Implementing Intermittent 5-minute Walk Breaks

Sometimes we don't notice we have been sitting down for hours at a time either working at our desks or watching Netflix. It is important that we get our 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity guide lined by the CDC (cite) every week. By taking a 5 minute walk every hour during your workday or watch session, you can easily chip away at the CDC guideline while simultaneously feeling better throughout the day (cite 2). According to

  researchers Bergouignan et al., they discovered that "microbursts across the day can reduce fatigue and improve energy level and mood, while maintaining usual cognitive performance." Participants in the study who took 5-minute walk breaks reported higher levels of "vigor" and energy throughout the workday than sedentary participants (Bergouignan et al., 2016). 

In office spaces: Ask to change sit-down desks into activity-permissive workstations

In office work environments, much of the time while there, you're sitting down. Some offices may require you to sit in chairs for hours at a time, with little break time given. On top of that, many people have low motivation to get any kind of physical activity after a long day's work. By implementing "activity-permissive workstations," such as treadmill desks and ergonomic desks, workers are able to adequately reduce their sedentary time and have neutral or positive impacts on health (Neuhaus et al., 2014).

Attend group-based physical activity programs

Being in a space where you feel comfortable, safe, and accepted are the core themes of physical activity adherence. Having an environment where health is heavily promoted by community leaders is likely to increase attendance and adherence of physical activity programs. According to a study by researcherKomatsu et al., they found that "when leaders proclaim their visions, as mentioned above, they become core group values" which help "establish group cohesion" (Komatsu et al., 2020). By creating this type of encouraging environment, people will most likely be physically inclined and, most importantly, stay with that healthy lifestyle.