Physical Exercise for Middle-aged Sedentary Workers

Middle-aged persons whose type of job is sedentary - one that demands the use of brains, not muscles - undoubtedly suffer from lack of exercise. At the stroke of 5:00 PM, office workers feel they have done their day's work. They feel tired, although of course that feeling is not the result of their having used their muscles. Rather, they have spent their nervous energy and the feeling of weariness or exhaustion takes away from them any desire to exercise when working hours end.

Office workers are not singled out here. Even those working in factories often merely push buttons instead of making use of their muscles. Most housewives, too, perform much of their work with the use of machine. The modern way and the ever-advancing technology place such a stress on doing things the easy way. The lack of exercise makes it necessary for sedentary workers to find other ways of keeping active and staying fit.

Most people whose work does not entail considerable physical exertion are fully aware that they would enjoy better health if they exercised more. But with the five-day work week, they plan for this only on weekends. And while this plan may deserve some praise, it has a couple of drawbacks that should be emphasized here. First, physical activity on two days out of the seven-day week is not sufficient to maintain the muscles' good trim. In the same way that it takes three meals each day for sustenance, it takes daily physical activity to meet the body's requirement for exercise.

The other disadvantage is that a person who has not had considerable physical activity the entire week may go beyond his personal limitations by overdoing his exercise. As he is hardly in excellent physical condition, the fatigue brought about by his weekend physical exertion persists for the next couple of days or so. This decreases his normal efficiency and diminishes his zeal for more exercise.

The recommended minimum time for exercise for middle-aged persons should be eight to ten hours per week, and should be at least an hour each day. This should make them stay in suitable physical condition, such that they are able to put up with longer periods of exercise on weekends.

Doing daily exercise in small measures is preferable. For example, do some walking in each of the three main parts of the day - morning, midday, and afternoon. Office workers can choose to walk at least partly to work and partway home. At midday, they can select a place ten minutes' walk from where they work to have their lunch.

In measuring the amount of exercise needed, the effects of the exercise on the body should be considered. Middle-aged persons, especially sedentary workers, should keep up daily exercise for a period long enough to bring on a healthy fatigue. Mild exhaustion in strength and endurance after exercise promotes sound sleep and therefore renews one's energies for the next day. [Read the Original Article]