FitSugar

Work It Girl: At Your Desk Abs

FitSugar — Mon, 12 May 2008 03:00:00 -0700

Sitting at your desk doesn't mean you can't work on toning your mid-section. You can work your belly at work without your boss ever knowing you're doing some strength training on the job. All you need to do is pull your navel to your spine, the most basic Pilates move. Here's how:

Sit up straight, keeping your back away from the back of your chair.
Exhale and pull your abs to your spine without curving your back. This will feel a little like a corset. It should feel a little like you are bracing for a punch to the abdomen.
Focus on your low abs; these you can definitely keep engaged while you breathe.
Breathe into your back ribs, wherever you have ribs you have lungs. This is a nice stretch for the intercostals, the muscles between the ribs.
Hold for 30 seconds. Do twice an hour.

Oblique Variation: To challenge your obliques (the abs on the side of the torso) a little more simply tilt your torso slightly to the right and hold that position for 30 seconds. Then, of course, reverse the action by tilting to the left so you can keep even.

Fit's Tip: You can also work your abs when you're waiting at a long traffic light, when stuck in traffic, or heaven forbid, out on a boring date! Try it right now and let me know how it feels.

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Work it Girl: Seated Pigeon

FitSugar — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 07:30:00 -0700

Sitting at your desk for 8 hours a day is a great way to work towards tight hips. Fight back with this desk hip opener stretch.

This is just like doing Pigeon pose but instead of lying down, you're sitting up.

Bend your left knee and place your lower leg flat on the desk (make sure to clear a spot).

Lean your upper body forward a little and try to keep your spine long. You'll really feel this stretch in your left hip and butt. I love it!

Hang here for a few breaths or more if you love it, and then carefully switch sides.

If you really love this stretch, you can work while you do it!

CAUTION: Again, make sure your chair doesn't have wheels!

Work it Girl: Chair Squat

FitSugar — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 02:30:00 -0700

Sitting at your desk for countless hours in one position can really tighten up your lower body. So why not do something to open up those hips, quads, and calves?

You could always do a Wide Squat on the floor, but if you squat down on top of your chair, you can still get a little work done (I'm all about the multi-tasking).

Stay like this for a minute or two, or as long as you'd like. I wouldn't stay like this for too long though, because your feet will start to fall asleep from loss of circulation.

Just like the Chair Spinal Twist, I love the way this stretch releases my lower back. Give it a try and tell me what you think.

CAUTION: Do NOT try this squat on a chair with wheels. If you do have a rolling chair, find a place in your office where you can do this move with your feet planted firmly on the floor.

Work it Girl: Chair Spinal Twist

FitSugar — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 12:30:00 -0700

Take a break from working already! I love doing a spinal twist at my desk because it really loosens up my lower back and gives my eyes a rest. I try to do this every half hour or so.

Push your chair slightly away from your desk and then sit down gazing forward.

Bend your left knee and plant your foot on your chair - slip your shoes off if you're wearing heels.

Reach your right arm up and cross your elbow over the outside of your left knee. You can increase the intensity of the twist by pulling with your hands and putting weight into your left foot.

Stay here for a few breaths or as long as you want. Then slowly release your torso back to center and place your left foot on the ground. Don't forget to do the other side!

Twisting is so important for the health of our spines. This feels good and is so good for you. Try it right now and let me know what you think.

Work it Girl: At Your Desk Squat

FitSugar — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 07:30:00 -0800

When you're at your desk doing squat, why not squat? It works your legs and your behind.

Scoot away from your desk a bit, move to the edge of your chair and sit with you knees at a 90° angle. Push your heels into the floor to lift your fanny off the chair 3 to 5 inches. You will be leaning forward over your desk with you upper body. Now, simply hold the position to reap the benefits. Hold it for as long as you can and repeat throughout the day.

A few things to consider:

Make sure your knees are right over your toes, so you don't hurt your knees.
Once you are up and actively squatting, lift your pelvis up a bit and back a bit to make your glutes work more.
If you want a little more work, add a few small pulses to the position by slightly straightening and bending your knees.

Fit's tip: This is a great exercise to prepare your legs for ski season, which is right around the corner. Yippee!

Work it Girl: At Your Desk Hamstrings

FitSugar — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 02:20:00 -0800

You can't see the back of your thighs but you know they need some work. Try these simple hamstring curls at your desk.

Stand with your hands resting on the back of your chair for balance. Pull your deep abs up and in--this will help with balance too.

Move 1) Lift your left foot a little bit off the floor.

Move 2) Bend your left knee and slowly lift your foot towards your booty, until your shin is parallel to the floor. Lower the leg slowly and repeat 10 - 15 times, then switch legs.

Exercises to Do at Your Desk

FitSugar — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 09:30:00 -0700

Raise your hand if raising your hand is the most action your arm will see all day. In order to bring you guys all these great posts, I end up sitting at my desk a good majority of the day (aside from my occasional gym sessions at lunch). Since I love my job, I needed to find a way to move a little more during the day so I am loving these tips:

Exercise One - Side Stretches: To help whittle your waist and keep your spine aligned and supple, side stretches are excellent exercises to do at your desk. With your arms raised over your head or akimbo with your hands on your hips, lean gently over to each side as far as you can safely go. Please use caution if your chair is unstable or if it is on wheels. You can do this a few times on each side at several times through out the day.
Exercise Two - Arm Raises: In order to help protect against carpal tunnel syndrome, poor circulation, and weight gain, you should do arm raises several times a day. There are different methods of doing these simple exercises: raising your arms straight over your head, raising them to the sides, or even behind you. Each method works a different set of muscles, and all will temporarily increase your heart rate, keeping your metabolism revving.
Exercise Three - Butt Squeezes: The easiest exercise that you can do at your desk is butt squeezes. You can even do them while you are on the phone or typing up a report. Simply squeeze and release your buttocks muscles several times. This is the number one exercise that will help prevent "office chair spread" of your hindquarters.

There are a few more, so read more

Exercise Four - Leg Lifts: Of course, these are not the type of leg lifts that have you lying down on the floor and swinging your legs around. At your desk, you can easily straighten your knees and lift your legs out in front of you. You can also march with your feet in place. This will exercise the large muscles in your legs. For easy calf exercises, you can raise your feet up on the toes and lower them. Be sure to use your muscles when you do these exercises for maximum effect.
Exercise Five - Stress Relievers: Many of the exercises already described here will really help to relieve the stress of your desk job. However, there are some other great stress relief exercises you can do at your desk.
Gently stretching your neck, or rolling your head around, will reduce neck and upper back stress. Lifting your arms in front of you and bending your hands up and down at the wrist will help to relieve the stress of typing and help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome.

As you spend year after year hunched over your desk for eight hours every day, you may find your muscles atrophying, and your hips and waist spreading. Not only can you help prevent that weight gain and loss of tone, but you can alleviate stress with these five quick exercises. Exercising at your desk only takes a few minutes, and will do your body and mind a world of good.

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Are You Feeling It? The Treadmill Walkstation

FitSugar — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 02:00:00 -0700

Hey all you 9 to 5-ers. You'll have to come up with another excuse for not working out besides "I don't have time." This new Walkstation allows you to walk while you work. The Mayo Clinic experimented with the vertical workstation and now it looks like it might be coming to the masses.

A treadmill attached to a desk? This could be a genius idea, aside from the fact that a lot of times I use exercise as a mental break from life and work. I suppose though if you can't fit a good workout in because your job takes up so much of your time and energy, that this could kill two birds with one stone.

Steelcase, the makers of this machine, feel that the Walkstation will encourage more daily movement, and burn more calories, even walking at only 1 mph. Not only could it help people lose weight, but exercising can reduce stress, increase productivity and improve focus. Maybe the $6,500 price tag would inspire you to walk more briskly.

What do you think? Would you be into walking using this treadmill desk?

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Wheelin' at Work: Desk Cycle

FitSugar — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 05:30:00 -0700

We all know sitting at a desk all day doesn't burn up the calories. There are simple ways to exercise at work, like disappearing into a restroom stall to do some squats, but what about getting some cardio? To work out while on the job, you might have contemplated a treadmill desk, but the size of both the price tag and the desk itself prevents you from asking your boss to spring for one. Here's another, much cheaper option - an under your desk, wheel-less, mini exercise bike. You can stow this model, made by by Stamina ($49), under your desk and pedal with your feet without your co-workers knowing. Or you can place it on top of your desk to conspicuously work your upper body. You can adjust the tension to make it easier or more difficult, and it also comes with an electronic monitor to time your workouts. There are even protectors on the legs to prevent it from slipping on the floor. What a great way to burn some calories while working or watching TV.

To see some more photos, click the images below.

View 5 Photos ›

Work It Girl: Go With the Flow

FitSugar — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 08:45:00 -0800

Need a reminder to stop working at your computer and move around every once in a while? I sure do.

Flow Software ($30) does just that. Every 15 minutes to two hours (the frequency is set by you), a small window pops into your screen inviting you to “sit-exercise.” You can engage in as many 5-minute exercise sessions as you wish, while sitting at your desk. All exercises are designed to be performed in a sitting position and cover all big muscle groups including chest, abdominals, biceps/triceps, shoulders, back, legs, and full body stretching. Still not convinced? If you schedule a five minute session every hour, that means you'll get in about 35-40 minutes of activity you normally wouldn't have each workday. Check it out at here.