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11 Easy Exercises You Can Do at Work

No time to exercise because you’re too busy at work? That’s no excuse at all. The problem is simply how we think about our bodies—we’re one person at work, another at home, another at the gym, etc. In fact, we tend to compartmentalize our identity and thus our day by functions, but if you get into the the habit of combining functions, you can get a lot more done. Take exercise. There are lots of ways to combine small but targeted exercise at work with actually doing work that can make a big impact on both your physical and mental health. Short bouts of aerobics, strength exercises, and stretching can help improve your fitness levels and heart health. And studies have shown that even a short break of physical activity can improve your concentration and performance.

The trick is knowing which exercises you can do “on the sly” in your office. Of course, there are some people who aren’t embarrassed at all to break into jumping jacks in the hallway. And there’s also lunchtime when you could go for a brisk walk or climb stairs. But if you’re looking for something a bit more, well, modest, here are 11 ways you can actually exercise at work on a busy day without anybody even raising an eyebrow!

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Why Tension is The Missing Ingredient for Maximum Gains

Getting stronger seems simple: pick up something heavy, put it down, add weight, and then pick it up again.

But there’s a lot more that goes into it than that.

Developing maximum strength and muscle is as much of an art as it is a science.

Part of that is initiating a proper setup and maintaining good form, but one of the most overlooked and forgotten aspects of this iscreating and maintaining tension.

What Exactly is Tension?

While there’s a lot that goes into building muscle and getting stronger, tension is the driving force behind everything.

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The Men’s Fitness Industry Is Missing Out on the Body-Positivity Movement. And It Sucks

It’s hard to argue men can ever experience more difficulty than women, but let’s talk a little bit about male empowerment. There’s something lacking in men’s fitness writing: insecurity. Women’s content seems to have it in spades, but believe me, that’s a good thing. Finding self-love through weightlifting is something I just never hear male trainers discuss.

I’m not saying that female fitness writers are insecure, at least, not more than anyone else. What I’m saying is that when they write, they connect with their audience by recognizing their vulnerabilities, fears, and shortcomings. The most popular women’s blogs acknowledge insecurity; they commune with it; and they frame strength training not as a way to find validation, or perfection, or a body worth loving, but instead as a way to honor and love their bodies. And finding self-love through weightlifting is something I just never hear male trainers discuss.

This is the kind of stuff I’m talking about:

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A Sneaky Full-Body Workout That’s a Lot Harder Than It Looks

Ever see a full-body workout on paper and think, “Hey, that doesn’t look that hard … ”

Well, famous last words, my friends.

I swear, sometimes when it comes to workouts, the more simple the WOD looks, the more challenging it is. I certainly know that’s the case with this full-body workout I recently did at The Fit Pit. I mean, none of the rep counts are that high. The row is just 200 meters each time you do it, and there are just three rounds of the circuit.

Again, famous last words.

This whole thing took me just over 20 minutes and I was SWEATING. Believe me, the meters on the rower really add up quickly — as do all of those pull-ups, kettlebell swings and burpees!

 

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A Shoulder-Opening Sequence For Cooling Down After Your Toughest Workouts

Todd McCullough (TMAC) is the founder of TMAC FITNESS. TMAC FITNESS’s mission is to assist in creating a culture that is conscious of the body and the world in which we live. Check out his mindbodygreen class, Total Body Workout: How to Strengthen Your Core, Tone Your Arms & Improve Your Flexibility.

Working out hard is important, but cooling down and recovering is equally important. Here, I show you how to do bridge pose and full wheel correctly because you need to take good care of your back and shoulders.

Check out my core cool down routine below.

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Swim-Based Endurance for All Athletes

The swimming workouts are designed for those whose swimming skills are bringing the rest of their game down. If you’re a CrossFitter or triathlete, it’s no longer acceptable if your swimming isn’t up to par.

Swimming can also be used to condition all the systems of the body for endurance without beating it up the way some other modes of exercise can.

Note: Distances are in yards.

 

Week 1…

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The Two Simplest (And Most Effective) Nutrition Tools You’ve Forgotten

A few years ago when I was working toward getting a little leaner, I started tracking my calories and macronutrients. I allotted myself a daily amount of the three macronutrients—protein, carbohydrate, and fat—and I did everything in my power to consume that exact amount every day. In order to do this, I was measuring and logging every morsel of food I consumed, using a food tracking app on my phone.

It took a lot of work, and I erroneously believed that anything so involved surely had to be effective. At first, it was new and interesting, but any excitement I had about tracking and logging foods wore off after about a week. Soon, I saw it for exactly what it was: nothing more than a huge hassle.

I was spending a ridiculous amount of time each day hunched over my phone, trying to figure out what I could eat that would fit those numbers, and then meticulously planning meals around those foods and numbers.

In fact, my thoughts revolved about foods and numbers practically all day, every day.

Tracking foods quickly exacerbated my already-problematic scarcity mindset around food. I panicked as I watched my “allowed” daily caloric intake decrease with every food that I added into my app. I lived in a perpetual state of worry that I would still be hungry but not be able to have any more food that day because an electronic program said so. Seeing which foods I could “fit” into my daily macros was like playing a bizarre game of Tetris; one that I could never seem to win.

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5 Ways Yoga Helps with Anxiety

“If you want to conquer the anxiety of life…live in the moment; live in the breath.” – Amit Ray

One out of four Americans will experience an anxiety disorder at some point during their lives.  Such disorders are sometimes accompanied by panic attacks – intense feelings of panic that often come out of nowhere.  Panic attacks can include a pounding heart, sudden sweating, dizziness, and shallow breathing.  Living with anxiety and panic attacks is difficult, but there are a variety of techniques that can help to ease symptoms.  Yoga is an excellent way to reduce anxiety (and stress).  Here are five ways that yoga helps with anxiety.

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Bigger Forearms, Stronger Grip: 7 Exercises You Need to Be Doing

As I’ve progressed in my training over the years, almost every part of my body has grown bigger: shoulders, chest, traps, biceps…you get the point.

Except for my forearms.

Several years into training, they were barely larger than when I first started out, and this, of course, could not stand. In my quest to build the ultimate, well-proportioned physique, I vowed to unlock the secrets of forearm training, whatever it took. 

And I succeeded (after a lot of research and self-experimentation). Let’s start at the beginning.

The Human Forearm Does More Than I Ever Realized

Your forearms contain at least twenty different muscles, which get used in pretty much every motion you could possibly perform with your arms.

First off, you’ve got your digit flexors and extensors.

These, along with your hand muscles, cause your fingers to clench and unclench……

 

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