Do you find that you move less when the days are shorter?

Sitting for long periods of time has been shown to have several negative health effects, including being overweight and obese, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer, and early death.

That’s scary!

The good news is that research has found that exercising for at least 60 minutes a day can offset the negative effects of sitting too much throughout the day.

If you are anything like me, you probably can’t always find that amount of time to exercise every day. One solution is to change our behaviours and find ways to move more during the day by breaking up long periods of sitting time with shorter bouts of activity.

Top tips

To get started we suggest that you pick one behaviour to change – the one that will have the biggest impact for you and is easiest for you to do. Go for quality not quantity. (When you’ve nailed one you can then add on another).
Then whatever you decide to do to move more write down your commitment and display it somewhere that you and others can see it as that will help to keep you accountable.
Monitor your progress. Keep track of your progress and remember it’s all about progress not perfection.

This week at Behaviour Works we’ve been thinking about simple behaviour changes we can do to get us all out of our chairs, off the couch and generally moving more. Here’s our top 10.

Park further away from your destination or get off public transport a couple of stops earlier.
If you are home-based start the day with a walk (like a pretend commute).
Stand up when you are on the phone. For bonus points walk and talk.
Organise walking meetings. Studies have shown that walking has a beneficial effect on creative thinking.
Drink more water. More bathroom breaks = more movement. Get some bonus points by going to the bathroom on a different floor and taking the stairs.
Eat your lunch outside. Wrap up and head to a nearby park or outdoor space to get some fresh air and get some extra steps in.
Set a reminder to take breaks. Set an alarm on your phone or fitness tracker to remind you to get up and take a break and to stretch every 30 minutes.
Go to the gym or take a fitness class during your lunch break.
Plan to get active when meeting friends. Instead of meeting in a bar or coffee shop arrange to go for a walk or visit a museum.
Regularly tune into how your body feels and stretch when you start to feel stiff.

At Behaviour Works we use our multi award-winning approach based on psychological science to give you the tools to empower yourself so that you can make personalised long-term change happen in your life.

Our ‘Making Change Programme’ is available online and is an easy to follow, step by step personalised process that helps you to make the change you want in your life happen by showing you how to:

Clarify what YOU want to change
Identify YOUR wishes
Focus on what behaviours YOU need to make your wish happen
Prioritise what will have the biggest impact for YOU
Commit to change
Understand where to focus YOUR time and energy
Take achievable actions that are tailored to YOU

So, if you want to move more why not empower yourself with the tools to make change happen. These tools can be reused time and time again whatever life throws at you and whatever you want to change.

Best wishes, Eleanor & Andy

Share your ‘move more’ goals or suggestions in the comments below.

Behaviour Works aim is simple. To help make change happen in your personal, family or working life. Every week we help people across the world with their own change journey with our online training. Check us out at Behaviour Works.

Learn more