How to fit more movement into your day – without doing a workout!

Most of us will never make time to go to the gym every day (well done if you do, this post is probably not going to resonate with you). Or if you’re anything like me, you won’t even fit in two workouts a week.

We also need to be honest that we are never going to be able to make up for hours sat a desk with a 45 yoga/HIIT/run session.

Our bodies will adapt to the environment we provide them with. If we train them to sit for 8 hours a day, they become fantastic at sitting.

SO...we need to find ways to sneak more movement into our day. Thinking less about working out and more about moving more and moving well. The best news is none of these movements need to be done in workout gear and they are all free!

There’s a great quote from Dr Kelly Starrett “my next movement is my best movement.” This is to say that if we have a mostly sedentary day, try to keep moving positions. If you’re at a desk this could be taking time to sit on the floor and work, squatting, standing, lying – just never spending too long in one position.

We were asked by Stylist magazine for comment on a new study by Columbia University Irving Medical Centre reveals that just five minutes of standing up and walking around every half an hour can offset some of the most harmful effects of sitting down all day.

Researchers looked at five different exercise “snacks”: one minute of walking after every 30 minutes of sitting; one minute every 60 minutes; five minutes every 30; five minutes every 60; and no walking at all – and how these can impact our health and wellbeing.

 If you’re interested in this sort of thing:

• Starett writes some brilliant stuff around movement and longevity- definitely worth following @thereadystate.   He and his wife have a new book coming out in April 2023, the reviews so far look excellent!

• There are also lots of great resources on @nutritiousmovement Katy Bowman’s blog.