Exercise Snacking: 3 Simple Short-Burst Exercises to Do Daily In Minutes (Plus 4 Things Not To Do) by Brooks Rehabilitation

The average adult spends over nine hours in some form of sedentary habit every day, leading to a rise in back pain, reduced mobility and low blood sugar. “Exercise snacking” is the newest trend in wellness, where just 30 seconds to four minutes of short bursts of movement can help support overall health with the need of the gym.

Living a slow or sedentary lifestyle can have serious negative effects on your spine, cardiovascular health and mobility. But new research has found that 30 seconds to four minutes of exercise spread throughout the day called “exercise snacking,” can help support overall health without going to the gym.

To help keep people start "snacking" during the day, Mallory Behenna, an orthopedic physical therapist at Brooks Rehabilitation, shares three key exercises that people can do daily to reduce their risk of postural issues and support heart health. Mallory also warns of four daily activities that can land you in physical therapy.

Easy Exercise Snacks You Can Do Every Day

1. Plank

While many consider planks an ab exercise, doing a plank each day offers immense benefits to your overall health, mobility and posture. "Planks work your core stability and endurance, which helps with overall balance and stability as well as protecting your spine,” said Mallory.

How to do it: Get into a push-up position, with your body in a straight line from head to toe. Don’t let the hips come up too high or sag down too far. Aim to stay in position for 60 seconds and then set longer goals over time.

2. Step Ups

People tend to use one leg more than the other when performing daily activities, like going up a flight of stairs, resulting in unbalanced leg strength. Mallory recommends working the legs individually each day to avoid mobility problems later down the line from a weaker leg.

How to do it: Using the bottom of a staircase or a sturdy stepstool (4 to 8 inches tall), step up onto one leg. Use hand supports on a railing/counter if you feel imbalanced. Slowly lower yourself back down, then step back up. Repeat 10 to 15 times for three sets on each leg. To make this movement more challenging, you can bring your knee toward your chest as you step up.

3. Hamstring and Calf Stretches

“When the hamstrings are tight, they can pull on the pelvis, causing more stress on the lower back when standing, which can lead to back pain over time,” said Mallory. “When the [calf] muscles are tight, it can cause foot and knee pain or limited mobility, as well as affect overall balance and stability.”

How to do it: To stretch your hamstring, sit on a chair with your knee straight and lean forward until you feel a stretch on the back of the thigh. To stretch your calf, stand facing a wall with both hands on the wall. Step one foot back into a small lunge. Keeping the heel of the back foot on the ground, lean forward until you feel a stretch in the calf of the back leg.

Harmful Daily Habits You Need to Stop Doing

1. Doomscrolling

The average American adult spends roughly nine hours and 20 minutes in front of a screen every day, and this vast amount of screen time has resulted in growing cases of “tech neck” or “text neck,” referring to neck pain due to repetitive strain and improper positioning. Mallory warns that spending too much time hunched over your phone or computer has long-term effects on the spine, nerves and muscles.

“Rounded shoulders can cause and increase neck pain because the muscles that control the shoulder blade are not able to activate in this position,” said Mallory. “This causes the muscles on the top of the shoulder blades going into the neck to have to work harder to hold the arms in place, leading to tightness, limited range of motion, neck pain and headaches.”

2. Carrying Heavy Purses

Time to clean out that purse! Mallory says that carrying heavy purses, bags or briefcases on one side can be detrimental to your posture.

“Holding a very heavy weight on just one side can be beneficial when done correctly; we even use it as an exercise. However, it can also be detrimental if you cannot maintain a neutral position against the weight,” said Mallory. “This puts more stress on the neck, shoulders, thoracolumbar spine and core muscles, which can cause or exacerbate pain.”

3. Sleeping on Your Stomach

“I actually love sleeping on my stomach; it is by far my most comfortable position,” said Mallory. “But sleeping on the stomach puts the neck at the end-range of rotation and holds it there for hours, causing more strain on the muscles, joints and discs in the neck. It can also potentially affect blood flow depending on the range of motion held.”

Despite being an occasional stomach-sleeper, Mallory says that it is much safer to sleep on your side or back with pillows supporting the neck in a neutral position.

4. Using the Wrong Size Keyboard

Two-thirds of employed Americans use a keyboard for their job, and using a wrongly sized keyboard can mean long-term health issues, such as carpal tunnel, repetitive strain injury and even spinal dysfunction.

If it’s too wide, it can cause your posture to be off-center and cause strain, which is commonly seen in people using large gaming keyboards. On the other hand, if it’s too small, this can cause shoulder and chest strain. To avoid this, adopt an ergonomic office setup that supports your frame and size.

Note: The content on 30Seconds.com is for informational and entertainment purposes only, and should not be considered medical advice. The information on this site should not be used to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease, and is not a substitute for professional care. Always consult your personal healthcare provider. The opinions or views expressed on 30Seconds.com do not necessarily represent those of 30Seconds or any of its employees, corporate partners or affiliates.

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