Desk job...I'm really struggling with activity levels!

[EMerkle]

Luckily my fitbit reminds me everytime I haven't gotten 250 steps in an hour...but I still don't feel like I'm getting enough. Coming in around 8-9k steps a day, and that's with me going to the gym for 45 minutes - 1 hour. Any suggestions on how to keep myself active while at work?

[Mukluk4]

IMO, I think the 250 step reminder is garbage and it's more about the quality over the quantity.  Your focus should be more on caloric burn than getting in a number of steps.  The benefit is that it allows you a bit of flexibility in your diet.

I'll take 45 minutes of weight room and an hour session of hard cardio over getting incremental steps throughout the day.   

[MarciM]

Hi @EMerkle What type of desk job do you have? Do you have any flexibility, for example are you on a lot of calls where you can stand or walk around? Do you have 1:1 meetings you can turn into walking meeting (I have found this to be a great way to get steps in and if you can get people you work with involved in challenges, they are more likely to walk with you, then to sit in a conference room). At the very least, I use the 250 step reminders to stand up, stretch, take a few deep breathes, when I can. Other simple tricks I'm sure you already thoughts of, always take the stairs, park farther away make multiple trips to get water or to the printer or where you naturally need to travel to in your work day. Hopefully over time you can find a way to work more steps naturally into your day. 

Good luck and keep stepping!

[MagsOnTheBeach]

I use the side stars and run up and down them when my reminder goes off.  I come back out of breath and feel more energized. I think it is a good reminder to move around.

[tmb-fit]

That's a great idea to do stairs when you get a reminder.  Depending on how your building is, one way of getting in steps in small increments is to go the loo or print out on a different floor or area of your building. It's important to go for total calorie burn but it's just as important to take mini-breaks during the day - at least every hour. Sitting is the new smoking - the main problem being prolonged periods of sitting. 

[emili]

hey @EMerkle I feel you. I not only have a desk job, I work at home. No matter how many trips upstairs downstairs and around the house I take, it doesn't amount to anything that resembles activity. So.. I walk a mile and a half each morning before work and then make up my goal which is 14K either at the gym or outside depending on weather. Today, was the first day in months that I couldn't do my mile and a half- the snow hitting my face with the wind was more than I could take even bundled up. And I didn't want to be on the road this evening so no gym. I feel like a couch potato.. but it doesn't happen often so I am owning it. I think if you work in a mile of a walk in the morning or in the afternoon in addition to whatever you do at the gym, you will get your heartrate up and your steps up which will amount to an activity and not just pottering around steps..

[SunsetRunner]

I disagree.  It's not healthy to sit on your butt for hours at a time.  So even if you're not getting  high intensity workout getting those 250 steps in, it's encouraging us desk people to get off our butt each hour.

I used to take the stairs every day which helped, but we moved buildings and we're now on the first floor.  I guess once I can (still healing from a c section, gotta watch my stairs) I can just do stairs at lunch or something.  Try parking further away, and get up and walk around the office every hour.  Try to go for an extra walk, either at lunch or before work or something.  It can be such a struggle.

[weasellyone]

Hi, I have a desk job too, I know your pain about the 250 steps. I have a decent step average of 12000ish but I suck at the 250 steps/hr because when I am active I am very active but when I'm at work I do nothing!

Can you go for a walk at lunchtime? Even 20-30 minutes will probably get you hitting over 10,000. 

I've wondered about walking up and down the full height of our buiding (5 floors) once an hour to maintain the 250 but tbh it is impractical as some times I'll be in meetings. I think if you are generally active this metric is a bit less important.