3 Ways To Get More Active If You’re Sitting Down All Day

How To Avoid Sitting Down All Day

There is a new disease cropping up in people that are desk-bound for much of their work day – the sitting disease.

The Archives of Internal Medicine shows just how deadly sitting down can be. Using data from over 265,000 individuals, the shocking research showed that people who sit for more than 11 hours a day experienced a 40% higher likelihood of dying from any cause. And if you sit from 8 to 11 hours a day, you still experience a 15% higher probability of dying than those who sit for less than four hours each day.

However, the effects of sitting down all day can be minimized (or entirely prevented) by getting more active throughout the day.

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What Does Sitting Down All Day Do?

The dangers caused by too much sitting include but aren’t limited to:

• Diabetes
• Obesity
• Colon cancer
• Breast cancer
• Heart Disease
• Metabolic Syndrome
• Heart attack

But the dangers of sitting down all day are many as are the rewards of an active lifestyle.

Before Getting To Your Desk

If you drive to work, park at the far end of the parking lot and then walk in the rest of the way to your office building. If you take public transport to work, get off a stop or two before or after your closest stop and walk to your place of work. Once inside, take the stairs instead of the elevator up to your office (or at least walk a few flights up if working in a high-rise building).

While At Your Desk

Aim to get up for at least 5 minutes out of each hour. Another “trick” is to take phone calls standing up. If on a cordless phone or if you have a speaker on your phone, get up and walk around while talking.

Another way to get in more steps is instead of sending an email to a colleague in the same building, walk over to his/her desk and deliver the message in person.

More and more office professionals are either using stand-up desks or desks with an integrated treadmill. It’s a great way to exercise while you work if you can get the boss to buy you either one. It’s a great way to burn 400 calories or more per day.

While it can be beneficial to get up and go to the cafeteria at lunchtime, health-wise it’s better to go outside and walk during your lunch break. Make sure you leave just enough time to eat your healthy brown-bag lunch you brought from home. In addition to the extra steps you got while walking, you got even more by having to walk down to the ground floor and back up again after lunch (and you ate healthy in the process)!

On The Way Home

This is generally a reverse of getting to work. After the workday, walk back down to the ground floor and back out to your car or to the public transport stop.

Free Report:  Why Should You Stop Sitting Down All Day? 

The dangers of sitting down all day or for extended periods of time, whether it be in your vehicle, at work or on your couch at home, can’t be ignored if you’re looking to enjoy a healthy and fit lifestyle which leads to a longer and happier life.

You don’t have to be a “victim” of the sitting disease. With some forethought, you can get your work done and get in some exercising all during the course of a workday. People are often amazed at how small exercise changes can reap huge results with their fitness. My free report,  10 Health Benefits You’ll Get With Improved Fitness shares strategic exercise tips, tactics, and guidelines to help you achieve better health.