Sit less, stand more to improve your health
Here’s what I did yesterday: Drove to my office, worked on my computer, attended a meeting, drove home, relaxed on the couch and went to bed.
What do all of those activities have in common (besides sounding a bit boring)? None of them involved standing up.
Photo by David Goldman — Associated Press
Do you sit too much? Many people spend eight or more hours a day in a chair, and it’s not good for your health.
We have become a society of sitters. We sit while commuting, working, eating and watching television. According to David Conroy at Penn State University, many of us spend eight of our waking hours with our butts in a chair.
The health risks of this kind of sedentary lifestyle — including obesity, heart disease, and diabetes — are well known. A 2012 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association even found a link between prolonged sitting and mortality; those participants who sat 11 or more hours per day had a 40 percent increased risk of dying in the next three years compared to those who sat for fewer than four hours a day.
The scariest part? Conroy’s research indicates that a regular exercise routine isn’t enough to offset all those negative effects. If you’re running 3 miles every morning but then spending the rest of the day parked in front of your computer (guilty as charged), you’re still at risk for detrimental health outcomes.
Does your daily routine involve as much sitting as mine does? Here are some ideas to get you up and moving throughout the day.
1. Work on your feet: Standing desks are growing increasingly popular, and many people report feeling more energized and productive when using them. If that’s not a possibility, try designating certain tasks — such as talking on the phone — as ones you always stand up to do.
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