People who spend hours each day without getting up and moving around are at greater their risk for chronic health problems, such as back pain, obesity, heart disease, and cancer. Sitting is now considered a risk factor for poor health, as significant as smoking! Strangely enough, spending a few hours a week at the gym or otherwise engaged in activity doesn't seem to significantly offset the risk. Even if you exercise regularly, sitting for hours a day is still harmful to your health.
The theory is that prolonged sitting can be harmful to your health because of the lack of muscle contractions and subsequent body movement. Muscle contractions help to stimulate blood flow and remove toxins from the body via the lymphatic system,the filtering system in our bodies. Muscle contractions are important to help clear fat (triglycerides) and glucose from our bloodstream.
How do stop your chair from becoming a lethal weapon? I suggest the following:
1. Sit Right: Set up your desk or work station to be ergonomically correct. See the diagram below:
2. Get Up and Walk Frequently: Every half-hour to an hour get up and walk a minute. Better yet, walk, stretch, do a couple of squats, push-ups, etc. The body isn't designed to stay in one position for hours at a time. The best posture is one that changes and moves continuously.
3. Stand More:
- Stand while talking on the phone or eating lunch.
- If you work at a desk for long periods of time, try a standing desk — or improvise with a high table or counter.
- Walk laps with your colleagues rather than gathering in a conference room for meetings.
- When you get together with your friends have it involve activity, not just "sitting around" or watching TV.
- Sit on a stability ball.
- Use a moveable chair.
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