Americans now spend about half of their waking hours seated. A friend who was reading about sedentary lifestyles asked me how much sitting is considered harmful. It's an interesting question since many people are beginning to cocoon indoors and may become even less active than normal due to the colder weather.
In terms of overall health and disease prevention, some activity is always better than nothing . Surprisingly, sitting for long periods of time can increase some indicators of cancer risk, even among people who exercise on a regular basis. American Institute for Cancer Research findings suggest that all of us need to make time for physical activity and also break up every hour of sitting with 1 to 2 minutes of activity. These breaks can be as simple as walking to a colleague's office instead of sending an e-mail or going to the kitchen to get a glass of water...
In terms of overall health and disease prevention, some activity is always better than nothing . Surprisingly, sitting for long periods of time can increase some indicators of cancer risk, even among people who exercise on a regular basis. American Institute for Cancer Research findings suggest that all of us need to make time for physical activity and also break up every hour of sitting with 1 to 2 minutes of activity. These breaks can be as simple as walking to a colleague's office instead of sending an e-mail or going to the kitchen to get a glass of water...
Back in the late 1990s, I owned an on-site fitness business called Up and Moving and worked with sedentary people who needed to incorporate movement into their daily routines in addition to regular aerobic and strength training workouts. Getting high-powered executives and successful salespeople to incorporate the following suggestions for moving more was a challenge because they were accustomed to sitting at their desks or in their cars for most of the day:
- take the stairs instead of the elevator or get off the elevator a few floors early and walk up
- park your car in the far corner of the parking lot
- plan walking meetings
- pack a healthy lunch and use some of your lunch time for an activity break
In the following graphic, "Joe" has a lower cancer risk because he takes frequent standing / movement breaks throughout the day in addition to his moderate / vigorous biking workout.
Graphic credit: American Institute for Cancer Research
The importance of moving more throughout the day has been explored by obesity researcher, James Levine, M.D., Ph.D. He wondered why some people gain weight who consume the same amount of food as other people who maintain their weight. Through studies on what he later termed non exercise activity thermogenesis or NEAT, Dr. Levine discovered that people who didn't gain weight were unconsciously moving around more during the day. NEAT is the concept that you can reap major health benefits from thousands of minor movements throughout the day. On average, those who sat two hours or more per day gained more than those who didn't.
In a New York Times article that questioned whether sitting is a lethal activity, the reporter became a mock participant in Dr. Levine's research trial. You can watch James Levine describe his research on YouTube and see how he practices what he preaches by constantly moving during his presentation.
In a New York Times article that questioned whether sitting is a lethal activity, the reporter became a mock participant in Dr. Levine's research trial. You can watch James Levine describe his research on YouTube and see how he practices what he preaches by constantly moving during his presentation.
After learning about non exercise activity thermogenesis, I changed my work station to a standing desk* by flipping over a large box on my desk and balancing my laptop on it to make standing while working possible. It's certainly less expensive than purchasing a treadmill desk and I do feel more alert standing up during the day. I'm also hoping to preserve some bone mass by not supporting my body weight in a chair although I do sit down when I write with pen and paper.
I try to move when I can, stand whenever possible and sit when there's no other choice. You'll likely feel more energetic throughout the day by taking this approach although, depending on your current activity level, it may take time before you get used to standing and moving more while sitting less. It took me about a week of gradually increasing standing throughout the day before I could work standing up the entire day without undue fatigue.
Be Well,
Mary
*NOTE: If you don't want to create your own standing desk, you can purchase a Think-On-Your-Feet Workstation. After writing this post, I found a research article describing a Take-A-Stand project that used a sit-stand device in the workplace. The project reduced sitting time and created other worker health benefits.
December 2012 Update: The President's Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition just published a Research Digest on this topic titled, Too Much Sitting: Health Risks of Sedentary Behaviour and Opportunities for Change.
April 3, 2013 Update: A friend just sent me a Coca-Cola ad that encourages standing. I like the physical activity message more than the sponsor!
August 12, 2013 Update: Others share my concern about healthy lifestyle ads from big soda companies.
P.S. Please ignore the text box below; your comments are always welcome here.
Be Well,
Mary
*NOTE: If you don't want to create your own standing desk, you can purchase a Think-On-Your-Feet Workstation. After writing this post, I found a research article describing a Take-A-Stand project that used a sit-stand device in the workplace. The project reduced sitting time and created other worker health benefits.
December 2012 Update: The President's Council on Fitness, Sports & Nutrition just published a Research Digest on this topic titled, Too Much Sitting: Health Risks of Sedentary Behaviour and Opportunities for Change.
April 3, 2013 Update: A friend just sent me a Coca-Cola ad that encourages standing. I like the physical activity message more than the sponsor!
August 12, 2013 Update: Others share my concern about healthy lifestyle ads from big soda companies.
P.S. Please ignore the text box below; your comments are always welcome here.
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