Turn a working lunch into a walking lunch!

To follow up on yesterday's post about how sitting at work all day can greatly affect your health in a negative way, I thought I'd post about how taking a walk on your lunch break could benefit your health!

I love that I have coworkers who walk with me.  It's fun, relaxing, and the fresh air is amazing!  My friend Steph is always good at taking selfies and keeping track of our distance.  :)  See how happy we are?  It really helps us mentally to go back to work and finish the afternoon because we have that break from our desks.  We come back refreshed, energized and in a good mood!  In fact, a new study finds that even gentle lunchtime strolls can perceptibly — and immediately — buoy people’s moods and ability to handle stress at work.

It's also shown that regular movement throughout the day will keep your mind and body limber and help avoid fatigue.

If you don't have enough time on your lunch break to regularly walk, try to think of ways you can add movement or at least decrease the amount of time you are sedentary. Try getting out of your chair more, standing during your calls, taking more frequent bathroom breaks/filling your water bottle more often or alternating your chair with a yoga ball. And if you have to drive to work, try parking at the far end of the lot, taking the stairs, and going the long way to the bathroom and break room. 

Why Walk for 30 Minutes?

Health authorities including the USDA and CDC recommend at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity exercise such as brisk walking, so during a 5 day work week, that's 30 minutes a day. If you enjoy a brisk walk during your lunch break most days of the week, you will have achieved the minimum requirement to help combat the health risks of inactivity and obesity.  

In 30 minutes you can cover between 1.5 to 2 miles.  You can burn as many as 200 calories, depending on distance and your weight.  If you want to know how many calories your walk just burned.... check this out! Walking Calorie Calculator.

Here are tips to make the most of 30 minutes of walking

*Where can you walk so you have minimal interruptions? You can use a treadmill, walk indoors, or walk outdoors. Select a route that has fewer street crossings and stops for traffic. If you know how much distance you can walk in 30 minutes, you can map out a circular route. If not, you may want a shorter route that you can repeat multiple times.

*Change into athletic shoes: You could walk in whatever footwear you happen to wear to work or school. But to get a good brisk walking stride, it's best to change into athletic shoes. Depending on the weather, you may also need an appropriate coat, hat, or to change into shorts and a t-shirt.

 

*Eat before or after? Most people prefer to exercise first and have the meal after they finish. If you are very hungry by lunch, quiet your hunger by drinking a glass of water, or have a light snack of a piece of fruit.  A light lunch after your walk will nourish your muscles so they can recover and grow stronger.  My coworkers and I like to walk first because if our walk goes longer than planned we cut into our time to eat (which we can always eat our lunch at our desks if we run out of time) instead of getting back to the office late.  Plus, we’re afraid some days if we eat first, we’ll never want to get up from our meals and spend the rest of the time in the cafeteria socializing.

*Warm-Up: Begin with an easy walking pace for one to three minutes. Use this time to shake out the kinks if you have been sitting or standing for long periods.

*Good walking posture: Energize your walking by relaxing and loosening your shoulders and standing upright, with stomach sucked in and pelvis tilted slightly forward. You want your chin up and eyes forward.  What about stretching? You can go through a short stretching routine after a couple of minutes of walking. But you can also save the stretching to do after your walk or as its own exercise activity at another time.

*Vary Your Lunchtime Walking Workouts.  Change it up from day to day to prevent boredom and to keep challenging your body in different ways.  Alternate steady state days with interval days.  If you always use a treadmill, mix it up with walking the corridors or walking outside.  Take a different path and see where it leads you.

* Invite Others to Join You.  Solo walking is great, but you may be more consistent in walking if you have a lunchtime walking buddy. You won't find as many excuses to skip your walk if your friend is ready to get going.