Drive Yourself To Fitness

Open your heart . Roll your shoulders up and then back while holding the steering wheel. (At your desk, you can let your arms and hands follow.) Gently pull your shoulder blades down and back toward your tailbone and your back pockets. "This movement helps reawaken those middle back muscles," Hagan says. It also helps loosen shoulder muscles, which tighten during stress.

Let your navel kiss your spine . Tighten your abdominal muscles to scoop up your belly and pull in your waistline so that your navel moves toward your spine. "This takes the stress off the lower, lumbar spine," Hagan says.

Grab a ticket. No, not a traffic ticket, and don't use your hands. Imagine that you have a winning lottery ticket. Grasp it and hold it tightly between your cheeks --"and I'm not talking about your face," Hagan says with a laugh -- while counting to 10. "You will get rich in posture even if you are not winning the lottery." Doing this exercise helps counter the numbness in the large gluteal muscles in your posterior that can result from prolonged sitting. She also advises men to remove wallets from their back pockets since sitting on them can add to the numbness and increase the risk of painful sciatica.

Grip the wheel . Clench as tightly as possible, then release. At the same time, try to relax your shoulders and sit up straight. Repeat about one second on, one second off about 10 times. "Most people don't realize how hard they are gripping the wheel," Hagan says. "This helps them relax and is also good for stress management."