If you work at a desk, you might sit for eight hours or more on a workday, then sit again to travel home and to relax. Australia's physical activity guidelines don't just say "be active": they also say to minimise the time you spend sitting and to break up long periods of sitting as often as you can.
Safe Work Australia now treats long periods of sedentary work as a work health and safety issue. The good news is that the fix doesn't need a gym, a change of clothes or a lot of time.
Why breaking up sitting matters
Exercising before or after work is valuable, but it doesn't fully cancel out sitting still for hours at a stretch. Getting up and moving regularly through the day is a separate habit, and it's one of the easiest to build.
Many people also find regular movement breaks help with the stiffness that builds up in the neck, shoulders, back and hips over a long day at a screen.
Two kinds of break
Micro-breaks (1 to 2 minutes, every hour or so). Stand up, walk to fill your water bottle, take a phone call standing, or do one quick move from the list below.
Movement sessions (about 10 minutes, once or twice a day). A short routine that moves every major joint and gently works the big muscles. Mid-morning and mid-afternoon suit most people.
A 10-minute routine you can do in work clothes
Do each move for about a minute, at an easy, comfortable pace. You shouldn't get sweaty.
- March on the spot with an easy arm swing (1 minute)
- Sit-to-stand from your chair, slowly, arms crossed if you can (1 minute)
- Shoulder rolls forwards then backwards (1 minute)
- Desk push-ups: hands on the edge of a sturdy desk, body straight, lower your chest towards it (1 minute)
- Standing hip circles with hands on hips (1 minute)
- Calf raises holding the back of your chair (1 minute)
- Chest opener: hands clasped behind you, gently lift and open the chest (30 seconds)
- Seated twist: sit tall, turn gently to each side (1 minute)
- Hamstring stretch: heel on the floor in front, hinge forward from the hips (30 seconds each side)
- Neck stretch: ear towards shoulder, gently, each side (1 minute)
- Walk: a lap of the office or the stairs to finish (1 minute)
Quick moves for the hourly micro-break
Pick one:
- 10 slow sit-to-stands
- 20 calf raises
- 10 desk push-ups
- 5 shoulder rolls each way, then a chest opener
- a walk to the furthest bathroom or kitchen
How to make it stick
- Put it in your calendar. A recurring 10-minute event mid-morning and mid-afternoon is far more likely to happen than "when I remember".
- Anchor it to something you already do, like the first coffee or the end of a meeting.
- Stand for phone and video calls where you can.
- Do it with a colleague. It's easier to keep going, and less awkward, when someone else is doing it too.
- Expect to miss some. One break is better than none. Pick it back up at the next one.
For workplaces
Small changes from an employer make these habits much easier: permission to take short breaks, a quiet corner to move in, standing meeting options and leaders who take breaks themselves.
Train90 at Work gives every staff member a 13-week program (about 90 days) of two 10-minute movement sessions a day, delivered straight to their work calendar, with optional hourly two-minute prompts. Employers see team-level figures only, never individual health information. Find out more about Train90 at Work.