Maybe You Should Be Standing Up While Reading This

Do you have a fidgeter in your family? The one who cannot sit down or perhaps has to be reminded at dinner over and over to sit? And do you remember the person in class with the jiggly legs who sharpened his or her pencil several times a day?

Or perhaps you recall the person at work who goes around saying “hi” to everyone? Perhaps I am describing some of you. Well, if so, good for you – literally and physically.

Recent research has demonstrated that sitting for long periods of time may be bad for your health; even if you are engaging in the recommended amount of physical activity per day.

Epidemiologist Steven Blair has spent 40 years studying physical activity and health. He recently led a study looking at adult men and their risk of dying from heart disease. The researchers found that men who reported more than 23 hours a week of sedentary activity (driving, watching television, sitting at desks) have a 64% greater risk of dying from heart disease compared with those who reported less than 11 hours a week of sedentary activity. And many of these men routinely exercised. Increased sedentary behavior also leads to less desirable levels of cholesterol, blood sugar, diabetes and other health problems.

The metabolic process is very complicated, but we often neglect some easy-to-understand facts. If anything changes (or more than one thing changes) to make you sit more: you add another day to your commute, you switch from a role in your job that puts you on the computer longer etc., some of your metabolic processes may slow down. Each of these areas adds up to make a significant difference in your sedentary time and, therefore, your metabolism.

According to this research, we can no longer feel okay about doing our regular workout and then spending the rest of the day doing a lot of sitting. Fortunately, there are many ways to counter our sedentary lives. A recent Australian study found that mini-breaks during the day did make a positive difference in some of these health measures that are negatively affected by being sedentary. Here are some suggestions:

If you are a teacher:

Have students walk and talk about the book you are reading as a class or any book they are reading or even the latest movie they saw.

Let them answer questions while standing.

Let students stand and do their work if they prefer to and can still get it done.

Move around the classroom rather than always having the students come to your desk so you get activity too.

If you commute:

Abdominal exercises need not only be done on a mat. We can work our stomach muscles by sucking in the stomach and holding it tight for 20 second intervals while driving.

When you get to work, if possible, try not to make the first activity something where you sit. Check your mailbox or even do some computer work standing or possibly sit on an exercise ball (this lets you work the core muscle groups as you balance on the ball). This is obviously easier to do for those that work at home.

When you get home, take the dogs, the kids, your partner or even yourself for a quick walk before sitting down on the sofa or for dinner. Do some push-ups, sit-ups, or jumping jacks before sitting.

If you are an office worker:

Get up and walk to get something you need. Take the stairs.

Take breaks by marching in place while you’re reading or get up and stretch.

See if there is someone you can walk with at lunchtime even if only for 10 minutes.

I am sure these aren’t realistic for everyone but maybe if you start it will catch on at your workplace; especially if you are the boss!

After hearing about this research, I decided to try to become more of a fidgeter. While I don’t go as far as asking to be excused from the dinner table, I am trying to remember to do my tricep dips on the stairs after working on my home computer and to join my son in shooting some hoops or dance with my daughter at least for a few minutes before I get back to my computer.