Are you that person that gets a mid-morning slump at about 10am?  Or do you tend to feel sleepy in the midafternoon?  I have a solution for both types of people and it doesn’t involve a quick run to the local coffee shop (although, some mornings are, I must agree!) or a calorie laden snack, the solution is a wee bit of activity.  You’ll also avoid the embarrassing spit river from a keyboard crash!

Stay with me and accept this challenge.  Put on the big girl/boy pants and try it for 2 weeks, then if you don’t feel that my suggestions help – go back to your old lifestyle.  I’ll ask you to commit to 5-minute increments of each activity.

When the slump comes or you’re feeling like you need a chemical pick me up…try these movements instead.  Here are 10 pick-me-ups that are calorie free from Janelle!  

1.       Do some stairs for 5 minutes.  You don’t need to do them fast, just climb for 5 minutes.  If your knees prefer walking, take a 5-minute walk in your home or at the office.  If you can sneak outside, even better!

2.       Take a walk and fill your water bottle.  If it’s already full, chug it.  Many times, we are dehydrated and have a slump because we lack the fresh water our bodies crave.  Did you know we should b e drinking half our bodies weight in water a day?  Yes, if you’re not there, start somewhere.  Drink water and then go for a short walk.

3.       Can’t leave your post?  Do wall push-ups or desk pushups.  When your arms get tired, do a wall sit for some active rest.  Then a few calf raises and some overhead presses. Alternate those 4 activities for 5 minutes.   

4.       Stand up and stretch!  Raise your arms over your head and elongate your body.  When we sit and assume the desk jockey position, we can deprive our bodies of the oxygen we need.  That’s why a walk can be so refreshing.  Try stretching as well.  Inhale as you bring your arms overhead and stretch and exhale and you bring your arms back to your body.  Do this 5 times with a nice deep inhale and exhale.  Fill in the rest of the 5 minutes with a hamstring, quad or calf stretch.  Anything that you might have learned that can help unkink the body and get the blood and oxygen flowing.  Here’s a 59 second video that has 3 desk stretches for you to try: https://youtu.be/t2NUI7jM4tg  

5.        Stand up and march in place if you’re stuck at your desk or go visit a co-worker or neighbor is you need a change of scenery.  Adding in an extra 250 steps an hour can add up and keep your mind sharp.  Most wearable devices buzz at 10 minutes to the hour if you haven’t moved, so listen to your device and get up for those 250 steps, it can keep you from every getting a slump!

6.      Add in some breathing. Here’s a breathing video https://youtu.be/YFdZXwE6fRE to do some “square breathing”.  It’s a kid’s video, but it makes it simple.  Once you know the technique, you can use any picture in your office or at home, follow the 4 sides of the picture.  Breath in, hold, breath out, hold and repeat.  This can be a great way to focus and calm down.  Once calm and mindful, get up and take a 5-minute activity break.  Come back focused knowing you achieved your activity goal!

7.       Try some of the body weight exercises/home exercises recommended in this video.  https://www.self.com/gallery/bodyweight-exercises-you-can-do-at-home

8.      Bust a move and try  5 minutes of dance video from You-Tube – Twitch and Allison Boss made some fun and easy home workouts for the American Red Cross during covid – Here’s one to try!   https://youtu.be/LjAE_juUvtY

9.      Invite a co-worker to move with you, they can be your accountability buddy and do 5 minutes of activity of each other’s choice 1 time a day.  (That’s 10 minutes right there!)  They can keep you from heading to the vending machine or out for that latte.

10.  Take a 5-minute yoga break and do some office yoga!  https://youtu.be/6fnLKyRJsrs