Designing websites for a living is great for making money and getting yourself a rewarding career. However, hours sat at a desk building your websites for clients means it’s not so good for keeping fit. A couple of years ago I absolutely ballooned in weight through lack of excercise and proper diet and so I decided enough was enough and took up weight training. I didn’t join a gym or anything expensive like that, instead I bought myself a set of dumbbells and a bench and began working out at home after work.
2 years later and I’m still at it and feel a lot better for it.
With that in mind I thought it might be useful for other web designers to highlight some simple, fun and (quite) inexpensive ways that you too can keep fit and still do what you love to do for a living.
1 .Buy a Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit
Ok so I know I said that we would be looking at inexpensive ways to keep fit, and the £179.99 for a Wii isn’t cheap money, and then you’ve got to pay for Wii Fit on top of that (another £70) but it can be inexpensive if you use it regularly over a long period of time when compared to a monthly gym fee or health club membership.
In addition to weight training I use my Wii and Wii Fit for cardio workouts and let me tell you, if you do about 30 minutes of exercise you will work up quite a sweat (and burn off calories). In addition to the cardio activities Wii Fit also has an excellent selection of Yoga exercises, as well as some games, all designed to get your whole body moving. Nintendo are set to launch a sequel to Wii Fit this winter called Wii Fit plus, which will offer new exercises and activities. You can find out more about Wii Fit here
2 . Go for a run
Right, that’s enough with the expense now, back to simple and effective techniques and nothing can be simpler than going for a run around your local neighbourhood. Running has many benefits for your body including losing weight, giving you healthier lungs, lowering your blood pressure and even better sex (according to scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health). Read more about running here
3 . Get on your bike
Biking is fun and is great for cardio work, so why not cycle to work one day? It will be healthier for you and you won’t be sitting in rush hour traffic. I used to be into cycling in a big way and we’re currently developing a cycle sportive website for a client who is promoting local events in the Staffordshire and Cheshire areas. Read more about cycling and the health benefits
4 . Buy an exercise dvd
So we love to look at screens all day because we’re web developers, that much we know already. Well how about looking at a screen and doing exercises at the same time? Although keep fit DVDs are mostly aimed at women, men can benefit from performing the exercises too. There are many different exercise DVDs available and most of the time you can get them for very little money. Play.com has a large selection take a look; play.com fitness dvd top sellers
5 . Eat sensible food and smaller portions
This is probably the simplest thing to do to help you keep in shape. Just eat less. I used to have 4 slices of bread when making a sandwich. After seeing how large I’d become a couple of years ago I decided to eat my food more slowly and have less of it. I now have just 2 slices of bread and still feel as full. So the next time you make a meal think ‘do I really need to have this much food on my plate?’ Chances are the answer will be no. More information about eating smaller portions can be found here
6 . Take the stairs not the elevator
If you work in a large office building with several floors it’s so easy to just hop in the elevator and push the button. However, that’s not going to help you stay in shape. Taking the stairs regularly can help build up stamina, raise your heart rate and increase blood flow, all good things for burning calories. Check out this article about taking the stairs
7 . Go for a walk with your significant other
My wife and I enjoy going for walks together. This is not a routine or something set in stone, this is just something we do from time to time that we both enjoy. We get fresh air, a chance to talk and be with each other and some exercise all at the same time. Plus, it costs us absolutely nothing.
8 . Weight training (light weights)
As I stated at the beginning of the article I myself weight train 3 times a week. I’m not huge, I’m not looking to bulk up (I started for quite the opposite reasons). Weight training using light weights is a great way to build strength, tone your body and increase your stamina. A set of dumbbells is all you need, which you can pick up for less than £30 at Argos. There are many different exercises you can perform with just a set of dumbbells so your workouts will be varied and interesting.
9 . Swimming
A visit to the local swimming pool after work won’t cost you much at all and will provide you with a great cardio workout. Swimming tones the body strengthens your heart muscles and improves the delivery of oxygen to the different parts of the body. Read more about the benefits swimming provides
10 . Eat more fruit and vegetables
We’ve all heard how we should ‘eat your 5 a day’ when it comes to fruit and vegetables, but more often than not when you’re working on a web design project with a tight deadline you haven’t got the time to prepare fruit and veg, it’s much easier to shove something into the microwave. However, by not eating these foods you’re missing out on essential vitamins your body requires. Next time you’re shopping at the supermarket buy some apples, or bananas or any other fruit you like and take some with you to work. Fruit can be a delicious and healthy alternative to a chocolate bar from the vending machine. Some top tips about eating 5 a day can be found here