Written by Kevin Vitkus
As the holiday season comes and Thanksgiving goes, I find myself sitting at the table again, pants unbuttoned and my gut hanging out of my shirt. Now it’s time to hit the books and prepare for exams, so going to the gym is the last thing on my mind. Let’s get creative and follow some simple exercises that we can all do at our desks whether in class or studying for exams:
- The Hovering Leg Raise: Sit upright, raise both legs, then begin to lower them till they are about an inch or two off the ground. Then begin to hold this position until you can’t anymore and release.
- Seated Leg Raises: Again sit upright, raise one leg until it is parallel with the ground, then hold it for 10 seconds. Repeat with the opposite leg. Complete around 15 repetitions for each leg. To help a little more with strength you can add a little weight. Like Stanley from The Office using boxes of paper at his desk, find something simple like you backpack or some books.
- The Football Fast Feet: While sitting flatten your feet on the floor. Rapidly tap your feet for 30 seconds. Then take a 30 second break, or until everyone looks away. Then go at it again for another 30 seconds. Try to do this once every hour that you are studying or sitting in order to keep your heart rate up.
Now for the hardest of them all, this one is quite difficult and can really only be done when you are out of class. Get up and walk around!! The simplest exercise out of anything you can do. Just stand up and take a little walk around. It doesn’t matter how long or short it is, whether you have to climb anything or what. Just get up and move a bit!
Sometimes you need a break from whatever you may be doing anyway. So next time skip the elevator or possibly take the long way back to your dorm. Just do a little something extra and it can help yourself immensely.
