Next, get rid of your elliptical. It's a wildly inefficient use of your time and effort.
Finally, get a Kettlebell.
According to a recent study from a well respected fitness research organization, in collaboration with an equally well respected research University, Kettlebell workouts can burn up to 20 calories per minute. This is primarily due to Kettlebell workouts being comprised of total-body movements that bring cardio and strength training together, in one quick workout.
The only other activity known to man that is that efficient is cross-country skiing, uphill, at a fast clip. Considering that your work-space likely lacks snow and hills, a Kettlebell may be more readily appropriate. ;-)
For more info, see: http://www.acefitness.org/getfit/studies/kettlebells012010.p...
I followed the Slow Carb diet (from 4 Hour Body book) and then switched to the Warrior Diet. A total loss of 51 pounds as of this morning. (38 from SC & 13 from WD so far)
Look at kettlebells for intense exercises with low time requirements. If you have more time, try any full-contact martial art, especially the wrestling ones: Judo (my choice) or BJJ (if you don't like standing up! :-).
But do something positive sooner rather than later.
Jon Gabriel (sp?) teaches that most people are low on Omega-3's and that the first step on any diet is to add Omega-3 before changing or subtracting anything. I did this and while I'm only a single data point, I found that I was less fanatical about food afterwards.
I do some martial arts twice a week ( jiujitsu )
Other than standing and stretching at regular intervals, I don't think it's productive to try and do both at the same time.
As for workouts- you really don't need much- don't waste hours on an elliptical, it is far more beneficial to do an intense 20 minute sprint session (10 x 100m sprints with 1 min of rest in between each round) or a 10 minute circuit involving pushups, pullups, squats, etc. 3 quick, intense 30 min workouts, combined with a decent diet will keep you going.
My co-founders and I have started going to the gym for an hour or so every night which is a great break from work. Before it got cold and I started going to the gym I would sneak out for a 30min run every other day, a lot of great ideas come to me while running.
If you absolutely have to feel productive, go spend an hour on a treadmill, bike or elliptical listening to tech podcasts or something. Typically you won't be able to do intense, short-burst training while doing this. That's ok, a bit of long slow distance won't kill you.
If you're really die-hard about working durning your workouts, try business audiobooks, or let Siri read you your emails.
You can sleep a little less if you really need the time, but I'm sure you can take the time to workout... I do take it.
I usually force myself to block off an hour or two every day for exercise because I was raised with it and if I do not, then I feel strange, then grumpy, then downright erratic. My suggestion: Try to find something that is fun, not boring. I play soccer at an intense level, which is much more fun than running around a track or treadmill.
Also, (and this is arguably one of the most important things) remember how little it takes to workout really well. Your body burns calories much better when it lacks oxygen. Instead of running on the elliptical for an hour, go out to a park after work for 15 minutes and do nothing but sprints. You'll get a workout that is over 10 x better and it takes less time.