Paralegal Workout

It's the new year and many of us are trying to exercise more. Being a paralegal used to mean that you had plenty of opportunties to lift boxes, juggle heavy files, retrieve large legal tomes from the top shelf in the library, and sprint to the courthouse. Now we have online legal research, paperless files, eDiscovery, and online filing. How are paralegals supposed to get any exercise these days?

So, to make up for what used to be a daily workout for many of us, try the following:

• Instead of a heavy box full of documents, try lifting your desktop printer or scanner several times; if you are brave enough to unhook it, carry it from one side of your desk to the other
• Instead of heavy files, volunteer to make the morning coffee run or the lunch run which will allow you to juggle items of various sizes and shapes
• Move the toner refill to the top shelf of the supply cabinet and hide the step stool so you have to stretch to retrieve it
• If you park in an open parking lot, park at the far end when it's raining so you can practice your sprinting skills; alternatively, organize desk chair races in the office during lunch: racers push their coworkers in their desk chairs down long hallways

With a little effort, our fitness won't have to suffer. If you have any other suggestions for paralegal workouts, please let me know!