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A day in the working life: Lachy

When home working becomes the norm, what does this mean for how active we are during the day?

Published:08/07/2020

Each month, we’re featuring walking tales from people working across a range of Scotland’s vibrant employment sectors. If you’d like to be featured send us an email to communications@pathsforall.org.uk

A day in the life of: Lachy, self-employed, Glasgow

Bio: I’m a Financial Planner, based in Glasgow but working with clients all over the UK. I work with people to help them manage their finances effectively so they can spend more time on the things they enjoy in life.

Talk us through your average working day. What’s your usual routine? Has Covid-19 impacted on the way you work? What do you do to fit some activity into your day?

I previously split my time between working from home, working from a shared office space with several other small business owners in the city centre, and working as I travel to and from meetings. Pre Covid-19, I’d typically spend a lot of the day travelling by train, bus, car or even planes to get to client meetings, with lots of walking in between.

This work pattern changed overnight as lockdown kicked in. On one hand I found I actually had a lot more time in my working day as all my client meetings moved to a virtual format and my travel time disappeared. This allowed me to be more efficient at work but also spend more time doing things I enjoy outside of work.

But on the other hand, I quickly found that my usual 8,000 – 10,000 steps that I’d automatically clock up from walking from A to B turned into 800 – 1000. Trips between my desk and the kitchen.

I started to schedule time for walks during my working day. Sometimes I’ll use this scheduled time to walk as I talk on the phone to clients, so it still feels like I’m still being productive. But other times I’ll use it to talk on the phone to my family in Australia as I walk or listen to a podcast as a way to have some time out from work.

Since lockdown, I’ve also got into home workouts and have been following along with PE with Joe (it’s not just for kids). I used to be really into sports and played a lot of rugby, but when I finally gave that up after many injuries, I struggled to find another activity to get into. By having more time at home and knowing that sitting at my desk continually all day isn’t great, I started Joe’s workouts. I like that its 30 minutes in your living room and you’re done.

My fiancé and I also always try to end the working day with a walk, which I think really helps break up your work vs personal time when you’re working from home.

What tips would you share with others that help you be active during the working day?

Find your own motivation. For me, I know I’m more likely to do something when I get motivation and encouragement from others, which is why I got into PE with Joe. He and the millions of others taking part each day might not physically present, but the sense of community really motivated me.

I’m also normally (pre social distancing) a sociable person, so talking on the phone as I walk has helped bring me more connections with people during lockdown and has been a motivation for me to walk further.

My final tip would be to invest in some decent coffee that takes a bit longer to prepare (preferably from somewhere local too so you get an extra walk in each time you need to restock.) Before you know it, you’ll be spending 15 minutes standing up away from your desk instead of the usual 3 each time you need to make a coffee.