I think in all honesty, exercise at the desk isn't going to help much. There really isn't anything much you can do that will burn calories when you're sitting down working. I think the best options here would be to try work out a time with your boss so that you can go do something for your fitness.

Cheers

I do isometric (muscle contractions) for abs, chest, lats and neck. I do these in the car during my hour plus (each way) commute. They don't replace other workouts but I have built some strength.

Isometrics is an excellent suggestion, Ron. I used to do them when I was younger. I think I had a program from Charles Atlas? Anyway, they can be done anywhere, are low impact, and produce good results. Not sure if they burn calories but still a great idea.

I figure any activity is better than none. I would guess the calories burned are very low but I do think they have helped me feel better.

Ask if you can have your computer keyboard and monitor put on a higher shelf so that you can stand when you work at the computer. I did this with my home computer and now I stand most of the time that I'm at the computer, sitting only if I have a good reason. At the very least, it would provide a change of position for you - sit, stand, sit, stand....

My son mostly works standing up at his computer at work. With each new hire at the place my son works, they send around a ergometric expert to get people set up in their chairs and at their computers so they'll be less likely to harm themselves (through bad posture, bad wrist position causing carpal tunnel syndrome, etc.)

Another suggestion: Fidgeting! Skinny people fidget more than heavy people. There's a correlation there, but you can't assume causality. However, when I looked it up, I saw an estimate that fidgeting all day at work burns an estimated 120 calories. That's about 15 calories an hour. So if you'd fidget an hour a day at work, that would be an extra 300 calories a month.

If you can stand and still see your monitors (do your job), you could try marching in place--high step, not just shuffling your feet. I typically work 10 hours straight (no lunch break) so, when at all possible, I stand, bend, stretch, clench and release muscles, shoulder shrugs, arm rotations, neck rolls, ankle and leg flexing, and anything else I can manage, including fidgeting. I may not burn a ton of calories, but I am working on muscle tone and keeping blood flowing. I had a pulmonary embolism in the past and am vigilant about not sitting 'still'.