With the modern world comes many modern conveniences, labor-saving devices, and innovations. Not the least of these are information technology and mobile telecommunications devices. The nature of these items has transformed the offices we work in into virtual mobile workspaces. The downside of this is the fact that many people find themselves living in their offices and sitting for exorbitant amounts of time. We now know that sitting more than four hours a day can be as bad or worse for a person’s health than smoking cigarettes. That’s why fitness professionals are always looking for ways to help office workers avoid the health deficits that come with the job.
Here are four office fitness trends that are going to be making waves in 2019.
Stretching
Part of the problem with over-sitting is our muscles and tendons become inflexible. This makes us feel achier and less enthusiastic about the idea of getting up. It’s kind of a catch-22. A few simple leg, back, and arm stretches will make us feel more nimble, and help get us in the mindset to workout more. Stretching also promotes muscle strength since longer muscles are stronger muscles.
Isometric Exercise
It might seem obvious, but just flexing a muscle can be a workout. Taking a minute or two to either flex a muscle, press the hands together, or pull interlocking fingers can help build strength to make spending more time out of our office chairs feasible. It can take some getting used to, but isometric exercise can also make it possible to spend less time strength training at the gym.
Mini Steppers
Compact and affordable, mini stair steppers can be as good as the full-size stair machines at the gym. But they also fit under desks and take up very little office space. Best yet, setting up a standing desk enables office workers to use the stepper during any work that’s not too hands on such as proofreading of watching informative videos. It’s probably best to do some research to find a quiet one that won’t disturb other people working nearby.
Standing Desks
More and more people are abandoning their chairs and swapping them out for desks designed to be stood in front of. This is an excellent way to avoid all of the deleterious health effects of over-sitting. A standing desk also takes up less space, and a person can keep a tall chair off to the side just so that he or she does not have to stand for 8 hours at a stretch.
