Does your employer encourage a healthy lifestyle at the office?

In previous posts we’ve talked a lot about the importance of exercise and staying active (even moderate exercise is hugely beneficial, for all you hardcore exercisers out there!)

But for those readers out there are who are struggling to squeeze exercise into their overflowing to-do list, it can be difficult to find the time and motivation. After all, we’re busy. I get it. But there are certain things we can all do to help each other when it comes to staying on track with exercise.

One thing that employers and employees can do is create a Workplace Workout Program! After all, many of us spend most of our time at work—it’s the perfect opportunity to support and encourage each other to stay active.

Here are some ways to workout at work:

1. Participate in a local race. Even better, participate in a local race for charity! This can be a great way to stay in shape and bond with your co-workers.

2. Start a wellness committee. This group can host seminars or activities themed around issues relevant to staff.

3. Have challenges in the office tracking personal fitness goals. I had a job once that partook in a “biggest loser” type challenge. Everyone supported each other throughout the process and in the end, the people who were the “biggest losers,” i.e. lost the most weight, were given a prize.

4. Give the people what they want! What I mean is, give your employees standing height desks, adjustable height desks, or treadmill desks. They will not only be healthier, but more productive, thus benefiting the entire company!

5. Provide compensation for your employees’ gym memberships. This is probably the most effective and straightforward way to tell your office, “I care about your health. Now go to the gym!”

6. Brainstorm together. Have a meeting with your employees about office fitness. Find out what ideas they have on bringing better ergonomics into the office and promoting physical (and emotional!) well-being inside and outside of the office. A happy, healthy office is a more productive office.

While we can’t exactly enforce a rule in offices to make employers equip their offices with standing height desks, adjustable height desks, or treadmill desks, we can encourage YOU, the employee to step up, work with your employers, and build a healthy team rather than just an office space.

Does your office offer any kind of incentives for living a healthy lifestyle and exercising? Do you all use standing height desks, adjustable height desks, or treadmill desks at work?

Share your thoughts below!

The post Bring The Workout to Work appeared first on Xdesk Blog.

An intense workout may be doing more harm to your health than good.

Attention athletes, gym rats, crossfitters, tabata-lovers, and exercise addicts in general! I have something to say to you, and you’re not going to like it:

Slow down.

I know, these words are akin to blasphemy to the serious trainers out there—myself included. But I realized recently that I have been pushing myself so hard for so many years, that at 26 my body is already starting to protest! So I decided to tone it down a bit and sprinkle in some more moderate exercises into my regimen.

Experts agree that moderate exercise is important to your overall health. Here’s why:

• You’ll live longer. What could be more important than this? According to a recent study by the Cooper Institute in Dallas, joggers who moved at a moderate intensity (10-11 minute miles) had a lower risk of mortality than those who ran more than 20 miles a week at a faster pace.

• You’ll reduce your risk of injury. When you work out too hard, you deplete your body’s energy, and you become more likely to injure yourself. Studies show that if you work out intensely for 5 or more days per week, you can increase your chance of injury. So unless you’re training for something for a short period of time—take it easy.

• The Tough Stuff Will be easier. When you train regularly at a lower intensity, your body will be healthier and have more energy for when you do participate in the tough, intense work outs.

• You’ll Enjoy Working Out More. I know, sounds like a paradox to some people, right? But yes, working out can be fun. And if you’re hating your workouts, maybe it is because you are pushing yourself beyond a natural level. So mix it up with some moderate exercise as well (walking, yoga, light jogging, etc.).

• You’ll sleep better. This didn’t make sense to me at first either—my thought is that the harder the workout, the better I’ll sleep. Turns out, if you’re not sleeping well, it could be because of a tough workout later in the day. When you push yourself hard, your adrenaline runs high. If you’re working out after work or a few hours before sleep, you might still be on your post-workout high when your head hits the pillow. A moderate workout won’t make your adrenaline rush—something to keep in mind for all of you late-night exercisers.

These are just a handful of reasons why moderate exercise is a GOOD thing. But how can we squeeze moderate exercise into our already busy weeks?

One thing people are doing more and more is using their work hours to get some exercise in. Go for a walk in between tasks, walk down the hall to talk to a co-worker, rather than send an e-mail, park further away from the building, take the stairs, or better yet, start using a treadmill desk.

The Xdesk Fit is the desk for those healthy-minded office workers, and a perfect way to mix some moderate exercise into your routine.

Do you have an intense workout regimen? Share your thoughts below about “slowing it down” a bit with some moderate exercise!

The post Attention Athletes: Slow Down! appeared first on Xdesk Blog.

The average person should walk 10,000 steps a day. Use a treadmill desk to help you reach that goal.

Do you use a Xdesk Fit treadmill at work? How much do you use it per day?

If you answered that question with a grimace and know you should use it more, today’s post is for you.

It’s a challenge!

According to a recent study, an average person should be walking about 10,000 steps per day, with or without a Xdesk Fit—that’s about 5 miles.

Unfortunately, the average person only walks about 1,000 to 3,000 steps per day. So you can see the problem.

My challenge to you is this: Use your Xdesk Fit desk treadmill to help you walk at least 10,000 steps today—and if you’re trying to lose weight, go for even more.

Of course you don’t have to do all of this at your desk treadmill—remember, you are walking around outside of the office.

To inspire you to take the challenge, here are some practical ways that you can boost the amount of steps you take in a day:

1) Walk your dog. Fido can’t very well climb onto your desk treadmill with you, so take some time after work to take him for a walk. He’ll thank you for it.

2) Use the stairs instead of an elevator. Even your desk treadmill can’t compete with a steep flight of stairs. Want a challenge? Jog the stairs!

3) Park further away from the store.

4) Walk to the store.

5) Walk during your meeting. Not only is this a great way to exercise, but a good way to get outside and remember “the world beyond the office.” Of course if you need to be at your desk during a teleconference or meeting, there is always your desk treadmill!

6) Window shop. You don’t have to buy anything, just look around. Prefer to shop online? Use your treadmill desk!

7) Get up to change the channel. Yes, even this small distance will add steps to your day.

So get up and start walking! Five miles a day may seem like a lot, but with a desk treadmill, the distance will seem far less, and once those pounds start falling off and you feel so much healthier, you’ll wonder how you ever worked without a treadmill desk in the first place.

(Still counting down the days until I get my own Xdesk Fit desk treadmill. Very excited!)

About how many steps or miles do you walk in a typical day, on and off your Xdesk Fit desk treadmill?

Source: LiveStrong.com

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These simple exercises performed behind your adjustable height desk will help you stay in shape.

By standing behind your adjustable height desk you’re already burning more calories and bettering your health than if you were sitting down. And while that’s great and all, do you ever get bored just standing around?

That’s the great thing about an adjustable height desk. You can move around, you can alternate between sitting, standing, and somewhere in between. You can pace, you can dance, and yes, you can even get in a quick workout.

That’s what I’ll be going over in today’s post: working out behind your standing desk. It might sound a little bit…odd, but getting in a quick and simple workout while you’re at work is a great way to keep your energy up, stay in shape, and stay sharp throughout the day.

Of course I’m not asking you to jog five miles in between emails—for one thing, you’d come back all sweaty, and there simply isn’t time to do that in the workday. The workouts below are simple, they’re quick, and you can do many of them right behind your adjustable height desk.

Enjoy!

Legs

• Football Feet. You can do this seated or standing with your adjustable height desk. Simply tap your feet rapidly, like you’re running on fast-forward, for about 1 minute. Rest and repeat.

• Step Climber. This is the most basic workout: Take the stairs to your office. If that isn’t tough enough, jog them or take them two at a time.

• Calf Raises. Behind your adjustable height desk, raise your heels slowly off of the floor and then lower them. I’m doing them as I type right now—you won’t even need to take a break.

• Lunges. You can do these in place or walking around your office. You might even start lunging down the hall to the printer instead of walking—just ignore the giggles.

• Leg extensions. This is one you’ll need to do with your adjustable height desk in a seated position. Sit down, extend your right leg until it is level with your hip, and hold it for as long as you can. Then repeat with the left side.

Arms

• Spinny-arm-things. Okay, there isn’t a name for this, but here’s what you do. Stand behind your adjustable height desk, extend your arms straight out from your shoulders like a T, then rotate them in small circles for about a minute. Do the same motion the other direction. It sounds simple, but after about 100 of them, you’ll feel it!

• Shoulder raises. Raise your shoulders to your ear, hold, and then relax. Repeat. Easy.

• Triceps dips. Put your arms behind your back, resting your palms either on your chair or on your adjustable height desk in a very low position. Raise and lower your body, using the triceps as your lever.

• Push-ups. This is where your adjustable height desk really becomes a workout tool. Adjust the height of your adjustable height desk so that it is a bit above your navel. Do 10-15 push-ups here. Then lower it so that it is below your navel, about at your hips. Do 10-15 push-ups here. Finally, when you can’t lower your adjustable height desk anymore, you can do a set of push-ups on the ground, either from your knees or toes.

• Flyers. This is very similar to the “spinny-arm-things” listed above. This time, though, you’ll stretch your arms out in front of you until your hands touch, and then behind until your hands touch (hopefully). Repeat, repeat, repeat.

Full Body and Cardio

• Chair Squats. Squat down, knees over ankles, until you are almost sitting in your chair. Let your butt tap the seat, stand up, and then do it again.

• Wall sits. Lean up against the wall, but squat down as though you are sitting in a chair. Stay here for about one minute, squeeze your abs tight into your back, and do not rest your hands on your legs for support.

• Squat jumps. Squat down, touch the ground in between your legs with your hands, and then jump up, reaching your arms above your head.

• Backward leg extensions. Using your adjustable height desk for support, stand on one leg and reach the other leg behind you, squeezing your glutes and the back of your thighs. Pulse your leg for about 20-30 reps, then switch sides and repeat.

• Jumping jacks. This classic workout is great for the office. Just enough to get your heart rate up a little, but not enough to drench you in sweat before a meeting.

Stay in shape behind your adjustable height desk, or while getting to and around the office with these 15 simple workouts. Even if you’re not a gym member or marathon-runner, you can still stay healthy—just by going to work!

Do you use your adjustable height desk for office workouts? Share your workout ideas below!

The post Stay in Shape at your Standing Desk appeared first on Xdesk Blog.

Sitting for long periods of time negatively effects your physical health.

Okay, by this point we know that using an ergonomic desk is good for your health. And we know that sitting down for long periods of time can be bad for you. But how bad can a little bit of sitting really be?

Turns out, pretty bad…..

• Sitting down all day is as bad as smoking a pack of cigarettes. Of course these are bad for you in two completely different ways, but researchers found that sitting at a desk for 6-8 hours per day is as bad for your health as smoking a pack of cigarettes a day.

• Sitting down all day makes you more likely to have a heart attack. Scientists at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana analyzed the lifestyles of more than 17,000 men and women over a period of 13 years. At the end of their study, they found that people who sat down for most of the day were 54 percent more likely to die of a heart attack!

• Sitting makes you more likely to get all kinds of diseases. In another study, researchers found that sitting not only increases your chances of contracting weight-related diseases, like diabetes and heart problems—but it also makes you more likely to get cancer. Those who sat and exercised in the study fared a bit better, but even working out regularly was not enough to counteract the hazards of sitting too much. 

• Sitting drops your good cholesterol. After just two hours of sitting down, your body’s production of good cholesterol drops by 20 percent, while the enzymes that break down fat drop by 90 percent– as soon as you sit down!

• Sitting for impacts your metabolic system. “Today, our bodies are breaking down from obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, depression, and the cascade of health ills and everyday malaise that come from what scientists have named, ‘the sitting disease.’” –James Levine, MD, PhD

So what can you do if you have a desk job? Trade your traditional, sitting desk for an ergonomic desk. Offices all over the world, the likes of Google, Men’s Health, and even the FBI are turning to ergonomic desks because standing makes for healthier, happier, and more productive employees. But there are plenty of other benefits to an ergonomic desk or adjustable height desk. Check out our next post about the fun facts on standing.

And check out this nifty tool that will calculate how much of your day you spend sitting. The results might surprise you!

How much of your day do you spend sitting?

The post Ergonomic Desks: Fun Facts on Sitting appeared first on Xdesk Blog.

You might be surprised to find out which exercises are harming your lower back.

In our last few posts we went over the basics of posture—why it is so important, what it looks like, and finally, some exercises, stretches, and tips to help you maintain it. But that is only about creating and maintaining good posture. What can you do if your back is already hurting and changing your posture isn’t enough to fix it?

You can start by reading over this list of do’s and don’ts for lower back pain. These tips might seem obvious at first, but you’ll be surprised to find them on the don’ts list. That’s right. Some of the stretches that you’d think are doing your back a favor are actually harming you more!

You can change the way you move, work, and live in general. Create an ergonomic workstation in your office. Make your desk height adjustable, make your keyboard move with you, and get out and move around when you can. With an ergonomic workstation at your office, you are one step closer to being pain-free.

But first, let’s discuss how to actually get rid of that back pain:

DO

• Partial crunches. Strengthen your core without injuring your back. Lie with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Cross your arms over your chest or put your hands behind your neck. Then tighten your stomach muscles to raise your shoulders off the floor. Then slowly lower back down. Make sure your feet, tailbone, and lower back are in contact with the floor at all times to effectively relieve lower back strain.

• Hamstring stretches. Lie down flat on your back and extend your right leg straight into the air. If you can reach your toes—wow! No, just kidding. If you can reach your toes without bending your knee, hold onto them to stretch your leg and low back. If not, try wrapping a towel around your toes and hold onto the ends of that. Do this again with the other leg.

• Wall sits. With your back up against the wall, squat down as though you’re sitting in a chair. Try to have your quads parallel to the floor. Sit and hold for about a minute. This exercise is not necessarily a back exercise, but it is a great option for working out your legs without putting any strain or pressure on your back.

• Press-up back extensions. Lie on your stomach with your hands under your shoulders. Gently push up until you feel a nice stretch in your lower back. If you can, rest on your elbows or on your hands for a deeper stretch. If you’re familiar with yoga, this is a “cobra” or “baby cobra” pose. 

• Pilates & Yoga. These two low-impact exercises are a wonderful way to strengthen and stretch your back and your body as a whole. Of course don’t do any positions that hurt your lower back more, go at  your own pace, and modify if need be. There are even some great online yoga and Pilates “classes” that you can participate in. Check out MyYogaOnline.com for some back-friendly workouts.

• Walk. Walking and other aerobic, but low-impact workouts are great for low back pain. This includes swimming laps, strength training, and yoga. Check out this great post on why walking is so good for your back!

DON’T!

• Toe touches. It might sound like toe touches are a good way to stretch out a lower back that is paining you—it might even feel good at first—but beware, toe touches are dangerous for lower back pain! This movement puts greater stress on the disks and ligaments in your spine and can overstretch your lower back muscles and hamstrings.

• Sit-ups. While these exercises are great for strengthening abs, they are not great for anyone with lower back pain. Sit-ups tend to put a lot of pressure on the discs in your spine—perform simple crunches (see above) that will not hurt your back and are just as effective for upper abs.

• Leg lifts. This core-strengthening exercise is no good for somebody with back troubles. Instead, try lying on your back with one leg straight and the other leg bent at the knee. Then, slowly lift the straight leg up about six inches and hold it there for a beat, then lower it. Repeat this about 15 times and switch legs.

• Run. If your lower back is actively hurting you, do not go for a run. Running is a great exercise to improve posture when your back is healthy—but when it’s not, take a break and get back to it when your back is feeling better.

• Play sports. Okay, this is pretty broad, but do try to avoid any sports that make you bend or strain your back in any way if it is injured.. EX: tennis, racquetball, basketball, soccer, football… Okay pretty much most sports. Just lay off until your back is back in order.

• Avoid lifting. Yes, I do mean “don’t avoid lifting.” You should lift weights when your back is hurt—just make sure that you are doing it correctly and not using your back muscles. Rather, use your leg and arm muscles and focus on strengthening your back without weights (“supermans” are a great exercise for this).

Of course your ergonomic workstation will help you along the way, but for a back that’s paining you, remember these six dos and don’ts for exercising your lower back. Happy posture, everyone!

Do you use an ergonomic workstation? Have you noticed an improvement in the way your back feels? Share your experience below!

The post The Do’s and Don’ts of Lower Back Pain appeared first on Xdesk Blog.

Practice makes perfect when trying to improve your posture.

In our last post we talked about what good posture should look like when you’re sitting, standing, lifting, or just living. Now I know I may have mentioned this once or twice (or 50 or 60) times before, but a height adjustable desk is a great way to practice proper posture. In my last job, I was at a traditional seated desk for most of everyday and my posture was terrible. Now, I work behind my height adjustable desk. My posture is better, my core is stronger, and my back doesn’t hurt anymore. Of course there are other ways to practice good posture away from your height adjustable desk, and so today in this final post for Posture 101, I thought I’d go over some tips and tricks.

Enjoy!

Stretches

Lower back Stretch: Get on all fours with your fingers facing forward. Start by dropping your head and raising your back as you push the shoulder blades upward. Repeat in the opposite direction by pushing your chest downward and arching your lower back. If you’re familiar with yoga, this is simply the “Cat and Cow” stretch.

Knees to chest: While lying on your back, pull both knees to your chest with your hands behind your knees. Keep your tailbone on the floor and hold this stretch for at least 15 seconds. Then, if it feels good, feel free to rock up and down along your spine, giving yourself a nice little massage.

Shoulder blade squeeze: Put your arms straight out in front of you at shoulder height. Now swing both your arms horizontally towards your back, like you are trying to reconnect your fingers behind your back, and then swing your arms back to the front. Do this slowly several times.

Shoulder blade lift: Extend your arms in front of you at shoulder height. Next, swing your arms vertically in opposite directions while keeping your arms straight. Do this slowly several times.

Core twist: Lie down on your back and cross your right leg over your body, so it is perpendicular to your left. Take your left hand and gently push on the left side of your lower back to twist your core in the opposite direction of your leg. Leave your right arm extended perpendicular to your body and gaze out over your fingertips. Do this again on the other side.

Exercises

These are a couple of exercises for your lower back that don’t require any equipment. If you can get into the gym, though, feel free to add weights, use the machines, and use a bar or weights for rowing, which will strengthen your upper back as well as your lower.

Back extensions: Lying face down on the floor with your hands behind head, slowly lift your upper body a few inches off the ground and hold for about five seconds. Then lower, and repeat several times.

Superman: Again, lie face down on the floor with your arms extended overhead. As you lift up your right arm, lift up your left leg and squeeze your abs and back muscles. Lower, and lift the opposite arm and leg (your left arm with your right leg.) Repeat this several times as well.

Weird-Arm-Circle-Things: Okay, I don’t really have a name for this one, but it is one of my favorites. Extend your arms straight out at your sides, in the shape of a T. Lower  your shoulder blades, squeeze them together like you’re trying to crush a pencil in between them, and then just make small circles with your arms, forward and then backward. It sounds simple, I know, but after about a hundred, you should start to feel it in your shoulders and in your upper back.

Tips

Pad your chair: Try adding a lumbar support pat to your office chair for when you’re sitting down.

Be on the edge of your seat: If you are sitting down at your height adjustable desk, or anywhere really, be sure to sit on the edge of your seat. This will automatically engage your core muscles and make you zip up your spine, as you aren’t leaning back against anything.

Sit on an exercise ball: If you want to take it one step further, try sitting on an inflatable exercise ball instead of a chair while you’re height adjustable desk is lowered.

Take breaks: Of course moving your height adjustable desk between sitting and standing is a great way to take breaks without pausing in your task, but when you can, get out of the office! Take a quick walk, or make some trips down the hall to the water cooler. Switching between sitting, standing, and moving will keep you healthier, happier, and improve your posture.

How do you feel after a long day of sitting versus a day of using your height adjustable desk? Comment below!

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