How To Avoid Leg Fatigue From Standing

Q: I have to stand all day at work for 13 hour shifts.  Are there any simple exercises or stretches I can do just to keep myself in shape?  I’m so tired by the time I get home that I don’t have the energy to work out!

A: Although it may seem effortless, standing all day requires strength and stamina – which is why leg fatigue and back aches are very common for people employed in such occupations.  Retail, food service, construction, landscape, education, and medicine are just a few of the major employment sectors that involve standing for long periods of time during the workday.  Fortunately, there are several things you can do to improve your strength and reduce that end-of-day fatigue.

Focus on Strengthening Your Legs First

Exercise has the wonderful ability to increase both your energy levels and the flow of oxygen and nutrients throughout your body.  If you are consistently working out (at least 3 times per week), then you are already helping to strengthen and energize your body for your strenuous job.  If whole exercise sessions are difficult to work into your schedule, then try to incorporate just 10-15 minutes of strengthening exercises each day.  Four 15-minute segments in a week equals two half-hour sessions – which is plenty of time to achieve strength gains, especially if you’re new to exercise.

During your workouts, focus on lower body strengtheners such as lunges, squats, romanian deadlifts, leg curls, leg extensions, calf raises, wall sits, hip bridges, etc.  Lunges and squats, in particular, are two of the best lower body exercises in the book.  They strengthen and tone everything below the waist!

(Unfortunately I don’t have any pictures of these exercises to post.  Eventually I’ll be able to post examples, but until then, check out the exercise library at NASMPro for animated illustrations).

Then Strengthen Your Core

Core strength is THE most important aspect of fitness, yet it is often the weakest link in a person’s muscular structure.  Most sedentary adults are chained to a desk 5 days a week, where core strength and postural awareness get overshadowed by looming deadlines and a high-stress environment.  Having a strong core will not only allow you to function better (both at your desk and away from it), it will help prevent back and leg pain as you get older and less active.  This is especially true if your job requires you to be on your feet all day!

The best core strength exercises to include in your routine are: planks (front and side), crunches, back extensions, and hip bridges.  If you are especially prone to back aches, then I recommend including all four in your routine.  Again, click on the link above for some pictures and descriptions.  I’ll update as soon as I can with actual demonstrations.

Stretch It Out

Incorporating the above exercises into your program will increase your muscle strength and improve your energy, guaranteed.  But if you don’t stretch those muscles afterwards, you could do more damage in the long run.  For example, if you were to perform all four core exercises listed above without ever stretching your back… you’d end up with extremely tight lower back muscles and more lower back pain than you started with.  A tight back would cause the pelvis to tilt forward, the hip flexors to shorten, and the back to sway out.  This is an extremely unnatural position – so you can imagine how your body would feel after standing that way for 13 hours!

A great lower back stretch is to kneel on the floor and sit back on your heels.  Then lean your upper body forward towards the floor, stretching your arms out on the floor in front of you.  Oppositely, you can stretch your abdominals by bending backwards over an exercise/stability ball and letting your arms fall above your head.  Just lean back as far as is comfortable for you.  You’ll want to hold every stretch for 20 to 30 seconds without bouncing.

For your legs, try lying on your back with the left foot on the floor, knee bent.  Extend the right foot up towards the ceiling, keeping the leg fairly straight.  Grab just below the right knee and hold your leg vertically, feeling the back of your leg stretch out.  This is called a hamstring stretch.  Again, hold for 20-30 seconds.

Thirteen hours is a long time to be on your feet, but with the stretching and strengthening outlined above you should see an improvement in both your energy levels and leg strength within a couple weeks.  Just fit the exercises in where you can – don’t worry about trying to squeeze in an hour at the gym after you’ve worked so many!  Fifteen minutes here and there is enough to get you started and seeing results.

Of course, comfortable shoes help too!  Look for soles with sufficient cushioning and arch support.  Your job is important, but you should be your number one priority.  Take care of your body and the rest of your activities will become a little easier!