Exercise is one of the most effective ways to get and stay healthy, but many lifestyles make finding time to exercise difficult. For people whose jobs require them to sit at desks all day or students who spend the day sitting in classes, it can be difficult to find the time to exercise. To make matters worse, after a long day at work or school, many people feel deenergized and prefer to relax on the couch to unwind rather than hit the gym.

If you have a job that requires you to spend many hours at a desk, you should try to stand up for at least five minutes each hour. You could make a system, for example, in which every hour on the hour, you stand up and pace around for a few minutes before sitting back down. You could also try out a standing desk, which allows you to do work while standing up. According to the American Grandparents Association, sitting down too much “can raise your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and lower your life expectancy by years." By working in minutes of standing into your everyday routine, you can stay healthy and avoid some of these negative consequences. Luckily, something as simple as standing up should not be too hard for most people.

One of the simplest and most important ways to exercise is walking. If there is somewhere in your daily routine that you could walk to but haven’t been, start walking! Walking does not make you physically exhausted in the way that intense aerobics and cardio do, but it gets your muscles moving and helps you stay active. If you can find a way to spend at least 30 minutes per day walking, that will go a long way to helping you stay healthy.

Of course, to stay fit and healthy, you will need to incorporate more intense exercise into your routine. It is recommended that people complete at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day, and there are a variety of ways that you can satisfy this. You could go on a morning jog, join a gym, or swim laps in a pool, among other things. You will probably find that once you get into the habit of exercising, you won’t dread going as much as you did before you started. The key is to be consistent and really make exercise a part of your life. Thirty minutes is also not an especially long time to work out. To really experience more health benefits, you should exercise closer to an hour a day. If this seems like a lot, you can start out with 30 minutes and try to work your way up.

One last tip is to find a physical activity that you enjoy. If running isn’t your thing, try biking or swimming. If you find an activity that you actually like doing, there is a much higher chance that you will make the time in your schedule to go and do it. The health benefits of exercise are undeniable, and if it is not already a part of your daily routine, find a way to work it in! Your body will thank you in the long run.

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/ss/slideshow-7-most-effective-exercises

http://www.grandparents.com/health-and-wellbeing/health/health-hazards-of-sitting

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/expert-answers/exercise/faq-20057916