While most jobs require some sitting and standing, on average, most workers spend 39% of their day seated, according to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. Breaking the numbers down by occupation, careers that require the most sitting include software developers (90%), bus drivers (82%), accountants (81%), and insurance sales agents (80%), among others. Add in long commutes, family time around the table, or downtime in front of the television, and that’s an awful lot of time spent being inactive.
If your job requires a lot of sitting, why not multi-task at work and fit in a few minutes of ab workouts while sitting at your desk to get the blood flowing and strengthen your core? Try the following exercise tips to maintain and increase core strength while sitting at your desk. (Pair these with a back toning workout for even better posture and improved results.)
Sit on the front edge of your chair with your legs together and bent at the knees, feet flat on the floor, back straight, and your shoulders back and relaxed. Lean back 45 degrees. Hold the seat of your chair on either side of your thighs, engage your abs, and, while still leaning back, slowly draw your knees in toward your chest. Next, unbend knees to extend legs out at a 45-degree angle, hold for a second, then draw legs back in, bending at the knees again. Repeat 20 times. (If your office chair has wheels, lock them for added stability.)
Sit on the front of your chair with your legs together, knees bent at a 90-degree angle, feet flat on the ground, arms up and bent at the elbows with fingers interlaced behind your head. Engage your core and lean back until your back grazes your chair back. Keep your back straight and your abs engaged. In one fluid motion, sit back up while lowering your right elbow to the left knee, lifting your left leg so the knee meets the elbow, keeping your abs engaged and fingers interlaced behind your head the entire time. Return to your starting position and repeat, this time lowering the left elbow to the right knee before returning to your starting position again. That’s one full repetition. Repeat each repetition 20 times.
To strengthen the sides of your core, called the obliques, start by sitting up straight in your chair, legs together, knees bent at 90 degrees, feet flat on the floor, and arms relaxed at your sides. Lift your left arm up, bend at the elbow, and rest the palm of your hand on the back of your head. With your core engaged and still facing forward, bend to the left and, using your left side obliques, squeeze to slightly raise your left hip and keep core engaged as you slowly sit back up to the starting position. Repeat 10 times, then switch to repeat another 10 times on the right side.
An easy way to engage your core while sitting at a desk is to simply switch up your seating. While some ergonomic chairs may provide comfort and support to the spine and posture, they’re simply acting as just that—support. Your core doesn’t need to work to keep posture in place. To instantly engage the core, swap your traditional office chair for an exercise ball or alternative ergonomic chair designed to engage the core for at least an hour of active sitting each day. Forcing your core to do the work offers a passive workout that can be performed while still continuing your work, meaning this tip doesn’t need to interrupt your workflow. It’s important to pay attention to posture, though; don’t slouch and be sure to keep shoulders back and relaxed.
Consider the following table to find the right size exercise ball for you:
Your Height |
Ball Size |
4’5” or less |
12” ball |
4’6” to 5’7” |
18” ball |
5’1” to 5’7” |
22” ball |
5’8” to 6’2” |
26” ball |
6’3” or taller |
30” ball |
On a budget? Pretend there is gum on your chair back and perch on your chair, closer to the front. Avoid leaning back—to avoid the “gum”—and assess your posture. Keep shoulders relaxed, abdominal muscles engaged, and back straight, with ears aligned with hips.
If your end goal is to fight belly bulge, these options will help to improve muscle toning, but they may not be enough to burn fat or tighten skin. Boost the results of your workday workouts with complementary radio frequency (RF) treatments or non-surgical diode laser fat treatments during your lunch hours. Whether you’re looking to lose inches, or for a little body shaping or skin tightening boost, these custom treatments generally takes no longer than 30 minutes—the perfect length for a lunch break.
To learn more about our body treatments, including whether they’re the perfect match for your personal goals, contact a certified treatment provider near you using the search field below.
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Search below to find a provider near you and to learn about our non-surgical aesthetic treatments ARTAS®, NeoGraft®, Venus Bliss™, Venus Versa™, Venus Legacy™, Venus Velocity™, Venus Viva™ MD, Venus Freeze Plus™, and Venus Glow™.
For more information call: (+44) 208 748 2221 // [email protected] // 4th Floor, No.1 Farriers Yard 77-85 Fulham Palace Road, London
REGULATORY CLEARANCES [ More ]
Venus Versa™ has CE Mark as a multi-application device intended to be used in aesthetic and cosmetic procedures. The SR515 and SR580 applicators have CE Mark for the treatment of benign pigmented epidermal and cutaneous lesions and treatment of benign cutaneous vascular lesions. The HR650/HR650XL and HR690/HR690XL applicators have CE Mark for the removal of unwanted hair and to effect stable long-term or permanent hair reduction for Fitzpatrick skin types I-IV. The AC Dual applicator has CE Mark for the treatment of acne vulgaris. The DiamondPolar™ applicator has CE Mark for non-invasive treatment of moderate to severe facial wrinkles and rhytides on females with Fitzpatrick skin types I-IV. The OctiPolar™ applicator on the Venus Versa™ system has CE Mark for temporary body contouring via skin tightening, circumferential reduction, and cellulite reduction. The NanoFractional RF™ (Viva) applicator has CE Mark for dermatological procedures requiring ablation and resurfacing of the skin.
NeoGraft® 2.0 has CE Mark with indication for use in suction-assisted follicular extraction and re-implantation for males and females.
ARTAS iX™ has CE Mark with indication for use for harvesting hair follicles from the scalp in men diagnosed with androgenic alopecia (male pattern hair loss) who have black or brown straight hair. ARTAS iX™ is intended to assist physicians in identifying and extracting hair follicular units from the scalp during hair transplantation; creating recipient sites; and implanting harvested hair follicles.
Venus Epileve™ has CE Mark for hair removal, permanent hair reduction (defined as the long-term stable reduction in the number of hairs re-growing when measured at 6, 9 and 12 months after the completion of a treatment regimen), and the treatment of pseudofolliculitis barbae for all Fitzpatrick skin types. Venus Epileve™ is also CE-Marked for hirsutism.
Venus Legacy™ has CE Mark for the temporary increase of skin tightening, circumferential reduction, cellulite reduction, and wrinkle reduction.
Venus Velocity™ has CE Mark for hair removal, permanent hair reduction (defined as the long-term stable reduction in the number of hairs re-growing when measured at 6, 9 and 12 months after the completion of a treatment regimen), and the treatment of pseudofolliculitis barbae for all Fitzpatrick skin types.
Venus Viva™ has CE Mark for the use in dermatologic and general surgical procedures requiring ablation and resurfacing of the skin, and the treatment of moderate to severe facial wrinkles and rhytides in Fitzpatrick skin types I-IV with the DiamondPolar™ applicator.
Venus Freeze Plus™ has CE Mark for treatment of moderate to severe facial wrinkles and rhytides using the DiamondPolar™ applicator, and CE Mark for the treatment of cellulite reduction, increase of skin tightening, and temporary circumferential reduction on the OctiPolar™ applicator.
Venus Freeze™ has CE Mark for treatment of moderate to severe facial wrinkles and rhytides using the DiamondPolar™ applicator, and CE Mark for the treatment of cellulite reduction, increase of skin tightening, and temporary circumferential reduction on the OctiPolar™ applicator.
Venus Glow™ provides a dermal rejuvenation treatment that works to open up and deep-clean pores. Venus Concept is the exclusive distributor for Venus Glow™.
Venus Bliss™ has CE Mark for addressing aspects related to body contouring, such as fat reduction and circumferential reduction, temporary increase of skin tightening and temporary cellulite reduction.
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