If you have been diligently sticking to your workouts everyday, you may still be frustrated that you’re not getting the health outcomes that you are looking for. Much to our disappointment, we cannot out-exercise our sitting habits. Even if we are getting a solid 1-hour workout in everyday, if the rest of the day is spent sitting, you cannot undo the ill effects of that sedentary behavior.
According to one Australian study, prolonged sitting is the reason for almost 7% of deaths, regardless of exercise. A recent study found that people in Japan are sedentary for over 5 hours a day. How many hours are you sitting everyday? How do you think that is factoring into your current level of health?
Sitting is responsible for 100% of our risk of diabetes and 90% of our risk of cardiovascular disease. How is this possible? When we sit, blood tends to pool in our legs. Think about the last time you were on a long flight and if you took your shoes off at the beginning of the flight, how much harder was it to put them back on at the end? Your feet were swollen, right? This is an extreme example of what happens when we sit at our desk for too long. The blood pools, keeping blood flow from our brain. Since our brain needs blood sugar to function, the brain sends a signal to release more sugar into the blood in order to meet its needs. When we have increased blood sugar, we don’t burn as much fat, so our fat stays in storage. This weakens our metabolism and causes obesity, diabetes, and heart disease over time.
The easiest way to combat this is get as much movement in your body as possible:
Stand up throughout your workday. Set an alarm to tell you to move. Use a google reminder. Drink out of a smaller cup so you have to get up more frequently to refill it. Whatever gets you up and about for a few seconds every hour.
Adjust your chair and desk to proper ergonomic positioning so that you get optimal blood flow. If you’re unsure of the position, ask your chiropractor at your next visit.
Try exercise snacks. Break your workout up into small chunks throughout the day. You don’t need to do all 60 minutes at once. You can do 10-15 minute sets at a time and still get the benefit of your movements.
Dr. Ariel Thorpe, DC, provides Ergonomic Health Talks and Workstation Consultations in Tokyo. If you would like an ergonomics event for your office, contact us at ariel@electrachiropractic.com.
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