Easy Ways to Work Physical Activity into Your Day

By: Andrea Schmutz
Extension Assistant Professor

woman walking and talking on phone

When you hear the words “physical activity” do your thoughts immediately conjure up images of a gym with monthly payments, seriously buff clients, and cardio/weight machines lined up in every available inch of space? Do you automatically think you can’t engage in physical activity because you’re super busy, don’t have money for a gym membership, or you feel funny in those cute exercise clothes? Wipe those thoughts from your mind and start with a clean slate as you learn about the benefits of physical activity and how to incorporate it into your day.

According to the Physical Guidelines for Americans, “Being physically active is one of the most important actions that people of all ages can take to improve their health.” Benefits linked to physical activity include feeling better, functioning better, sleeping better, and reducing the risk of a large number of chronic diseases. (For a complete list of benefits associated with regular physical activity, please visit p. 32 in the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition.) To take advantage of these benefits, the guidelines recommend that adults should do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity per week. If that sounds overwhelming or you are not quite ready for that level of activity, please rest assured that research shows that some physical activity is better than none.

You may be asking yourself how you can possibly add one more thing to your schedule. Even when you know physical activity is valuable, how do you squeeze it in? You can get creative, you can be sneaky, or you can be matter-of-fact and simply write it in your calendar. Here are some ideas you might consider:

  • Walk in place while participating in video conference meetings. (Just make sure to turn off your camera.) Better yet, add in some squats, jumping jacks, lunges, arm curls, or whatever you can do while in your office or wherever your computer is located.
  • Instead of wasting precious time driving around the parking lot to find the ideal parking spot, pull into a stall at the end of the row and take advantage of the opportunity for extra steps. You may even reap the added benefit of saving time and gas by eliminating the extra driving.
  • Encourage fellow employees to join you for “walking” meetings when the weather is nice. Again, you will probably save time because the meeting will have a natural ending as you finish the route and end up back at the office door.
  • Work out while working around the house. Move vigorously when doing ordinary house chores such as vacuuming, dusting, sweeping, or even yard work. Turn on some music and add some dance moves as you dust and vacuum, or skip around the yard as you move from one flower bed to the next.
  • When shopping, take a lap or two around the perimeter of the store while pushing your grocery cart before you actually start your shopping. Not only will you get extra steps in, but you will be engaging your core muscles as you push the cart.
  • Take the stairs whenever possible.
  • Mix things up a bit by changing your method of locomotion. Add in a “bear walk” or a “crab walk” throughout the day and discover the benefits of these full body exercises.
  • Link specific physical activities to other common activities in your day. Every time you send a text, perform five squats or jumping jacks. Do arm circles while warming up your food in the microwave. When you are about to open your car door, pause and do some toe raises. While brushing your teeth, do hamstring curls or side lunges. The combinations are endless. You could even turn it into a game to start your day. Make a list of several daily activities, cut them up and place them in a jar. Then make a list of random physical activities and put them in another jar. At the beginning of each day, draw out one activity from each jar - each time you perform the routine action, you must do the selected physical activity of the day.

Hopefully, one of these ideas struck a chord with you or even triggered ideas of your own. Start by making small changes and you may be surprised at how much physical activity you can incorporate throughout your day without sacrificing large chunks of time. While regular exercise is ideal, remember that even small amounts of physical activity can provide positive health benefits.

Resource:

US Department of Health and Human Service. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd Edition. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018.