Working at computers, shelving books or sitting behind a desk do little to improve librarians' fitness levels. You have a few options when considering how to integrate exercise into your life. Try incorporating fitness into your work routine, creating a setting for group exercise or seeking an outside activity that burns calories or builds strength.
Functional Fitness Training
Look for classes in functional fitness training at your local gym or recreation center. These multi-joint, multi-muscle exercises train your body for daily tasks and help you avoid injury. You may do squats and lunges, building your lower-body strength so you can bend at the knees when you pick up heavy books or other items from the floor. You can find a more intense version of functional fitness training in some boot camp workouts. These often incorporate exercise tools such as kettle bells, hand weights and fitness balls.
Building Core Strength
If you spend extended time seated behind a computer or a reference desk, you need to build strength in your core to maintain good posture. Several exercises and workouts target your abdominal muscles. Pilates, including the popular exercise "the hundred," offers many small but intense moves for your core. For a fuller-body workout, ballet, belly dancing and more active styles of yoga can develop your core strength while also raising your heart rate, providing cardiovascular benefits.
Active Breaks
Avoid repetitive stress injuries in your library job by paying attention when your muscles begin to ache or you feel fatigued. Take small breaks throughout the day, and spend your break doing something active. Walk around the library or climb a couple of flights of stairs. If you have been keyboarding, gently rotate your wrists. Stretch your arms overhead to target your upper body, and march or do squats to stretch and strengthen your lower body.
Do a Library Workout
Join the many librarians who are organizing workouts on-site. Invite local experts to share information on weight loss, diet and fitness and to lead an exercise class for library staff and patrons. Some libraries stick to quieter, gentler classes such as restorative yoga, meditation and tai chi, while others try more lively programming such as Zumba and belly dancing.
References
- MayoClinic.com: Functional Fitness Training: Is It Right for You?
- "Women's Health"; Lean and Tall in Minutes; Dimity McDowell; March 2009
- State Compensation Insurance Fund: Ergonomic Breaks, Rest Periods, and Stretches
- Governing.com; Libraries Now Offering Books and Workouts; Jessica B. Mulholland; March 2011
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