Raising Legs While Sitting in an Office Chair

Raising legs while sitting in an office chair is a simple and effective leg exercise method that offers multiple benefits such as promoting blood circulation, relieving fatigue, and preventing diseases. However, specific groups of people should exercise caution.

Benefits of the Exercise

• Promoting lower limb blood circulation: By raising the legs, gravity helps the venous blood in the lower limbs return to the heart, reducing venous pressure in the legs, relieving swelling and heaviness in the lower limbs caused by prolonged sitting, and preventing varicose veins.
• Relieving fatigue from prolonged sitting: Regularly performing this exercise can effectively relax the muscle groups in the front of the thighs and the back of the calves, preventing muscle stiffness and joint tension, and allowing the body to relax.
• Assisting in maintaining spinal stability: It slightly activates the core muscle groups, assisting in maintaining a stable posture of the spine and reducing spinal pressure caused by poor sitting postures.

Key Points of the Exercise

• Correct posture: Keep your back against the chair back to avoid an empty lower back and reduce lower back pressure.
• Steady movements: The movements should be slow and steady to avoid discomfort caused by rapid or vigorous actions.
• Duration and repetitions: Hold each raise for 15 - 30 seconds and repeat 5 - 10 times. It is advisable to feel a slight stretch in the leg muscles and avoid overexertion or holding your breath.

Different Training Methods

• Fixed-knee leg raise: Fix the knees, bring them towards the head and raise them upwards. When lowering, do not let the heels touch the ground. The effort is mainly on the abdominal muscles, and there will be no soreness in the waist and neck.
• Leg raise + torso twist combination exercise: Sit on a chair with a fist-width distance between your feet. Hold the sides of the chair with both hands. Exhale and raise your left knee upwards, inhale and lower your left leg, then exhale and raise your right knee upwards, inhale and lower your right leg. Alternate left and right, doing 20 repetitions per set and 2 sets. This can 'blast' away waist and abdominal fat, slim the legs and belly, and is gentle on the knees.

Precautions

For patients with existing lower limb venous thrombosis, severe heart disease, or those in the acute phase of lumbar disc herniation, it is recommended to perform this exercise under the guidance of a doctor or rehabilitation therapist to avoid aggravating the condition.