Exercise while you work

In the past people used to exercise while doing their daily work or
travelling to
or from work more than they do today. Our habits have changed
dramatically.
Labouring and farming jobs once involved a lot of physical work which
has
now been replaced by machinery. Daily housework was also a fairly
active
occupation. No one would want to go back to the days before labour-
saving
devices such as vacuum cleaners and washing machines, but if we
did, we would
certainly be more active. Cycling or walking to work was also the norm
at one
time, while today we drive even short distances.

Bring exercise into your life

There are many different ways to bring physical exercise into your life.
Gill,
49, takes her dog for a walk in Richmond Park for 40 minutes a day.
‘Walking
doesn’t sound exciting but my tension levels abate. There’s a certain
briskness
in my step and I walk up a hill for extra exercise.’ Judy, 37, goes horse-
riding.
‘It’s the one thing I absolutely always do twice a week regardless of
how busy I
am.’ She’s done it for the past six years and finds it really good for
relaxing her
and switching off her mind. Margi, who is in her 40s, says she both
cycles and walks. She doesn’t have a car and is fitter now than she
has been for years. ‘For
a period of my life I was really tired. Before I’d look at a hill and think,
oh no!
I would never exercise as I thought it was too much effort. But once I
started I
could do it easily.’

Try these ways to bring exercise into your daily life:

• Jog to the shops.
• Walk upstairs rather than taking a lift.
• Park some distance from the office and walk.
• Cycle to work.
• Go out dancing.
• Gardening.

Studies have found that regular exercise helps to improve your energy
and
significantly lower levels of anger, depression and tension.6 Regular
exercise
throughout your life can also help to prevent osteoporosis.7
In addition, exercise has been proved to decrease the risk of heart
disease. In
1980 a questionnaire evaluated the daily physical activity of 17,944
middle-aged
British civil servants. Eight years later a follow-up survey was taken. It
was
found that the incidence of heart disease was 50% less in those who
had a more active lifestyle.