Got a spare two minutes? Use that time to get moving — your health, your body and your diabetes will thank you! Here are some suggestions to get you started:
1. Walk the talk: Forget Facebook, emailing and texting – find reasons to talk by walking to a colleague’s desk, running a quick errand or using a mobile phone to exercise your legs (and your vocal chords!).
2. Lift your gaze: Look around you for jobs that need doing. See that big cobweb? Brandish a broom and clear out those hard-to-reach corners.
3. Drink up: Downing a large glass of water every hour not only keeps you hydrated, but also means you’ll have regular toilet trips. And, once you’re up, you may as well make the most of it by heading for a loo on another floor, taking the stairs up and down.
4. Buy a few plants: You’ll need to fuss around to keep them well tended and watered.
5. Make one for the team: Volunteer to brew up regular cuppas for your colleagues and work those muscles by carrying them in on a tray.
6. Take a coffee break: When you’re craving a caffeine hit, turn it into a quick excursion with a brisk walk to a local cafe.
7. Do the chores in your office: Appoint yourself as the saint who refills the photocopier, hefts out-of-date newspapers into the trash and clears out the office fridge.
8. Mobilise your meetings: Colleagues will also benefit if you flag a discussion on the move, walking as you talk things through.
9. Take pride in your place: Smarten your surroundings at every opportunity – resist the urge to procrastinate, and head off to wash up cups as soon as they’re used. De-clutter and wipe down work surfaces, and shine up your computer screen daily.
10. Use electronic tools: If you are constantly on the computer, download a free widget (Panadol has one) that will remind you to get up from your chair and do some stretches and simple exercises. Alternatively, download an app or set a reminder on your phone.
11. Sit smart: Stuck in traffic, on a plane or settled in at the cinema? When standing isn’t an option, you can still work those big muscles by doing leg stretches, buttock clenches and foot rotations to keep the blood flowing.
12. Surrender your seat: Make a point of offering it to a more needy traveller on the bus or train for at least part of your journey.
13. Can convenience aids: Hide the TV remote control so you’re forced to get up and change the channels manually, and relegate food processors to the cupboard so you have to whisk, grate, slice and dice everything by hand.
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