Serotonin-Plus Fitness Blog: Strengthen your Abs at Work

 Many of you sit at a desk all day long while at work.  Sitting for long periods of time can make you feel tired and can also make it harder to shed that extra weight.  There are various exercises that you can do while sitting at your desk to keep you energized and to help you tighten your midsection.  These simple moves can be done in any office and in any type of work clothing. 

1. V-Sits: While sitting, scoot your butt to the front of your chair. Then lean back so that your upper back rests lightly on the seat back. Contract abs and lift your right knee up, then place your foot back down on the floor. Repeat with your left leg.  Try doing 3 sets of 10 reps on each side a few times a day.   To increase the difficulty of this move, lift both legs up at the same time while contracting your abs. 

2. Chair Sit-ups: Then, sit up straight on the front edge of your chair, engage abs and lean back again to lean upper back against the chair back. Sit up straight again, using your abs.  Once you get strong enough, pull both legs up during the exercises. Then do the movements together—legs come up, lean your upper back to the chair back, then sit up straight, and legs go back down. Try doing 3 sets of 10-20 sit-ups a few times a day.

3.  Balance Ball:  Replace your desk chair with an exercise ball.  Inflate it to where it’s high enough for you to comfortable type and work. While sitting on the ball, keep your back straight and your shoulders back.  Just sitting still will improve your balance and core strength.  As you get comfortable, you can wiggle side to side on the ball while working to engage your abdominal muscles even more.