Is "10 Seconds of Daily Exercise at the Office" Better Than Going to the Gym!? We Asked a Top Athlete's Trainer Why

Break Time Designer Seiko Okumura emphasizes that programming is crucial for "Office Po," a break-time exercise initiative. How can we spark interest in people who rarely exercise? We asked trainer Minori Mori, who works with everyone from Olympic athletes to office workers on physical conditioning, for insights.

The Path to Becoming a Trainer, Beginning with "Enlightenment"

Okumura: Mr. Mori, you were an athlete before becoming a trainer, right? I heard you played baseball in middle school.

Mori: That's right. Then, when I was entering high school, I got an offer to join the track and field team as a scholarship athlete, with better conditions than other options, so I joined the track team in high school.

But on the very first day of practice, I had an epiphany.

Okumura: What did you realize?

Mori: That I couldn't realistically aim to be a top-level athlete (laughs). The level was just too different. So, from that day on, I decided in my heart, "I'll become a trainer. I'll live my life behind the scenes."

Okumura: You made that decision really early on... But why did you decide to become a trainer?

Mori: I had a personal trainer when I was in ninth grade. Knowing what trainers do sparked my interest.

Okumura: After deciding to become a trainer, what path led you to where you are now?

Mori: In high school, I devoured books and basically gathered as much information as I could. After graduating, I attended a specialized school for trainers and then studied abroad at a sports college in Canada, balancing being a student with working as a trainer.

Okumura: And after returning to Japan, did you go independent right away?

Mori: Yes. Around the time I returned, an acquaintance working at a sports company at the time asked me, "Since you have ekiden experience, why not try being a running advisor?" Then, through another acquaintance's introduction, I also started training various athletes.

What is the "flexibility" required of Office P?

Okumura: I met Mr. Mori through an introduction from Mr. Iwata at Sports Gain, and even back then, he had a rather unconventional image.

Mori: People often say I don't seem like a typical trainer, right? (laughs)

Okumura: In a good way, I'd say he's relaxed. At Officepo, if you're too stuck in the mold of existing sports, it's hard to come up with good programs.

Mori: The core idea is light exercise you can do without changing clothes.

Okumura: Exactly. If you're too stuck on fixed ideas like "stretching should be this" or "this is what it should be," you won't create a program suited for Officepo.

The "Breastretch" we did together recently is a perfect example. You're really flexible about customizing the menu to fit Officepo, aren't you, Mori-san?

Mori: I think that's because we established a shared understanding early on: "Let's do meaningful things that can be done in the office."

Only 4% of Japanese people exercise?

Okumura: What led you to resonate with OfficePo?

Mori: It's because trainers can only work with people who want to exercise. Japan's fitness population is said to be about 4%. Even factoring in young children and the elderly, that's a remarkably low figure.

Okumura: I play adult football myself, and many people around me are active, so this number feels much lower than I imagined... And then, the number of people who actually have a trainer is even smaller.

Mori: Exactly. Incidentally, in the US, this figure is said to be around 20%. Also, it's common for ordinary people to have trainers, and even those who play sports often have knowledge about the body that rivals that of trainers.

Okumura: In Japan, trainers are just starting to become common, mainly among business elites and such. On the other hand, OfficePo provides exercise opportunities to the "96 percent of people," so it's completely the opposite.

Mori: Exactly. As I mentioned earlier, the people I work with as a trainer are those who, to varying degrees, want to exercise. That applies whether it's one-on-one or a 100-person event. But Officepo aims to get people who aren't in that mindset to participate, so I felt we needed to reach out to them.

Okumura: Exactly. If they try Officepo at work and find it fun, that's the first experience we want them to have.

Mori: Starting with what you can do is incredibly important. I often tell this to the people I coach: pushing yourself too hard isn't sustainable.

For example, imagine suddenly deciding to start walking every morning. It sounds simple, but it actually involves two hurdles: getting up early and exercising. Facing two hurdles at once makes it unsurprisingly difficult to keep up. It might sound counterintuitive, but not overdoing it is actually key.

Okumura: That's right. The "96 percent of people" probably know intellectually that exercise is good for them. So, I hope we can create opportunities for them to personally experience, "Yeah, moving your body really is good for you."

Why is the OfficePo program so simple?

Mori: In terms of creating that opportunity, the screensaver idea is a perfect example. How did that come about?

Okumura: For example, when you return to your desk after a meeting, you always take a moment to catch your breath. I thought that if the screensaver on your computer displayed a stretch routine you could do right then, it could be that trigger.

Mori: I see. That way, whether someone does it or not is entirely up to them. I think that's fine. In my experience, very few people stick with something just because they were told, "Do this."

Plus, having that trigger might spark the thought, "I feel like exercising." Some people might need just one trigger, while others might need ten.

Okumura: That's exactly why OfficePo needs to keep providing ongoing touchpoints. I believe the cumulative experience of thinking "Moving my body is fun!" naturally raises health awareness.

Mori: It's true that saying "Let's go to the gym" might be a high hurdle, but "Let's do some light exercise at the office without needing to change clothes" is definitely not a high hurdle.

Mori: On the other hand, something I've been thinking about lately is that being healthy doesn't necessarily equal being happy. For example, sacrificing your family for the sake of health isn't something you can call happiness. That's why balance is important.

Starting with just a 10-second stretch for refreshment is perfectly fine. That's the kind of lighthearted approach I think is good. By continuing, change will definitely appear.