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How To Stay More Active Even When You’re Stuck In The Office

Scarlett MartinBusiness ManagementNo CommentsJanuary 31, 2020

January has and always will be a notoriously busy month for small businesses and you’ve undoubtedly been chained to your desk for weeks in an attempt to get back into the swing of things post-Christmas. We get it – the January rush is unavoidable and often part and parcel of running an SME. But now the mayhem is nearly over, it’s time to get moving (literally).

While you might not be able to squeeze in a long and intensive workout into your workday, that doesn’t mean that your fitness needs to go on the backburner. Believe it or not, too much sitting down combined with work-related stress can affect your overall health and leave you unable to run your SME as effectively as you should.

So, with the help of SMR fitness, one of the local businesses featured on our UWS membership card, we’ve pulled together some simple ideas on how you can stay more active even when you’re stuck to the confines of your office.


Walk around whilst taking calls

As the owner of a small business, it’s highly likely that you make and receive A LOT of phone calls each day. But rather than sitting down while you talk, start getting into the habit of walking around for the whole time you’re on the phone. You could even do 10 sets of squats or lunges if you’re on a call where you only need to listen or have very little to contribute.

This will not only help to increase the number of steps you take each day, but there’s also evidence to suggest that walking more can increase your creative input by as much as 60%. So, as well as feeling more energised, you may also find that your phone calls are actually more productive as a result- winner!

Utilise an online personal trainer

Even with all of the will in the world, there just aren’t always enough hours in the day to get down to the gym to see a personal trainer for a workout. But thankfully, with the power of the internet, being time poor doesn’t need to be a barrier anymore. Many gyms now offer the option of an online-only personal trainer who will create a regime that suits your busy schedule and check in regularly to help you stay motivated and accountable, without needing to see you face to face.

30 minutes of exercise is better than nothing

A good workout doesn’t have to be hours long. Research has found that just 30 minutes of exercise each day can be extremely beneficial, whether you’re trying to lose weight, improve your fitness or reduce stress. Finding 30 minutes during your day, even if you split it into 10-minute chunks, is far more manageable than trying to fit in a couple of hours. You could even do your 30 minutes before or after work if that suits your schedule better.

But what can you do in 30 minutes? Hight Intensity Interval Training, otherwise known as HIIT, can be a perfect option for time-poor SME owners because it’s an optimal workout in a short burst of time. You can find a whole host of HIIT training videos on YouTube or ask your new personal trainer for their recommendations.

Wear ankle and wrist weights at the office

To increase the benefits of all this extra moving you’re going to be doing from now on, why not try wearing ankle and wrist weights whenever you’re at the office. Yes, we know they might take some getting used to and they might not always be the most stylish things to wear around the office. But they’ve been proven to increase endurance, tone and strengthen muscles and burn more calories without you needing to do doing anything extra.

Invest in a fitness tracker

Whether you download a fitness app on your smartphone or invest in a fitness watch, having a tracker of some kind can make you more aware of how much (or how little) you move around each day. Knowing that you only walk 3,000 steps each day when you’re meant to be aiming for 10,000 can be eye-opening and be just the motivation you need to get up from your desk more often.

Not only can these apps and devices track how much movement you make each day, but they can also be set up to alert you when you’ve been sat down for too long or to remind you to drink more water. This can be perfect for those SME owners amongst us who often lose track of time and need help staying focused.

With so many different ideas and techniques to try, there’s no reason why your fitness needs to go on the back burner just because you can’t make it down to the gym every day. So, quit the excuses and start looking for every opportunity to move it, move it! Your health and your business will thank you for it.

SMR fitness is an upscale boutique gym based in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter that offers a variety of services, including HIIT training, online training, general gym admission and personal training, all within an intimate and trendy environment. Whatever your starting point, they can tailor the perfect package to suit you and your schedule. To find out more about SMR fitness, please visit www.smrfitness.com or get in touch at info@smrfitness.com

Tags: fitness, health, January, new year, small business, SME, SME owner, wellbeing

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