Chances are you’re sitting down for 11 to 12 hours a day, in your car, at work and home, and that doesn’t count the seven to eight hours you’re sleeping. That means the average American adult’s notion of motion comes in at around five hours a day — and most of that doesn’t qualify as the moderate to vigorous activity needed for substantial exercise benefits.
The Risks of Sitting
Research shows the consequences of sitting on your backside, include obesity, elevated blood pressure and LDL cholesterol levels, an unhealthy waist circumference, and an increased risk of death from heart disease, dementia, and some cancers.
Good news: If you find it difficult to get the 60 to 75 minutes of moderate aerobic activity that research shows can help offset the effect of too much sit-down time, there’s another approach that will help protect you: standing up and walking around for five minutes twice an hour. And while it’s not enough to reverse all the hazards of super-sitting, it’s a step in the right direction.
A study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine found that taking that short break from sitting every 30 minutes measurably improved folks’ mood, relieved fatigue and significantly lowered blood pressure and blood sugar.
Original reporting: Texarkana Gazette — read the source article.
