You wake up. Walk the dog. Make breakfast for the household. Pack lunches for the kids. Take something out to defrost for dinner. Make sure everyone is awake. Jump in the shower. Get ready for work. Sit in traffic. Sit in meetings. Sit in some more traffic. Start making dinner. Walk the dog. Drive one kid to soccer, drop the other at music lessons. Run errands. Finish making dinner. Pick up the kids. Eat dinner. Clean up. Help with homework. Walk the dog. Fall asleep watching an episode of the show you’re a season behind on.

…And you’re supposed to get the gym when?

If this sounds like a variation of your day, you probably feel like it’s impossible to make time for daily exercise. Since we know that regular exercise lowers the risks of TONS of illnesses, increases longevity, and releases those feel-good chemicals, it’s crucial to figure out a way to incorporate it into our hectic lives.¹

Think about the time of day you’re being the least active- sitting at your desk, right? It may feel silly at first, but there are tons of creative ways to use this time for exercise. Here are only a few:

1. Invest in a standing desk– Just by standing at your desk instead of sitting for the second half of your day can burn an additional 1,000 calories per week.²
2. Standing push ups– Take 2 steps away from your desk. Keeping your body linear, lean forward and put your palms on the edge of the desk, then push your body away. Do this 10 times.
3. Calf raises– While you’re waiting for your coffee to brew or your meal to microwave, raise yourself up on your toes and squeeze your calves (hold on to something for stability). When you lower down, roll back onto your heels and point your toes in the air so that you have contraction as well as flexion.
4. Seated knee tucks– In your chair, turn to the side and slightly lean back (hold on to the back of the chair for stability). Tuck your knees into your chest and then extend your legs out so that your body forms a V-shape. Do this 10 times. For an added challenge put something between your feet, like your trash can or work bag!
5. Take a walk– Sure, you could easily message your colleague to ask that question over Slack or G-Chat. Instead, get up and walk to their office to ask them! By the end of the day you will have racked up a bunch more steps and burned more calories.

Get creative: see what other deskercises you can come up with! Let us know in the comments when you’ve discovered one that works for you.