Did you giggle at the term "Blogger Butt" because you know exactly what I'm talking about? You recognize parts of yourself in the Top 10 Signs You Have Blogger Butt. Like me, you work online and are sitting almost all day which is okay for working your brain muscles but not optimal for working your physical muscles which is important because creating more muscle mass kicks your metabolism into higher gear. But not to worry, here are seven beneficial ways to keep your tooshie from too much Cookies & Spam:
- Ideally, stop eating at your computer. When you nosh while at your screen, it's very easy to get lost in mindless eating and before you know it, you've eaten a whole bag of chips or cookies. If you're hungry, eat at your kitchen table or go to a restaurant. As for drinking, stick to lower calorie and lower sugar drinks like water, tea or coffee.It's easy to drink 700 calories in a day. Ideally, you'd say bye-bye to the caffeine, but hey I'm realistic, the web would not exist without caffeine. It is best to limit caffeine consumption though.
- If you must nibble at your laptop because you're blogging in a cafe and have to buy something to earn your seat, consciously order foods that are high in vegetables, protein, or fruit. I go to one specific cafe to blog because they serve Dolmas which is a fabulous healthy snack. If you get a hot drink, order drinks with as little milk as possible to help cut down calories and fat. And yeah, those brownies and peanut butter cookies look deelish too, but they will pack on the calories. To satisfy a sweet tooth, see if the cafe has any small chocolates.
- Every hour, get out of your seat and move for at least 5 minutes. Do something to get your blood flowing like jumping jacks, climb some steps, do some push-ups, walk around, or even dance like Ellen. Not only are you burning some calories, you are giving your eyes and wrist a break.
- Instead of creating online personas that are "Fit and Fun," go outside into the real world and actually create a life that is Fit and Fun. An active looking avatar is nice but not as cool as a real active you. And while we're at it, stop photoshopping your face onto the bodies of fitness models or celebrities. You can have a fit body too if you go create one. Not only will you become more active, you will be more social in the physical world, you'll have new sources for blog posts, make new friends, and can find new readers for your blog(s).
- You know all those mp3 playlists you've created to listen to while working at your computer. Download those playlists to your iPod and take them for a walk, a spin on the bike, or on a trip on an elliptical. Take your mp3s on a workout with you to banish the blogger butt.
- If commenters from hell are pissing you off and raising your stress levels, before responding in like hostility or eating a whole box of creme filled cookies to stuff your hurt, take your frustrations out in a kickboxing class, a bike ride, or a hard run. When my stress is high I'll go run hard until I've run all the pissed off energy out of Dodge because then at least I feel like I'm converting my angry energy into something positive for my body. If your gym has a punching bag, it's better to go hit that than to hit the publish button with a venomous or anger-spirited reply comment.
- Instead of spending all your time sitting with friends in blog comments, forums, Twitter, Facebook, or FriendFeed, why not meet up with the local ones in person, you know, like how people used to socialize in the old days before the Internet. And even better, especially if you're a fit blogger, why not arrange a meet up with your readers or fellow bloggers and go for a walk or run, yoga class, or swap healthy recipes. [um, hello Steph]
Got any other tips for banishing the blogger butt? Would love to hear what you do!
[This post is part of the ProBlogger Group Writing Project: "Killer Titles"]
