Staying active while working on your computer

Computer-based work often involves long periods of sitting in the same spot, which can lead to sprain and strain injuries, obesity and chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

There’s even an increased risk of dying prematurely for people who sit for more than 11 hours a day - this includes sitting on the bus, train, or in your car getting to and from work or on the couch when you get home!

Exercising before or after work doesn’t protect you from these health risks if you spend most of your day sitting.

A healthy workplace encourages people to move more and sit less.

Redesign your office to encourage movement.

You could include sit/stand options for computer work and meetings.

Locate photocopiers, printers and bins in a central place.

Or why not redesign the office to include end of trip facilities to encourage active commuting.

Once you’ve redesigned, it’s important to educate and create a healthy culture. Encourage workers to create a routine that schedules movement throughout the day, changing sitting posture every 30 minutes.

Moving regularly will help reduce risks associated with sitting for long periods of time.

Provide workers with earphones to walk and talk.

Encourage workers to eat healthy lunches away from their desk and provide physical exercise options at the workplace.

Talk with your workers to get their ideas, and don’t forget to keep active when you’re working from home.

Now you know how to stay active, make sure you know how to set up your workstation and select and use your chair.

For more info visit worksafe.qld.gov.au and look out for more videos in this series.