Staying healthy in an office job
For exercise, take extra steps in the workplace

Sitting at a desk eight hours a day, five days a week can leave little time for exercise. Therefore, it's no surprise that office workers tend to gain weight, are more prone to weight-related medical conditions and are less productive on the job, according to a careerbuilder.com survey.

Fortunately, there are a few easy ways to fit exercise in and maintain a healthy weight, whether one works from 9 to 5 or mans the graveyard shift.

Even if it's just 10 minutes of exercise at a time, get up and move whenever possible. Here are some ideas:

•Eat lunch at a park a few blocks away and walk there instead of driving.

•Walk to a colleague's desk rather than e-mailing or calling.

•Take the stairs instead of the elevator.

•Include exercise breaks throughout the day, such as walking around the perimeter of the building.

•Bring meals from home. Bringing meals from home can boost dieting efforts, but sometimes it's tough to get excited about brown bagging it.

To add spice to meals from home, try bringing in half of a lunch and then purchase a side salad or cup of soup to accompany it.

And if adding a healthy treat to lunch sounds good, why not extend the treat beyond lunch? For every day that meals are brought in from home, stash $5 in a piggy bank. At the end of the month, buy that special something as a reward.

Finally, take the guesswork out of mealtime. At the beginning of each week, bring in five days' worth of lowcalorie frozen dinners and/or canned soups and store in the company refrigerator. This controls portion sizes and makes it easy when it comes to planning lunches.

•Most night shift workers don't get enough sleep. If work ends in the morning, it may be especially hard to fall back asleep. Lack of sleep has been linked to an increased risk of obesity.

Cut off caffeine five hours before bedtime and take a minimum of 30 minutes to unwind after work before bed.

•Wellness programs. Encourage companies to reimburse for wellness initiatives, such as joining a gym or weight-loss program.

•A study in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine found that companies spend up to 52 percent more on annual healthcare costs on overweight employees than those who maintain a healthy weight.

Another study in the journal showed that people were more likely to lose weight when they were compensated for their weight-loss efforts.

This story provided by North American Precis Syndicate Inc.