How to workout when working from home

Do you have a hard time working out when working from home? While we may be in the comfort of our home, the demands of a work from home job can keep us from getting the activity that we need daily. Yet working from home, presents great opportunities to incorporate lots of activity into our daily routine. Here are some ideas and strategies on how to get more activity and workout when working from home.

I travelled for business for 15 years. When I did that, I missed being at home and having time to workout on a regular schedule. Surprising, when I started working from home 6 years ago, I realized I was more sedentary than before. Suddenly all the airport walking, walks from parking lots, and through client buildings was not there anymore. I was going to have to get up from my desk and computer and make more of an effort and plan to get exercise.

Start by assessing your personal work situation, motivation and needs

What is your work from home situation? Do you have complete or partial flexibility with your time? Or are you in a customer service or technical support type situation where you need to be at a desk at fixed times?

Assess your general motivation towards exercise. Are you someone that puts off working out or doesn’t like it? Or are you a fitness enthusiast who looks forward to a distraction from work in the name of exercise.

What about your fitness needs? How much exercise do you need to get in a typical week? What type of exercise? If needed, you should consult a fitness or medical professional as to the specifics of what type of exercise and how often you need it. These factors will all come into play when it comes to planning your workout when working from home.

Here is a list of strategies for working out when working from home

Here is a list of some ideas of how to incorporate some physical activity in your routine, while balancing the workload of a work from home job. Hopefully you can try to use 2 or 3 of these tips.

Plan Ahead

The key to getting a workout in when you work from home is to plan ahead. What does your day or week look like? Does your job have flexibility are are you on a fixed schedule where you must be at your desk at certain times? When are your meetings? When do you need to stay planted at a desk to take care of something? When do you have flexibility?

Try to schedule your “heavy duty” workouts on less busy days or days with more flexibility and lighter, shorter activity or rest days for days that are more hectic. Then actually make a plan. Which workouts will you do on which days? Put it in your personal calendar if it helps to follow through.

Commit to getting some activity

Make a promise to your self that you will workout, or get some physical activity. Keep it achievable. On a less busy day you may be able to get a hard workout or tough class in. On a more busy day, you may just want to put in a light 10 minutes or get some chores in. Be realistic but keep your promise to get moving.

Workout on your breaks

Take advantage of your breaks during the day to incorporate some movement. If you have a short break, commit to doing 10 minutes of squats, lunges or pushups. Take a walk or jog around the house. Do some laundry. If you have longer breaks or flexibility, maybe you can go to a class at the gym or schedule 40 minutes of lifting weights at a nearby fitness center. When I get my heart pumping after some exercise, I notice I have better brain power at my job.

Set-up a mini home workout area

Find an area in your house that you can put some light workout equipment in. You might have a dedicated room or a part of a larger room. I use a corner of our small living room where I have a crate with barbells, exercise bands, a stability ball, and a Yoga Mat. It is in front of our TV, so I can put on some YouTube videos with fitness classes on them.

Here is a list of some small low budget items you can put in you mini home workout area

• dumbbells
• exercise bands
• stability balls
• Yoga Mat

Optional larger items to put in

• Kickboxing bag and gloves
• Exercise bike
• Elliptical
• Treadmill
• Barbells
• Stairmaster
• TV for playing exercise video or YouTube videos ( laptop or tablet or phone will work well too)

All you really need is your own body weight to get a great workout. So I guess I really don’t have excuses 🙂

Take advantage of all the fitness videos on YouTube

There are lots of great YouTube videos that have fitness classes on them. Or you can subscribe to online fitness classes. You can do them in front of your living room TV or even on your phone.

Incorporate natural activities into your day

Do you take the stairs to your home office and you can naturally come down to get a glass of water in the kitchen below. Can you put a load of laundry in and go back and forth to the laundry room during your breaks? Can you use a restroom that is farthest from your home office? What about washing dishes by hand? These may seem like little things, but every bit of activity helps.

Run an errand during your break and park far away

If you have flexibility at work or a long break, run an errand. This gets you outside in some fresh air and you also get some home productivity in. Go to the grocery store, or the post office. Pick up your kids from day care or school. Park the car far away. Again, the little bit of extra activity really adds up.

Schedule time to play sports or exercise with friends

If you love sports, than this is perfect because you mix accountability with socializing. Find a sport you love, that you can get away for an hour or so. Play tennis or go to pickleball open play for an hour. Meet with a running or walking group. Catch up with your friend on a stroll with some morning coffee. When you schedule fitness with groups or friends it keeps you from bailing because you are too tired.

Improvise and do what you love

This is my personal favorite, especially for days when I am tired and have low motivation. Do what you love. Dance like no one is watching…do some biceps…do some pushups….now some kickboxing….end with some pilates abs or sit-ups. I’m making this up as I’m writing the way I do during my improvised workout. This is great for days you want activity, but don’t want all the structure.

Know what exercise you like doing even when you are tired….and do it for a few minutes. For me that would be dancing. If the music is good enough I can dance. I commit to 2 minutes which becomes 45 minutes. If I have time for the pool, I love to swim. Maybe for you that is a walk? Perhaps you love playing with your kids. Have that information in your back pocket to pull out when you need it.

Do household chores

The fittest person I knew was my mother in law who lived to 95. She never saw a gym. She did light household chores every day going up and down her small flight of stairs when she needed to. However, It is amazing how much activity you can get just doing work around the house. If I do chores on my breaks and get some errands in, I can sometimes be more tired than if I ran for 40 minutes.

Plan to get more activity on weekends or before or after work

You may have a work from home job, where you have to stay seated near the computer or phone. Or perhaps it is one of those weeks where you are super busy and getting activity would be a real form of stress. If so, commit to getting more activity on the weekend. Are you looking forward to a round of Saturday morning golf? Do you live somewhere where you surf or ski on weekends? I know that sometimes it is easier for me to have more time to workout on the weekend when I am not worried about running back to check my email.

Get outside your home and go for a run or walk

Why not just open the door to your home and get outside for a quick stroll or jog. Do some quick squats on your patio or yoga. The world’s best gym is right outside your office….get into the fresh air of nature and reap the rewards.

Plan rest days

Getting rest in between workout days is equally important. I reserve these for days where I need longer blocks of time to focus at work, have lots of meetings, or in between heavier workout days. I may just choose to do lighter activity on these days.

Make your self and your health a priority

Many times, the reason we don’t workout is that we don’t make ourselves a priority. It is easy to put the job ahead of us, but if we don’t take care of our health, we aren’t our best selves for our employer. Don’t neglect your work…but don’t neglect yourself either….it is all a balancing act.

I love the joy of working from home. There are so many small ways to sneak in activity that I really have no excuses. Hope these strategies for working out while working from home are useful. May your days be filled with comfort, leisure, and joy. I think I’ll head out for a walk….