Is Working Out on the Job Enough?

If you have an active job, don’t count work time as workout time

Don’t count on your job or your daily chores to improve your fitness level. Being active at work, doing housework and following an exercise program all burn calories, but that’s where the similarities end.

To affect your fitness level and weight, it’s necessary to increase your body temperature, blood circulation, breathing and heart rate for a sustained length of time. Your daily tasks at home or work likely won’t achieve this. While performing activities like housework, you may not be conscious of proper lifting technique, muscular imbalances or remembering to warm up before lifting something heavy.

Taking the time to exercise will get you in the right mental space to focus on form and stretching, so that you reap the benefits of exercise and avoid injury.

Exercise can also be a stress reliever, helping to take your mind off other problems. Consider it an opportunity to socialize with family and friends to make it enjoyable.

As you work toward a health or fitness goal you’ll notice a boost of confidence and self-esteem as hormones in your brain encourage physical fitness.

The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology recommends 150 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity per week.