Right now, before you read on, stand up! Go ahead, nobody is looking. Just get out of your chair and continue reading while you stretch your legs and shake out the cobwebs.
According to Juststand.org, the average American sits for 7.7 hours per day, or roughly half the time spent awake. Research supporting the claim that exercise is good for you has existed for decades. However, until recently nobody thought to ask the question “is sitting bad for you?”
We have looked at exercise from many angles and know that it’s beneficial for everyone. However, scientists are just beginning to test the theory that sitting for extended periods of time might have more negative health effects than simply not exercising at all.
For many people, much of our work and leisure time involves prolonged sitting. Researchers have taken an interest in examing the health outcomes of this behavior.
Increased sitting may be linked to greater BMI, greater waist circumference, and higher metabolic risk (Healy et al., 2008). Sitting for more than 6 hours per day is associated with an increased relative risk for mortality in both men and women (Patel et al., 2010). (To check out your own BMI, you can use this BMI calculator from the NIH).
A study conducted at the University of Texas compared step counts for two groups of people. One group had BMIs in the Healthy Weight Range (18.5-25) and the other group was composed of people with BMIs in the Overweight Range (>25). Both groups were technically sedentary (reporting no regular exercise). However, the healthy weight BMI group was found to move an average of 21 minutes more per than the overweight group (Davis et al., 2012).
In other words, despite neither group engaging in regular exercise, the overweight group moved significantly less than the healthy weight group. This suggests that even non-exercise physical activity may be a protective factor against weight gain.
Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT) is the title given to energy expended during many of the basic activities of daily living. All of the steps, gestures, and movements that it takes to get you through the day add up to the greater part of your daily caloric expenditure. This can be as important to maintaining your health as engaging in regular exercise.
Luckily, finding ways to increase your NEAT is as simple as standing up while reading this article!
Other options include:
- Converting your desk to a standing work-station
- Setting an alarm every 60 minutes to remind you to take a 2-3 minute stretching or moving break
- Wearing a step-tracking device can also help ensure you are moving more
- Take the stairs whenever possible
- Consider giving up that parking spot right next to the building in favor of a few extra steps to the door
Review more strategies on how to help yourself modify your behavior, setting and keeping SMART goals. Stand up for your health!
