1 00:00:05,200 --> 00:00:10,120 Speaker 1: Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the New Corner Office, 2 00:00:10,560 --> 00:00:13,920 Speaker 1: the podcast where we share strategies for thriving in the 3 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:18,120 Speaker 1: new world of work, where location and hours are more 4 00:00:18,160 --> 00:00:22,200 Speaker 1: flexible than in the past. Today's tip is about how 5 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:24,919 Speaker 1: to sneak in a few more steps during the day. 6 00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:27,720 Speaker 1: When you're working at home. It can be easy to 7 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:31,440 Speaker 1: go nowhere, but with a few smart choices you can 8 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:35,880 Speaker 1: stay active and have more energy. So first, I want 9 00:00:35,880 --> 00:00:38,839 Speaker 1: to be clear that working in an office can easily 10 00:00:38,920 --> 00:00:42,080 Speaker 1: lead to sloths too. In fact, some research has found 11 00:00:42,080 --> 00:00:47,120 Speaker 1: that long commutes are negatively associated with physical activity. It 12 00:00:47,159 --> 00:00:51,600 Speaker 1: makes sense when do people usually exercise well seven in 13 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:54,440 Speaker 1: the morning and six at night. When are people who 14 00:00:54,520 --> 00:00:57,280 Speaker 1: have long commutes on the road seven in the morning 15 00:00:57,360 --> 00:01:00,200 Speaker 1: and six at night. When you work from home, the 16 00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:02,680 Speaker 1: commute disappears at least a few days a week, which 17 00:01:02,720 --> 00:01:05,600 Speaker 1: is great. You can open up a lot more time 18 00:01:05,760 --> 00:01:09,600 Speaker 1: for a real workout. But on days when that doesn't happen, 19 00:01:10,160 --> 00:01:12,880 Speaker 1: you may be facing down a long stretch of sitting 20 00:01:13,280 --> 00:01:16,959 Speaker 1: with a lot less incidental activity. The walk from your 21 00:01:16,959 --> 00:01:19,760 Speaker 1: parking lot to your desk is probably longer than the 22 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:22,720 Speaker 1: walk from your bedroom to your home office. Unless you 23 00:01:22,720 --> 00:01:26,320 Speaker 1: have a really palatial house. You aren't walking to conference 24 00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:29,600 Speaker 1: rooms for meetings. You aren't walking to the office cafeteria 25 00:01:29,720 --> 00:01:32,200 Speaker 1: or out to lunch. Usually there are just a lot 26 00:01:32,240 --> 00:01:36,040 Speaker 1: fewer reasons to stand up, and that's a problem because 27 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:39,360 Speaker 1: sitting too long can lead to stiffness and general malaise. 28 00:01:40,040 --> 00:01:42,680 Speaker 1: And there's nothing magical about racking up a certain number 29 00:01:42,720 --> 00:01:45,960 Speaker 1: of steps, but it is a proxy for extra movement 30 00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:48,440 Speaker 1: during the day, and you do want to stay in 31 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:51,720 Speaker 1: motion if you can, so how do you do that? 32 00:01:52,480 --> 00:01:54,880 Speaker 1: You can look for lots of ways to sneak in 33 00:01:55,040 --> 00:01:58,680 Speaker 1: extra steps. From the time you wake up to the 34 00:01:58,720 --> 00:02:02,120 Speaker 1: time you go to bed, there are opportunities to move around. 35 00:02:02,880 --> 00:02:05,080 Speaker 1: This is true even if, like me, you need to 36 00:02:05,120 --> 00:02:08,120 Speaker 1: be careful about when you emerge from your home office, 37 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:11,600 Speaker 1: because when you emerge, people suddenly develop needs for your 38 00:02:11,639 --> 00:02:15,320 Speaker 1: time and attention. First, look for ways to build movement 39 00:02:15,360 --> 00:02:18,120 Speaker 1: into your morning routine. When you get out of bed, 40 00:02:18,600 --> 00:02:22,480 Speaker 1: stretch a bit, touch your toes, or do some quasi 41 00:02:22,480 --> 00:02:25,200 Speaker 1: push ups on the kitchen counter when you're making your coffee, 42 00:02:26,040 --> 00:02:29,760 Speaker 1: pace around the bathroom as you brush your teeth. Fifty 43 00:02:29,840 --> 00:02:32,480 Speaker 1: extra steps in the morning, and fifty extra steps at 44 00:02:32,520 --> 00:02:36,040 Speaker 1: night doesn't sound like much, but one hundred steps a 45 00:02:36,120 --> 00:02:39,040 Speaker 1: day for three hundred sixty five days a year is 46 00:02:39,080 --> 00:02:43,280 Speaker 1: thirty six thousand, five hundred steps, which is about eighteen miles. 47 00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:46,600 Speaker 1: You can also pace around the office while you're on 48 00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:50,919 Speaker 1: an audio only call. Again, you're not trying to run 49 00:02:50,960 --> 00:02:54,520 Speaker 1: a marathon. Just getting up to walk a hundred steps 50 00:02:54,800 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 1: during two calls during the day will encounter some of 51 00:02:58,200 --> 00:03:02,000 Speaker 1: the effects of sitting. You can stand up while clearing 52 00:03:02,000 --> 00:03:04,680 Speaker 1: out your inbox on your phone. After all, you can 53 00:03:04,800 --> 00:03:08,040 Speaker 1: delete as easily from a standing position as a sitting one. 54 00:03:08,720 --> 00:03:12,320 Speaker 1: You might try taking a call while walking. Any casual 55 00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:14,840 Speaker 1: one with your immediate team in which you don't need 56 00:03:14,880 --> 00:03:18,520 Speaker 1: to take notes can work well. Look for ways to 57 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:22,400 Speaker 1: take active breaks. Go throw a ball with your dog 58 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:24,720 Speaker 1: or your kid in the back yard for a few minutes, 59 00:03:25,280 --> 00:03:26,919 Speaker 1: walk to your mailbox, or if you live in a 60 00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:30,720 Speaker 1: walkable neighborhood, go walk to run a quick errand. I've 61 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:33,400 Speaker 1: written my kid's virtual school breaks into my calendar, and 62 00:03:33,400 --> 00:03:35,520 Speaker 1: I sometimes try to convince one of them to go 63 00:03:35,560 --> 00:03:38,320 Speaker 1: for a quick walk with me during the break. With 64 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:40,400 Speaker 1: five kids in a family, it's hard to get one 65 00:03:40,440 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: on one time, but This is one way to do it, 66 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:46,840 Speaker 1: and then, of course look for ways to be active 67 00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:50,960 Speaker 1: after work too. Family outside time before dinner can lead 68 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:54,440 Speaker 1: to extra steps, but it's all about the fun. I 69 00:03:54,520 --> 00:03:56,880 Speaker 1: sometimes push my baby in the stroller in the driveway 70 00:03:56,920 --> 00:03:58,720 Speaker 1: in the evening as a way to fill some time 71 00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:01,040 Speaker 1: and not have to worry that he'll grab anything off 72 00:04:01,080 --> 00:04:04,120 Speaker 1: the floor that he shouldn't. He likes looking at me 73 00:04:04,160 --> 00:04:06,320 Speaker 1: and looking at the clouds, and well he's pretty cute 74 00:04:06,320 --> 00:04:09,440 Speaker 1: to look at too. Just in general, if you've been 75 00:04:09,480 --> 00:04:13,360 Speaker 1: sitting for a bit, think about getting up and challenge 76 00:04:13,360 --> 00:04:15,640 Speaker 1: yourself to walk for just fifty to one hundred steps. 77 00:04:16,279 --> 00:04:19,960 Speaker 1: It isn't much, but it isn't nothing either, and little 78 00:04:19,960 --> 00:04:24,800 Speaker 1: bits of not nothing do add up in the meantime. 79 00:04:25,480 --> 00:04:29,440 Speaker 1: This is Laura, Thanks for listening, and here's to succeeding 80 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:36,080 Speaker 1: in the New Corner Office. The New Corner Office is 81 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:40,839 Speaker 1: a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts, visit the iHeartRadio app, 82 00:04:41,120 --> 00:04:44,279 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your favorite shows.