At the desk

Got an office job?

Sit a lot?

Glued to the screen?

And the keyboard?

How to make that time

Work for us?

Or at least 

Do less harm?

How about standing?

Adjustable desk

Or just

Stack that printer paper

Maybe stand on something?

Wobbly?

Pads?

Balance board?

Got weights near by?

That look at us all day?

Maybe pick them up

Once in a while?

Swing something?

How about

That tennis racquet

Or 2

Something to juggle

At hand?

Balls?

Apples?

Daily

Ping Pong break?

Massage?

Walk?

Hands always in the same position?

How about a different keyboard?

(Who the keyboard is Alice?)

Mouse for the other hand

Trackball

Trackpad

Voice to text

Or voice?

Or video to video?

Or person to person?

Look at the same area?

Same distance?

How to add some variation there?

Where else to look?

Without getting overly antsy

Best overall office strategy is probably

To mix it up

And keep moving

Power shower

Especially if you're busy with modern-day work that you cannot exclusively use to your bodily advantage, the daily shower represents another good way to check in and develop.

Especially if you have room, here are some ideas:

Feel out - anything that needs to be moved? Overly tight? Not as flexible as before? Forgotten for a while?

Personally, I always try to go into 1 deep squat and 1 lightning bolt. To make sure I can (still) get to the range-of-motion limits of my joints, and with that already stretch out much at least once a day.  

Since I've been struggling with balance on my left foot, I've also looked for ways to address that there. Good thing to already be barefoot. Those could range from simply standing on that leg to adding more dynamic movements with the other to eventually doing everything with closed eyes (with safety measures!).

For practicing new(er) movements e.g. with the less developed hand, shower gel obviously reduces friction and thus promotes flow. You could e.g. go through all kinds of patters like figure 8s or zigzag with your palms against the wall.

Drying up with the towel is also another hidden opportunity to stretch, move, get the skin sliding. And to look for and address asymmetries in "towel handling". For example, pulling up with your weak arm may help lead to cross-benefits for throwing or overheads. 

As always optional, if you like to just relax there don't let anyone stress ya :)

The walk

Back in my childhood, I remember sometimes getting tagged along for walks, and then wondering what to actually do.

Even bringing a stick along helped, I would think of something to do with it.

Nowadays, e.g. if I don't have (enough of a) normal workout planned, I'm thinking of ways to utilize a normal walk. 

From simply walking more consciously, i.e. re-assessing, tuning, or even potentially re-learning how to walk: Where does each foot make contact? What angles? How to I roll off? Do I overpronate? Supinate? Lack stability? Are my shoes doing me good?

... to bringing 2 racquets long and going through shadow swings *and* movements (aka matching footwork).

Practicing to slide, especially on the less skilled leg.

Maybe bring 2-3 balls to improve juggling while moving.

Chance for us to go back to being kids and explore what's around us? Balance, jump, climb, run?

Similar to optional downtime, we don't *always* have to think and work, but it would seem that whenever we want to, we can come up with something...

The stair (and handrail)

(SAMPLE POST, STILL IN DRAFT MODE)

Another example and great tool within our daily routine is the stair.

At the very least, we already get free one-legged "squats" out of it.

But we can easily add some variation, ideally based on observations we make about ourselves.

In my case, I found that my left leg was wobbly when taking double steps without handrail support.

In other words, the handrail served as a crutch. And maybe was the root for the weakness?

After taking the ~100 steps / day with left-leg double or triple steps only, for a about week, that almost went away completely.

As a result, I should already enjoy cross-benefits when using that leg / putting weight on it. For example when cycling up a hill or sliding into a leftie forehand on clay. 

For years I thought my left foot was the main culprit for this weakness, and strengthening there would build up the leg again. Though I do notice that the now slightly stronger leg also seems to have downwards benefits towards an overall more stable stance.

Due e.g. to the foot and other previous injuries my whole left leg is still noticeably thinner (i.e. less muscular), so will keep looking for ways to keep evening that out. 

Maybe I'll take twice as many steps, take some weights along, or add in some single-legged squats where possible...

Other ways to utilize the daily stairs could be walking them backwards, sideways, crossover etc. Or adding in a calf raise and/or a stretches.

As always, looking for the weaker side and prioritizing practice accordingly.

The day to day

(SAMPLE POST, STILL IN DRAFT MODE)

By definition, we perform the day-to-day activities at least daily :)

Hence, there's a daily opportunity to practice, and to then apply the new skills.

As part of the "Keep looking" principle, there are plenty of opportunities to develop and find new skills here.

Also keep in out for and and practice what could bring cross-benefits to other activities.

3 ideas for inspiration:

* Brushing teeth with the other hand

* Hold and navigate phone with other hand

* Switching cutlery

You can easily think of and add variation to other activities. Such as cleaning activities like sweeping the floor, which may already limit one-sided overuse and discomfort etc.

Instead, after a short period of discomfort, we may already feel a more even use, acquisition of new motor skills, and more functional flexibility towards the tasks at hand.

 

As always, practice consciously towards clean, smooth movements, sure footing, etc.