Office belly syndrome and exercise

**LMP** · Jul 22nd, 2012, 12:37 AM

I work in an office, although I occasionally move around the site (being IT support) the majority of time in my job involves me being sat at my desk.
Due to me being quite inactive and sat at my desk alot I have 'put on a belly' and I'm not liking it.

I wouldn't say I'm overweight - I would describe my self as skinny apart from my belly and a couple of other areas that have just become 'podgy' due to being sat down alot. I am vegan and to be honest I probably eat the same 5 meals a week.

I was wondering the following:

1.) if any other vegan here works in an office Environment and has the same issue.
2.) if anyone here has a recommended or suggested rota of food/meals that are vegan and aid in getting the right vitamins and not storing fat.
3.) if there are any recommended exercises people can suggest and repetitions etc as I'm new to it all.

Thanks

**CrazyDiamond** · Jul 22nd, 2012, 02:50 AM

Ahh I have the same thing. I put on a lot of weight since starting an office job 1 1/2 years ago. I have started playing sports at lunch time (3 days per week) and I try to get out and be active on the weekends, doing things like hiking, or just walking around as much as possible when doing weekend chores.

I have started trying to limit the 'junk' food I eat during the day also, and just have some in the evening. I also like to start my day with a smoothie for breakfast, as I find this does not make me feel weighed down in the morning. I also bring leftover dinner to work to eat for lunch, or I make myself a salad or sandwich/wrap for lunch at the cafeteria.

**njschmidt** · Jul 22nd, 2012, 07:02 PM

I'm having this same problem. A few months ago I decided that I would start bicycle commuting to work, and I think that helped a little (but not enough). I am really trying to stay away from just going to the gym to get a workout (I would much rather try to work in more healthy activities into my lifestyle, kind of like how I've started cycling more). I still have a lot more to lose, though, so I'm starting to think I need to move farther away from my work place to really make that commute work, haha.

**LMP** · Jul 22nd, 2012, 11:06 PM

I thought I was alone, thank you both for posting. There are some good tips there.

Morning smoothies sounds really nice - I wish I had a smoothie-maker. I'm playing badminton once a week for an hour and I'm going to try walking around the block (I'd rather walk then run due to people watching but don't know really if it would do much exercise-wise).

I do tend to eat alot of bread which I think substituting them with wraps maybe better? (not sure on this).

Cycling is supposed to be one of the best exercises you can do - If only I had a bike.
I agree with the gym thing; I want to do the exercises myself at or around my home but if it comes to it I may just have to buy a membership and go to the gym - at least with the gym and the expense it will encourage me to get fitter.

**Fredron** · Aug 11th, 2012, 11:06 AM

If you feel like you're skinny but still got a belly it sounds like you lack muscles.
Going to the gym and working out is a great part of a healthy lifestyle in my opinion.
There are no special things you have to avoid to lose that belly and some weight but it's important to keep in mind that you have to eat less than your body need otherwise it won't use it's fat reservs. Therefore I would try to eat food that keeps me full for a long time so I eat less in the long run.