Desk job cramping your style? Fix it with Pilates! A weekly mini-series offering exercises and education for office babes. The latest desk stretch in our series.

You went out dancing on the weekend. That teamed with your 5 inch Louboutins and $10 Mai Tai’s meant that you danced into early hours of the morning and forgot you went out on a school night.

We’ve all been there. Only this time you forget you’re older than 21 and will be in a world of pain. Also the fact you don’t own a sensible pair of shoes!

It’s 9.53am and already you’re thinking how you can plot to go to shops and buy new shoes.

Instead, you head to ProfessionalBabe.com and realise there’s probably a post about this. Duh.

The 7th installment in our desk stretch series is an exercise called prances.

Your feet are designed to move. Rigid shoes are like corsets for your feet. They cause your muscles to sieze up and if you are going to wear them often, then you better be in for some training to do so.

Slip your shoes off under your desk and give your feet a mini stretch with prances.

The latest in our desk stretch series.

Seated Prances

Even if our feet aren’t hurting from doing the Nutbush with Kate from accounting, we all know the pain of feeling like our legs and feet are going to sleep. This exercise is easy enough to do whilst sitting at your desk typing. It gives the feet a great stretch out, strengthens the ankles and promotes full range of motion through the ankle and foot. 

1. Start sitting tall with both feet firmly planted into the floor. Lift one foot up so you’re resting on the tops of the toes with the heel lifted. Both feet will move as we switch sides, so one foot will be flat on the floor and the other will be on the toes. Ensure you roll through the foot and you don’t just hinge from the ankle either. Really think about pushing the ankle forward when you’re up on your tippy toe to give the arch of your foot a decent stretch out. Repeat 10-20 times each side.

Want more stretches and tips? Download my free flexibility guide here. 

Peta Serras

Editor of Professional Babe, Peta has a penchant for pretty things, Tom Hardy and ginger kittens. You can find her sipping a long black, creating killer content or making sure her winged eyeliner is even. Peta is a writer, model & Pilates Instructor based out of the Hunter Valley.