Do This One Very Simple Thing To Combat Seated Stress
Medical studies report that sitting for long periods of time is bad for your circulation, heart, body and health in general. That’s unfortunate given that most of us spend long hours every day seated in cars, in front of TVs or computer terminals or other seated occupations.
According to Dr. Joan Vernikos, former director of NASA’s Life Sciences Division and author of Sitting Kills, Moving Heals, the best way to counteract the negative effects of sitting for long periods is not fitness routines or walking, but simply to stand up frequently during sitting sessions.
In writing about Dr. Vernikos’ work, Joseph Mer cola, MD, reports: “Not only did she discover that the act of standing up is more effective than walking for counteracting the ill effects of sitting, the key is how many times you stand up.
“It’s actually the change in posture that is the most powerful signal, in terms of having a beneficial impact on your health, not the act of standing in and of itself. Put another way, the key to counteract the ill effects of sitting is to repeatedly interrupt your sitting. The key is frequent intermittent interactions with gravity. Standing up 35 times at once will provide only a small percent of the benefit of standing up once every 20 minutes.”
It’s not how many hours of sitting that’s bad for you; it’s how often you interrupt that sitting that is good for you!
So set your timer for 20 minutes at your desk. When it rings, smile and enjoy your health getting better by simply standing up and moving out of your chair!
Carol Bedrosian is the publisher of Spirit of Change, New England’s largest holistic magazine.
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