When you sit in an office all day, it’s difficult to stay in shape. Spending eight hours or more tethered to a desk is terrible for your health.
But a new study shows there’s a simple way office workers can improve their fitness.
You do it by using your workplace as a piece of gym equipment…
Previous research had found that brief spurts of vigorous exercise can boost heart health. This is called sprint interval training, or SIT.
For the new study, Professor Martin Gibala and his colleagues wanted to see if “exercise snacks” of stair climbing could work as well.[1]
The team divided sedentary adults into two groups. One was selected to exercise. The researchers had them warm up with a few squats, lunges, and jumping jacks. Then the subjects quickly climbed three flights of stairs.[2]
They followed the same protocol three times a day. Each bout of stair climbing was separated by a rest period of between one and four hours. Total exercise time was about one minute each day.
The group did this three days a week over six weeks. A control group did not exercise.
The second group did their normal activities with no stair climbing.
At the end of the study, the exercise group had stronger legs. Their aerobic fitness improved by 5%. The other group had no health improvements.
The 1-Minute Secret That Keeps Office Workers in Shape
“The findings make it even easier for people to incorporate ‘exercise snacks’ into their day,” said Professor Gibala.
“Those who work in office towers or live in apartment buildings can vigorously climb a few flights of stairs in the morning, at lunch, and in the evening and know they are getting an effective workout.”[3]
Assistant Professor Jonathan Little was a study co-author. He said that he and his fellow scientists were surprised that climbing stairs was so effective compared to running.
He noted that stair climbing “on your coffee break” is “enough to boost fitness in people who are otherwise sedentary.”
The takeaway?
If you have stairs in your office, home, or parking structure, take advantage of them. Briskly ascend three flights of stairs three times daily. Do it once in the morning, once around lunch, and once in the afternoon.
It’s worth the small investment in time to stop a sedentary desk job from harming your health.
Editor’s Note: Did you know there are five deadly heart attack triggers? And you probably did three of them before lunch! Find out what you need to know in order to avoid a massive coronary or a stroke. Go HERE.
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[1]http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/10.1139/apnm-2018-0675#.XFHUtFxKiUk
[2]https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/23/well/move/20-second-exercise-fitness-interval-training.html
[3]https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/01/190118110833.htm