Office Exercise Challenge – Yahoo! India News

Meghan Casserly, Forbes.com

Flat abs, slender thighs and toned upper arms. That’s the goal.

For now, they’re still the problem–areas we struggle to eradicate, minimize or disguise through endless exercises, skintight slimmers or, worse, unflattering clothes.

In Pictures: Amazing Workout You Can Do In Your Office

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But if only minutes a day could make an actual difference in toning and shaping these zones, would you give it a try?

ForbesWoman enlisted the help of celebrity trainer Bob Harper of NBC’s The Biggest Loser, now shooting its eighth season in Washington, D.C., for a toning challenge. We gave him our problem areas, and he reciprocated with exercises that target our butts, arms and bellies.

In Pictures: Amazing Workout You Can Do In Your Office

Oh, one more thing. We’re not leaving the office. After all, it’s where we spend the majority of our day. This way, we can squeeze in a workout in between deadlines and meetings in the familiarity of our offices or carpeted cubby-holes.

“I always get the question of when I should work out,” says Harper, and his much-repeated response is that the perfect time is anytime you can fit some exercise into your schedule. Sure, there are some benefits to increasing your heart rate in the morning hours, he says, including a raised metabolism. “With the right nutrition, you will be a fat-burning machine throughout the day.”

But if afternoon office fatigue is better fought off with a few toning exercises (rather than a candy bar), that’s equally important. And, if mid-day toning is used in conjunction with a regular cardio routine, the combination can really kick problem areas to the curb. Harper defines toning exercises as body-specific, weight-bearing routines that build lean muscle, often using no equipment and only your own body weight as resistance.

At least three of us on the ForbesWoman team have promised Harper five minutes of our precious and busy days to toning up and slimming down. He promised us a burn.

Target Area: Hips and Thighs

With your back up against a wall and your legs shoulder-width apart, sink your legs down into a 90-degree angle, shoulders back on the wall. Hold this position for 30 seconds while imagining that you have a ball between your legs–squeeze the air out of that ball–and release. If you can’t make it to 30, hold for 10 seconds and rest for five, alternating for one minute. Return to start position and repeat five times. You will feel a great burn in your lower body and core.

Target Area: Arms and Shoulders

Try doing push-ups on the side of your desk. With your hands a little wider than shoulder width and elbows in bent position, sink your body down to the corner of your desk until your chest touches. Harper says: “Try doing a crazy amount like 20! 50! 100!”

Target Area: Abs

Use a physio (yoga) ball in your office in place of your chair, and you will be doing ab work all day long. Sitting on a ball forces you to engage your abs for as long as you are in that position. If you don’t have access to a ball, just get yourself down on the floor and commit to doing a certain number of regular ab crunches before you leave at the end of the day (and you don’t need to do them all at one time). This goal will keep you motivated throughout the day to get ab crunches off of your “to do” list.

If your legs aren’t quaking after five minutes of wall-sits, you’re in far better shape than most. But with results in mind, take Harper’s advice and spend each morning between 11:00 and 11:05 wall-sitting across from your desk. (Note to self: Add to Outlook Calendar). The challenge is to make these simple exercises a part of your day at the office.

We’ll update you with our results. Are you up to the challenge? Willing to share your experience and any in-office fitness tips? Click the ForbesWoman forum and join the conversation.

In Pictures: Amazing Workout You Can Do In Your Office

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Meghan Casserly, Forbes.com

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