Familiarize yourself with light exercise at work

Research has found that sitting too long, such as when working in an office, can increase the risk of chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and even early death. There are many ways you can do to minimize this. One way is to do light exercise at the office. The human body is not designed to sit 12 hours a day. That is why just sitting in the office can cause headaches and back pain, affect the body's ability to manage blood sugar, blood pressure, and digest body fat, resulting in obesity, to the risk of experiencing bone loss due to osteoporosis. Doing light exercise in the office or on the sidelines of a routine can bring benefits to your body. Research has found that 15 minutes of exercise almost has the same effect as 60 minutes of exercise, especially if you can increase the intensity of your movements. The key is to start exercising slowly, little by little, then continue to increase the intensity and frequency. Light exercise movements in this office can play a role in increasing oxygen levels and blood flow to the muscles so that you feel healthier and better prepared to do the next job.

Movement When Sitting

If it is not possible to do extreme movements or there is no room to do light exercise in the office, you can try some of the following simple exercises that can be done while sitting at your desk.

• Stretch both arms up and hold for 10 seconds,
• While still sitting, lift one leg straight forward, hold for two seconds. Then lower it until your feet are slightly above the floor, hold for a few seconds before setting your foot back on the floor. Do the same thing on the next leg. Repeat 15 times each.
• To move the shoulder and chest muscles, place both hands on the chair handle. Lift your body and buttocks slowly, until the buttocks are a few inches above the seat cushion, while still resting on the hands. Hold for a few moments, then sit back. Repeat 15 times.
• To relax your back and tighten your upper arm muscles, hold on to the edge of the table with two hands. Slowly, sitting still, push the chair back until your face is staring at the floor, and your head is between your two arms. Then straighten your back again while pulling the chair back towards the table. Repeat 15 times.
• By sitting you can even practice Kegel exercises to train the pelvic muscles that control urine. While sitting, tighten the buttocks, hold for a few seconds, then release. Repeat 15 times.
• Sit up straight and then turn your head to the left while turning your body towards the right. Hold for a few moments, then change to the other side.
• To relieve back strain, hug your body by placing your left hand on your right shoulder, and your right hand on your left shoulder. Hold for a few moments, then release.
• Sit in a chair and extend both arms to the left and right sides as far as possible. Hold for a few moments, then return to the chest. Repeat 5-6 times.
• With a sitting position, bring your knees close to your chest, hold, then place. Repeat as much as possible. Make sure your chair is not a wheelchair to avoid falling.

In essence, avoid sitting in the same position for a long time. Change the position of sitting or as much as possible take a break every half hour to stand up and walk to take a drink or to the bathroom. If possible, bring simple exercise equipment that can help light exercise activities in the office, such as a fitness ball that can be used occasionally instead of a chair, or a small dumbbell to lift weights training chest and arm muscles.

Movement During Pause

If you have the flexibility to move longer or more extreme, you can try to do light exercise in the office by moving from your desk. Here are the ways you can do:

• Small run in place for 60 seconds. Can be varied by jumping using one leg, then replace it with the other leg.
• Walk down or up the stairs, two steps at a time if you want more intensity. Do it 5-7 times a day.
• Stand on your right foot. Bend your left knee and point your lower leg back until the foot touches the buttocks. Then make a move like 'jump rope'. After that, do it with the leg next to it.
• Perform push-up movements by leaning on the wall. Give your distance to the wall for arm length. Stick both palms on the wall, then bring your body toward the wall, while supported by both hands. Push-up by resting on a sturdy table can also be an option for effective arm muscle strengthening exercises.
• Choose a lunch or meeting location in a place a little far from the office, but can still be reached by walking with some friends.
• You can also get off the vehicle at a greater distance from the office so you can walk there.
• If possible, take the stairs instead of taking the elevator or escalator.
• Instead of contacting via e-mail, text message, or telephone, you can come directly to a colleague's office desk. Likewise, walking to a printer or telephone machine, and an ATM machine.

You can set an active reminder alarm every hour to do light exercise in the office or just to stand, walk or stretch muscles. For those of you who have a fit body, the ideal target per day is actually doing around 10,000 steps or walking as far as 8 kilometers. But if this is difficult to do, target if it makes sense to achieve.