Many of us designers find ourselves spending hours and hours in front of a computer monitor every day. This immobility has left many designers with the “Designer 15″ (or more, depending on how many energy drinks we consumed finishing that last project).

Although I am currently working in my first studio job, I have worked in an office before, and along the way have learned a few things about staying in shape (or, even better, getting in shape!) while sitting behind the desk.

1. Don’t sit on a chair. One of the few transitions I have yet to make in my current position, but one that helped me exponentially in my last job was to get rid of my chair. You can literally spend hundreds of dollars buying the most ergonomically perfect chair to lounge in while you work. However, I found that using an exercise ball was not only comfortable, but helped me strengthen my core and my abs. This is key for helping keep off that belly weight.
2. Drink water, and lots of it. This is one of those “everybody knows it but nobody does it” type of things. There are so many arguments for why you should drink water, but one of the ones I’ve held to for a long time now is that when I drink water, I don’t drink anything else. Water is one of the few drinks that has zero calories, unlike coffee, pop, or my favourite Chai Lattes. This means that throughout the day I can actually eat more, rather than wasting calories on a drink.
3. Do the chores. One of my responsibilities at my current position at Images is building maintenance. I must make sure that vacuuming and sweeping gets done, recycling and garbage gets taken out, and taking care of other small jobs that break up my day. These responsibilities keep me from staying at my desk all day, which means I’m up and walking around. Our studio happens to have 2 flights of stairs, with my desk on the third floor, which means that any maintenance I do takes me up and down those steps. I try to run the stairs rather than walk, as it gives me a bit of a mini-workout climbing up and down two flights of stairs every time.
4. Bring a lunch. One of the easiest things to do in the world of design (or any office-related profession) is to use lunch as a time to escape your desk and get out into the real world. This generally means going out for lunch (which is hard to say no to when the boss is paying). I have found that packing a lunch helps me to better plan ahead, rather than allow my hungry stomach choose something from the menu. Remember, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
5. Treat yourself. While all of these “rules” are great, it’s always nice to treat yourself as well. Generally once a week I will go for a Starbucks or something to basically say “well done, self.” The only thing I can suggest for this type of thing is that you do not let it “just happen.” Again, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Make sure you plan which day you’re going to treat yourself a few days in advance, and what you’re going to treat yourself with. I know for me, finishing a big project or getting that design approval that was tougher than expected is a good time to treat myself, as long as I’ve made that decision in advance. Otherwise, you will begin to treat yourself for simply making it to work that day.
6. Ask for help. In a span of about 3 months, I was able to lose 30 lb. Currently, I am starting back up again to lose another thirty. However, before people start saying “way to go, Pat. You’re awesome!” know that I did not do it on my own. First, I hired a personal trainer to help provide excellent guidance and encouragement for my exercise goals. I have gone from rarely being active to actively choosing to go for a run. Second, my girlfriend is pretty much a nutritional expert. She has helped me learn what types of foods to avoid, which to enjoy, and also learn the discipline of spacing out smaller meals throughout the day. If you don’t have these personal resources, take some time while eating your packed lunch to browse the internet for helpful resources. Day One Fitness is a website that for 99 cents provides 30 minute sessions which you can do at home or anywhere your laptop can go. Traineo, an online fitness community, provides the opportunity for free to connect with people of all levels of experience and knowledge to find answers to many of your fitness related questions. You can even check out my profile to see how I’m doing and connect with me!

This is not an exhaustive list, however I hope it is helpful for finding the healthy balance in the way you work. I honestly believe that the healthier you are, the more creative and more productive you are going to be.

Do you have any additional tips to share? Feel free to share them below!