In the past few years, the action (or inaction) of sitting for multiple hours a day has received criticism from many sources including the New York Times, personal fitness bloggers, doctors from the Mayo Clinic and several renowned medical journals.
What is it about sitting that causes so much harm (and excitement in the media)? According to studies, sitting for long periods of time, day after day can lead to:
- Slower metabolism
- Weight gain
- Decreased insulin production leading to increased risk of Diabetes type 2
- Increased risk of premature death
- Possible increased risk of cancer
Additionally, Medicine & Science in Sports and Exercise Journal reviewed a study by Louisiana researchers at Pennington Medical Research who found people who sit for the majority of the day increase their risk of having a heart attack by 54%.
According to Dr. Hamilton who extensively researches and studies metabolism and was interviewed for the NY times article, sitting is “lethal”.
He has studied weight gain and loss for years and states that sitting is dangerous because, “your muscles go as silent as a dead horse.” When we sit, the body literally stops working like it normally would.
Even more interesting about Dr. Hamilton’s studies is that a person’s current body weight or exercise routine doesn’t seem to make a difference. Sitting for several hours each day equally harms the person who is 30 pounds overweight and the ultra-trim runner.
This means the 30 minute daily run probably won’t counteract the poor effects of sitting. It is the extended time sitting, not the brief periods of exercise at the beginning of the day that cause the problem.
The good news?
Reversing the lethality of sitting can be just as easy as getting up every 30 minutes or so and taking a stretch, a walk down the stairs, strolling to the water fountain or striking up a tree pose in the cubicle (maybe when no one else is around).
Sounds like a great reason to take a few “stretch” breaks during the day.
Not only will it make you more productive by re-awakening your muscles (and your level of alertness), you’ll live longer.
Melissa AuClair blogs at www.launchyourcreativelife.com. After reading about the extensive harm sitting can cause she integrates activity (and more coffee breaks) into her work day. Follow her on twitter @melissauclair
