4 Easy Ways to Move More Throughout the Day

Have you ever read healthy lifestyle advice and rolled your eyes?

Oh yes, it would be lovely to hit the gym 3-4 times a week. Meditate for 30 minutes before bed. And go for a walk every hour.

But who has got the time?

What are you supposed to do with your kids while you’re at the gym, or while you’re going for your hourly walk?

I get it. I really do. Especially when it comes to moving more throughout the day.

When I work in the office, two and half days a week, I’ve got the moving thing down. I park further away from the office. I use the toilet furthest away from my desk. And I go for a walk every lunch time. All in all, that totals 3 miles a day. Which isn’t bad.

But, when I work from home it’s just not that easy.

My house is a good size, but not that big, so walking around it wouldn’t add much to my distance or step count. Getting dressed and going out every hour would just eat into too much of my day. It’s not practical.

And lets’ face it, if it’s not practical, we’re less likely to do it, and stick to it.

So, what can you do to make sure you keep moving, even if walking isn’t an option?

Well here are 4 ideas for you to try.

1. Move More Throughout the Day: Get Swinging

I know, I know, I’m always banging on about kettlebells.

But there is good reason, honest.

They are such a useful tool for exercising, fat burning and generally staying in good shape. They’re compact, you don’t need much room to use them and they are fairly cheap.

The swing is the daddy of all the kettlebell exercises. It uses all of your body and is the absolute antithesis of sitting, which, let’s face it, most of us do too much of.

So, get some swings into your day, you can thank me later.

How?

Easy. Set a total target to meet by the end of the day, or, set an amount you want to do at regular intervals.

You could do 50 for every hour you’re sitting. Based on a normal working day you’d get a total of 400 swings done by the end of the day. That’s not too shabby.

If you’re worried about the time it would take, 50 swings should take you 3 minutes tops, including rest. And because kettlebells are so compact you can do the swings right next to your desk or your sofa. 

2. Move More Throughout the Day: Use Your Body

If taking a kettlebell to work isn't an option, bodyweight exercises are a great alternative.

They don’t take up much time. You don’t need any special equipment. And you won’t need much space. If you have room to sit, you have room to squat.

How about lunging your way to the toilet? Or, if you’re worried about looking silly, how about squats when you get to the loo.

Wall push-ups, tricep dips, knee raises, high knee sprint on the spot, calf flicks, can all be done in the privacy of a toilet cubicle.

Try 20 before you go and 20 after.

If you’ve got enough room, or you’re not worried about looking silly, you could also try exercises like mountain climbers, proper push-ups and dead-bugs.

The options are endless.

Chose a variety so you’re getting in a full body workout, but spread throughout the day.

3. Move More Throughout the Day: Pull Yourself Up

Do you now or have you ever wanted to do a pull up?

It is the ultimate show of strength. And an awesome exercise. It’s definitely on my list of ‘need to work on’.

The best way to do a pull up is to practice.

Pull up bars, are not that expensive, and fit over a door frame really easily. They’re not permanent. You can also use them to do push ups, and lots of other fancy body weight exercises.

Now, if you’re serious about getting to do a pull up, you’ll need to do ancillary exercises, but more about that at a later date.

Choose a door and every time you pass it, try a pull up.

Make sure you engage your lats (pull your shoulders back and down, i.e. away from your ears) and pull.

Don’t worry if you don’t get very far.

You’re still working the right muscles and it will come.

There are other ways to assist; bands, standing on a chair and lowering yourself down, just hanging (still with your lats engaged). All good ways of getting you to that elusive pull up.

And don’t worry if once you get there, you can only do one at a time. That, after all is the start to being able to knock out 10 in one go.

4. Move More Throughout the Day: Carry Something Heavy

Ok, so if your house isn’t that big, or your walk to the loo isn’t that long, make the walk harder.

How?

Take something heavy with you. Up the stairs. You could even do that journey twice. Around the outside of your house. While you’re doing your cleaning.

You’ll be surprised how quickly it adds up.

Carry what?

Anything you can make heavy.

A sandbag. A packed suitcase. A weighted vest. Your handbag. A loaded back pack. A kettlebell if you have one.

Carrying heavy things is an awesome way to train generally. It helps increase your strength and your cardio capacity.

Move More Throughout the Day

Modern life sees us sitting quite a lot.

In work, on our commute, down to dinner, watching the telly. 

Sitting too much can cause lots of problems, because our bodies are designed to move.

So, get out of your chair and move more. It could be the single most effective thing you do to improve your health. Not just keeping your weight in check.

Go on, put down your computer and move.

Which way are you going to try?

Let me know in the comments below.

© e-Slimmer 2021