cells, organs, and the body as a whole. You might think this sounds an awful lot like anatomy, and truly the two fields are closely related in that they both study the human body.
Whereas anatomy is largely concerned with the form of the human body, including how all the parts are laid out and interconnected, physiology is more interested in the function of these parts and how they work together in a living organism. Most medical fields require the study of both, but if you’re a lot more interested in the function than the form of humans, a degree in physiology is what you’re looking for.
If you’re interested in studying the effects of exercise on the body, including how people respond and adapt to the physical strain of exercise, as well as the role different types of physical activity may play in harming or helping the body, then a degree in exercise science, sometimes known as exercise physiology, may be just what you’re looking for.
Certification or Degree?
Many folks intending to get in to the physical fitness field, opt to get certified or licensed instead of acquiring a college degree. While a personal trainer or sports nutrition certification will give you a strong background in that particular field, most of those classes are either online or studied from home, and do not garner the same kind of respect in the industry as a college degree.
In fact, a master’s degree will give you the best education and will put you on the fast-track to the top in your chosen field.
Job applicants who enjoy working with their hands and keeping physically fit can explore different career options. One of these career options is a correctional officer. Other careers include fire fighters, ground maintenance workers and roofers. There are many other job choices for physically fit employees, but these give an idea of the kinds of jobs available. Each career requires good physical health to prevent self-injuries or injuries to team members.
As a software engineer, I don’t get much exercise other than walking to and from my vehicle, and my lunchtime gym session. Some jobs require a high level of physical fitness. Some jobs are a day-long workout session. The significance of this is two-fold:
If you’re one of many who work in an office and find yourself seated at a desk for prolonged periods of time, then you’re asking for trouble. The mass office working culture has led to more sedentary lifestyles.
Your body is designed for movement, so sitting for long hours at a time doesn’t do your body any favors. It’s therefore vital that you find ways to move around in order to keep the circulation in your body moving and to stave off unwanted fat or weight that may well be creeping up. Staying stationery for long periods can also lead to backache, stiffness and headaches.
If you don’t even get up and move around every so often you’ll gradually begin to feel uncomfortable, your energy level’s decline, and you’ll probably feel lethargic and possibly begin to lack concentration resulting in below par productivity.
Office exercises isn’t a total replacement of your regular exercise routine but it will help to keep you active, burn off the excesses of the day and hopefully give you the motivation to partake in regular exercise to keep your body trim and healthy.
