‘sitting is the new smoking’! It’s not an original title in fact I didnt even make it up!
The sad
truth it’s the name of an emerging science into the effects our sedentary life
styles are having not only on our bodies but our health as well.
‘sitting’
is detrimental to our health and your life.
It was
actually first coined by Dr James Levine [Mayo Clinic USA] when he wrote his
book called ‘get up! Why your chair is
killing you and what to do about it’!!
This was his
study on sitting and its negative impact on our health
To date
it is estimated the we are on average ‘sitting’ for approx 9.3 hours per day,
that a hell of a number when you consider that the same science averages our
sleep out at only 7.7 hours in the same day !
So we sit
more than we sleep!
·
For most of us
‘sitting’ at work is inevitable – but couple that with all the other ‘sitting’
we do –
·
We have to get to and
from work – so there is the car, bus or train commute – sitting!
·
We love to have a meal
out or a pint/ drink with our friends – sitting!
·
We are wrecked when we
get home from work and we want to relax –sitting in front of the TV ! / or reading
a book - surfing the net etc
Science
has proved to us that for every 20minutes we are in the same position we need
about 4 minutes of movement / stretching - to combat the postural effects
That’s a
staggering 12 minutes movement to combat 1 hour of sitting!!!!
Quick
question have you seen a cat waking recently? The first thing they do is
stretch every inch, every paw – even down their tails – they wake and they
instantly create movement in their bodies, this gives them the suppleness to continue to hunt, pounce, jump, roll –
generally enjoy life. When was the last time you pounced or rolled!!!?
But
seriously the way we live our lives , sit, stand, walk, sleep – these positions
repeated with poor movement patterns daily leads us to stiff hips, spines,
aching shoulders – this in turn makes us feel tired, listless and not the
slightest bit inclined to exercise or take up fitness… a vicious circle
However
‘sitting’ is not only playing havoc with our bodies – it is playing havoc with
our health
Researchers
have found and continue to explore the evidence that prolonged sitting
increases the risk of developing several serious illness like various types of
cancer, heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
Unfortunately
the other reason the smoking / sitting reference is made, is that studies have
repeatedly shown that the long-term effects of sitting are not reversible
through exercise or good movement habits!!!
The best way is to limit the time we spend on
our butts
In the USA at present there is a growing trend towards ‘standing
workstations, Tred-Desks even –outdoor walking meetings!
Where people like you who need to do face to face, are no longer sitting
but hitting the parks open areas and meeting on the go!
The outdoor walking meetings are proving very productive, people are
reporting that given the fresh air etc they are listening more intently and
they are much more focused mentally.
So what can you do to combat the effects of nearly 10 hours sitting per
day!!
You combine daily movement and exercise – the two are very different
Daily exercise involves
- Going back to our ancestors – going primal
- To keep strong and healthy you perform 5 basic movements
- A pull – A push – a squat - press up – a plank and twist
- To keep fit you walk, jog, run or play a sport
- To keep you body fluid and elongated Pilates
- And then at least once per 10 days put in a real sprint and push the boat out so to speak.
None of the above have to be done to
excess for health!! but they are all needed at least once a day !!
Of course if sport or performance is your goal – then there will be
extremes
Daily movement involves
- Stretch every morning on rising – think CAT
- At WORK Setting your timer for 55 minutes – then stand up or get away from your desk
- Breathe – yes take a few deep breaths it not only give you more oxygen deep focused breathing actually helps tone the postural stabilizers
- Flex and rotate your ankles and knees it counteracts the blood pooling while you were sitting
- Circle your shoulders – counteracts the forward head posture from leaning in to your screen
- Tilt and rock the pelvis – counteracts and reduces the effects of the fixed position of sitting
- Gently extend the spine – counteracts the forward flexion of sitting
- Gently rotate from side to side – counteracts the
- Stand with your hands over your head and stretch – lengthens the entire front and back of the body to counter act the effects of being in a flexed seated position
- Also it has been proven that working in focused blocks makes you far more productive