Simple tips for keeping fit and bringing in some of the outdoors in my life when working a desk job in a city office

Rishta
Rishta
Nov 3 · 3 min read

Is it possible to bring some of the outdoors into the city? Growing up on a small island in the middle of the Indian Ocean and in a little hamlet in the middle of Cumbria in the English countryside, the outdoors and physical activity has always been a very integral part of my life.

Since a very young age, I’ve been swimming regularly and when I was younger I hardly missed karate practice. However, it’s been quite some years since I’ve started full time work in a desk-bound career and time spent outdoors and exercising has been restricted. Even so, I try to swim or run a couple of times a week, continue with my karate practice and earlier this year, I started practicing pilates. For a person who loves breathing fresh air and moving about, you can tell how much I like being indoors in front of a desk.

Here are some ways that I find work for me to bring some of the outdoors and physical activity in the workplace and in my life in general.

  1. I look for ways to be outside more during the day. Scheduling regular walks outside in the fresh air: put it in your diary. A 5 minute walk breathing fresh air makes a difference.

2. Stand up and take a walk around the office floor every half an hour. To be honest, I think this is quite hard to remember to do especially once you get engrossed in what you are working on. But it’s important. For me, it seems to work because after a certain amount of time my body tells me that I need to stretch or at least stand up. These days I’m trying to schedule my work using the Pomodoro principle.

3. If you are lucky enough to be seated next to a window at work, look outside. I’ve seen some very exquisite sunsets in London.

4. Take the stairs instead of the lift. Very easy to incorporate into your life. Don’t be lazy!

5. Buy yourself (or find someone to buy you!) fresh flowers! One of life’s simplest joys — smelling lovely fresh flowers. Actually you don’t have to buy them, maybe change up your routine if you can, so that you can walk through a park at some point during the day.

6. Don’t eat at your desk. If there is a park nearby, take your lunch there. However, I know London weather is very unpredictable and in times of rain, sitting in the park doesn’t sound very inviting. When this happens, I usually take my lunch to a cafe and also buy a hot drink or something else so that at least I’m outside of the office.

7. If you can, get a standing desk. These are supposed to be quite helpful. However, I’m not really a fan. I find myself straining my neck a lot — maybe my settings are never right as I never know how to use it properly. But I know lots of people who like using them.

8. Exercise outside. Join sports clubs ie. football teams, rugby teams, tennis, netball etc. I used to be in a netball team a few years ago which was quite fun! There is a wide plethora to choose from in London. I’m not really a fan of lunchtime classes — I never enjoy them as much as I am always rushing to get back to work but it’s a good way to break up the day. Personally, I enjoy running outside.

9. Open air swimming. This is linked to the above point. But I think it merits a line on its own as one of my favourite things to do in the winter months to go swimming in a heated pool outside while the air is freezing. It’s rejuvenating.

Most of these tips are common sense.

Don’t compromise on making physical activity part of your daily life in the city or anywhere else. You only have one body — please look after it.

Rishta

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Rishta

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