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A common complaint (excuse?) for most of us who really, really want to stay fit, but don't is that we don't have the time. Particularly at work.

Well, that excuse might have just lost some of its punch.

We have reported often on ways to work even small amounts of fitness into busy days (for example here, here, and here). Now the New York Times Well Blog runs a piece titled “No time to work out? Try exercising on the job.”

The piece describes what it calls “in-office interval training.”

“That means taking part in short bursts of intense exercise — while in the office. Recent studies show that very short but intense exercise rapidly builds and maintains fitness and health, even when the workout is only a few minutes long.”

How to do it? Suggestions include:

Stairs: “You can complete an excellent, effective — and very brief — workout in an office stairwell, says Martin Gibala, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Canada and an expert on interval training. Stairwell interval training requires only one minute of strenuous exertion, he says.” In fact, McMaster University reports that “researchers at McMaster have found that a single minute of very intense exercise produces health benefits similar to longer, traditional endurance training. The findings put to rest the common excuse for not getting in shape: there is not enough time.” Said Gibala: “This is a very time-efficient workout strategy. Brief bursts of intense exercise are remarkably effective.”

Lift weights at your desk: Writes the NYT: “As with the stair training, weight work can be done during your workday. Keep a five-pound dumbbell near your desk and perform arm curls while you are on the phone.”

Fidget: The NYT adds: “In one recent study, college students showed healthier blood flow in their lower legs if they fidgeted than if they did not. Even better, a 2008 study found that among office workers, those who frequently fidgeted burned as many as 300 calories more each day than those who resolutely stayed still.”