There are many habits that we humans have that are bad for us, and it is common knowledge that they are bad for us. Smoking, binge drinking and overeating are habits most people know are unhealthy. But there is one habit, that most people do, that we are not aware is that bad for us, and that is sitting too much.
Dr. James Levine, Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic, has done three decades of research on the harm associated with sedentariness and this has made him state that “sitting is the new smoking.”
He has pioneered the science of NEAT (nonexercise activity thermogenesis), and he has found that low NEAT is a major cause of several chronic diseases.
So what is the problem here? Well, the gist of it is that we sit an average of 9 to 10 hours each day, and that makes our blood flow more sluggishly and makes our muscles burn too little calories. People are increasingly sedentary, the hard labor of the old days is gone, in the modern digitalized society we use computers and let machines do the hard work. A lot of us sit throughout our workday, we sit while eating and socializing, while driving, and we sit at the end of the day watching TV to wind down. I all adds up.
And the scary part is that no matter how much exercise we do we cannot undo the harm done by too much sitting. Research has discovered that exercise and sitting are two factors for health that are not directly related. Exercise does have a positive effect on our health, but it does not erase the bad effect sitting has on our health. In the same way that exercise does not compensate for smoking or binge drinking.
The dangers of sitting
Research has found that sitting too much causes the following health problems:
- Earlier death
Sitting leads to an earlier death from cardiovascular diseases and cancer, and also an earlier death in general. - Increased risk of cancer
- Increased risk of diabetes
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Obesity
- Increase in bad (LDL) cholesterol
- Dementia
- Spine and back muscle problems
- Social isolation which again leads to depression, anxiety, etc
- Snowball effect
Too much sitting induces disease which again induces more sitting and further health decline.
Sit less, move more
What the research has found is that there are two factors that influence us:
- How long we sit in total
- How long we sit in one stretch
So we must sit less in total and we must break up the sitting periods with activities.
It has been found that after 30 minutes the bad effects of sitting increase. So the goal should be to take a break from sitting every 30 minutes or less. Get the blodflow going and get some fresh air, it does wonders for your work productivity as well.
Strategies
My favorite strategies to sit less are:
- Treadmill desk or standing desk
This might sound drastic, but getting a treadmill or standing desk might be one of the best ways to reducing sitting time. And the goal here is not to exercise, it is just to move a little while you work. Walking at a super low speed, 1 mph (1.5 km/h) or less, does not interfere with your work and is good for your bloodflow and balance. - Take breaks from sitting
Walking around, do some stretching, do housework, etc.
Set a timer to remind you to get up. Every 25 to 30 min. - Be active at night
A lot of our sitting is done in front of the TV at night so try to fit in activities instead.
Go to the gym at night, do your grocery shopping at night, do chores standing up in front of the tv (ironing, folding, etc), exercise in front of tv, etc. - Be active with your friends
Instead of meeting friends for a coffee or a drink schedule activities with them. Walking, hiking, sports, bowling, swimming, etc. are all good alternatives to just sitting around. - Eat while standing
Breakfast and lunch can easily be done standing up. You can still read, surf or socialize, just avoid sitting down. And it prevents the sitting that we do after we are finished eating. - Plan your day
I try to actively plan my day so that I avoid sitting for long stretches. If you need to work long at your computer try to do most of it standing. You can get a stand for your laptop or your monitor to facilitate this. And when you sit, never do it longer than 30 minutes.
Summary
The dangers of being sedentary and sitting too much are real. To live a healthy life we must reduce our sitting. Reduce the total time you sit throughout your day and when you do sit get up every 30 minutes to move around.