Wake up your legs! Stretching in the office

Wake up your legs! A guide to stretching in the office

By Laura Donovan

We exist in a culture of desk jobs. And when work piles up during the day, we sometimes forget to attend to basic human necessities— drinking water, eating lunch, and paying visits to the restroom, much less stretching out taut muscles.

But towards the beginning of each afternoon, I slip out of the office to perform an invisible ritual— my stretching routine. I prefer privacy, which abounds in our office space, to stretch first my arm and then my leg muscles, which haven’t really moved in five hours. I roll my neck and ankles, reach for the sky, and grab my toes, feeling a rush in my calves and burst of energy. On the rare occasions I work remotely, I stretch whilst writing articles (multitasking queen here!) and do the splits. The stretches get me energized and are a nice break from conducting research.

Oh, and did I mention? It takes five minutes. Far less time than the average cube-dweller spends on Facebook daily.

“We just aren’t really structured to be sitting for such long periods of time, and when we do that, our body just kind of goes into shutdown,” Dr. Toni Yancey, a professor in health services and co-director of the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity at the University of California, Los Angeles, told NPR last year.

Sitting down all day can also lead to “less desirable” levels of cholesterol, blood sugar, and triglycerides, said epidemiologist Steven Blair, who added that these effects can up a person’s chance of getting heart disease, diabetes, and a slew of other health problems. If you feel like you lead too hectic of a life to go to the gym before or after work, try sprinkling stretching regimens into your work week toboost blood flow to your muscles, relievelower back pain, potentially improve your performance in physical activities, increase flexibility, and feel semi-active during an otherwise sedentary day. As an office stretching maven and aspiring yogi, I’ve compiled some a list of ways to stretch and stay moving throughout the day.

Two 5-minute stretching sessions each day keep the numbness away

Ever develop neck pain or sore knees from sitting too long? Us too. Your body deserves more than that! After the first few hours of your working day (or even on the hour, if you can build it into your schedule), step away from your seat to stretch out your legs. Find a private room somewhere in your building (spacious stalls in the company restroom will do!) to focus on muscle care. The intense surge of energy and movement in your limbs will allow you to return to your work area in a better physical state than when you left it.

Your legs aren’t the only parts of you that need love. Remember your arms and hands, which probably spend a significant portion of time hovering a computer. You can do the Mayo Clinic’s recommended shoulder stretch and upper arm stretch in under a minute.

Typing all day can also be hard on your fingers, so when you finish stretching your legs and arms, end your quick workout with hand exercises. Put one arm atop the other and walk your fingers in the air. It’s similar to the tickling motion and will release tension all the way up your neck.

Back in grade school, did you have that one obnoxious physical education instructor who made you and your other whimpering classmates hold a stretch for 30 seconds or a minute? According to a 2008 New York Times piece, your teacher may have been more detrimental than helpful, as doing the same stretch for half a minute can have the effect of weakening your muscles. Cut down the time on your individual stretches so you can fit more exercises into your brief session.

Do stretches at your desk

Are you too dedicated to your work to take several walk/stretch breaks during the day? If you enjoy being chained to the desk, you can still do a series of arm or leg exercises from your chair. You can tilt your head, roll your neck or ankles, place one leg over the other to stretch your behind area, and even stretch out your legs in front of you. Getting in a good stretch doesn’t require abandoning your workspace.

Take a walk

If you think it’s a little weird to flee your office to stretch in secrecy for five minutes, substitute the physical activity with a brisk walk outside. Clear your mind, possibly break a sweat, and and get moving. Unk would advise, in his rap-sagacious way, to “Walk It Out.”

Use the stairs

The greatest perk of an elevator is also its downside. Thanks to this useful contraption, you don’t have to huff and puff all the way up to the ninth floor of your building. If you always avoid stairs, however, you’ll be breathless when the elevator undergoes maintenance or encounter a building that only has stairs.

To test your physical abilities and get the blood flowing to your legs, take the stairs on your walk up to work to start your day with a bang. After you go out for lunch or go on a stroll, use the stairs again. If you do this enough in a day, you may feel soreness in your derriere the following day.