Staying in Shape With a Busy Work Schedule

It is no secret that maintaining an active lifestyle brings about many health and fitness benefits. For this reason, it is encouraged that you do something to keep your body active at least once a day during the week. Any kind of exercise that will make you sweat and increase your heart rate will be good for your overall health.

Nonetheless, this is often easier said than done as most people nowadays lead a busy schedule. How do you squeeze in time for exercise to help you stay in shape? Read here to learn more about why you should and how you can manage a balanced lifestyle during the week.

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The Risk of a Sedentary Lifestyle While Working

Physical inactivity or living a sedentary lifestyle is known to cause a variety of health risks. But first, what is a sedentary lifestyle? It is any kind of lifestyle that lacks regular physical activity.

Furthermore, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) defines physical inactivity as an individual’s inability to perform any moderate exercise for at least 150 minutes (two and a half hours). If you opt for a more vigorous exercise, you can lower that to 75 minutes.

What Should You Do Then?

The World Health Organization (WHO) says that as much as 85% of the world population is guilty of physical inactivity. If possible, aim for 10,000 steps daily to ensure that your health improves and you can reduce the risk of various health conditions.

A sedentary lifestyle is the fourth leading cause of mortality in the world. To put it into perspective, physical inactivity can increase your risk for cardiovascular diseases, coronary heart diseases, obesity, and high blood pressure.

This is an important thing to stress when talking about staying in shape despite a busy schedule because this is a norm in the modern world. The majority of the jobs today are sedentary and it is not helping at all when it comes to improving health. This Mayo Clinic article explains in more detail how sitting too much could put your health at risk.

Negative Impacts of Work Stress

Aside from a lack of physical activity, stress is another risk factor that is involved when you have a busy work schedule. A constant state of stress is the norm for working adults but too much of it can’t be good.

This is made worse in the modern society wherein workers adapt this false notion that the busier they are, the more productive they become. In some cases, being busy only leads to more stress and it is only a matter of time until that state cripples you physically and mentally.

Chronic stress is not good because it communicates a threat to the central nervous system. When you are feeling stressed all the time, you are at risk of various health issues.

These health concerns include heart problems, gastrointestinal diseases, high blood pressure, and other chronic infections. This is a reminder to strive to lower stress in your life if you want to avoid these conditions.

How to Incorporate a Fitness Routine

Given the potential negative impacts to your health due to a busy and stressful work schedule, it is important to make time for fitness activities. Incorporating as much physical activity to your routine is vital to counteract the health risks involved with a busy work schedule.

Drink Plenty of Water

Improving your fitness level and staying in shape starts with something as simple as drinking plenty of water. Make sure you get the required daily water intake so you can keep your body hydrated.

With proper hydration, it ensures that your bodily functions are normal and that you can stay focused at work. This will stabilize your body temperature and maintain good emotional levels.

Your Morning Routine

Another technique to incorporate fitness into your daily routine is to work out or do your exercise in the morning. Wake up an hour earlier than usual to do your exercise (such as walking, jogging, or running).

By doing your workout in the morning, you are less likely to miss it. It is also a good habit to develop as your workload can easily overwhelm you until you forget to work out or are too tired to do so.

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Choose a Longer Route to the Office

You can also re-think your approach to working out to boost your fitness level. Staying in shape does not always mean you have to go to the gym. You can use the stairs instead of the elevator.

Perhaps, you can park your car at the farthest space so you can take a few steps more to get to your office building. If you live close to the office, you can also opt to ride a bike instead of taking your car.

If your schedule is really busy, you can do household chores as a form of workout. It is important to do something to keep your body active, especially on those days when exercising is impossible with your schedule.

Set-up a Home Gym

When all else fails, you can also build a home gym. You can invest in a few workout equipment (such as an elliptical trainer or a treadmill) and free weights. This will motivate you to exercise because you can do this in the comfort of your own home.

You do not need to go out or drive to a nearby gym just to get in shape. It is also a good idea to invest in your proper workout gear such as this weightlifting shoes so you can be more inspired.

Maintaining Your Topmost Fitness Level During a Busy Week

It is important to look at staying in shape as a form of lifestyle change and not a time-suck. Fitness does not have to be an all-consuming activity or else it will easily burn you out. Look at fitness as something you enjoy and could easily incorporate into your daily routine.

If you do this, you will find that it becomes easier to commit to your new health routine. Fitness then becomes a part of your life, not an obstruction.