Oh, how we love our electronics.
But now more than ever, people are remaining sitting too much and leading sedentary lifestyles.
The lack of activity and staying in a seated position for too long can have serious effects, contributing to back pain, joint pain and weight gain.
Luckily there are steps you can take to offset the damage a sedentary lifestyle causes.
For instance, it helps to move around and change your position often.
On top of back or joint pain, sitting too much is detrimental to your health.
The less you move, the less you want to move.
The lack of exercise can contribute to serious health problems and even shorten your life.
One study published in the British Medical Journal showed that if you spend three hours or less sitting each day, you could live two years longer.
Unfortunately, most Americans remain sedentary for around five hours per day.
Many other studies have shown that sitting too much doubles your risk of diabetes and heart disease, compared to people who do not sit much.
Sedentary lifestyle has become just as serious of a contributor to disease as obesity or smoking.
What Happens If You Spend Your Days Sitting Down Many, many studies have consistently shown that a sedentary lifestyle can cause you medical problems.
It greatly increases the odds you will suffer pain, disease and lose years from your life.
Below are some examples of studies showing the effects of a sedentary lifestyle:
Being sedentary most of the day affects your metabolism and even if you exercise every day, it might not be enough to reverse that effect.
For instance, in 2009 one study showed that the amount of time you spend seated is linked to a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease.
If you spend most of the day sedentary, you could suffer the effects of excessive sitting despite your best efforts to exercise.
It only takes one hour of sitting before your body drastically slows the production of fat-burning enzymes, according to an article in the New York Times.
Staying seated for long periods of time slows down metabolism and lowers your "good" cholesterol.
What to Do The solution is simple: movement.
Keep in mind, though, that you will need to stand up and do a few exercises fairly often if you spend a lot of time sitting down.
Back pain and other pains are often caused from a disruption in the way the body distributes force, sometimes from sitting for unnaturally long periods of time.
The good news is you can teach your body to auto-correct and return to the natural, correct position.
This can help relieve pain.
It is best to learn the correct, natural position all parts of your body belong in, including your shoulders, back, neck, arms and feet.
Although you may think your pain is related to only one area, in most cases it is a combination of factors that leads to pain in any particular area.
A good example of this interconnectedness is carpal tunnel pain.
Although incorrect positioning of the wrists is implicated, so is incorrect positioning of the shoulders.
The shoulder moves forward, and its position influences that of your back and pelvis.
When the shoulder rotates forward, everything connected to it is affected.
Solving this sort of wrist pain means correcting all of these problems.
One of the best things you can do for your health is to stand up frequently.
It also helps to frequently do simple exercises to move your joints and muscles back into their natural position.
Tips and Exercises to Counteract Excessive Sitting Let's face it- many of us have no choice but to remain seated for long periods, especially when it comes to working.
There are, however, steps you can take to keep yourself healthy and pain-free.
But now more than ever, people are remaining sitting too much and leading sedentary lifestyles.
The lack of activity and staying in a seated position for too long can have serious effects, contributing to back pain, joint pain and weight gain.
Luckily there are steps you can take to offset the damage a sedentary lifestyle causes.
For instance, it helps to move around and change your position often.
On top of back or joint pain, sitting too much is detrimental to your health.
The less you move, the less you want to move.
The lack of exercise can contribute to serious health problems and even shorten your life.
One study published in the British Medical Journal showed that if you spend three hours or less sitting each day, you could live two years longer.
Unfortunately, most Americans remain sedentary for around five hours per day.
Many other studies have shown that sitting too much doubles your risk of diabetes and heart disease, compared to people who do not sit much.
Sedentary lifestyle has become just as serious of a contributor to disease as obesity or smoking.
What Happens If You Spend Your Days Sitting Down Many, many studies have consistently shown that a sedentary lifestyle can cause you medical problems.
It greatly increases the odds you will suffer pain, disease and lose years from your life.
Below are some examples of studies showing the effects of a sedentary lifestyle:
- According to a 2010 study in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, men leading a sedentary lifestyle increased their risk of death from heart disease by 64%.
- One study found that the risk of death from all causes was 154% higher for Canadians who were sedentary most of the day.
- Unsurprisingly, another study found that the amount of time you spend sitting is correlated with gaining weight.
- Those who spend 11 or more hours on the computer each week and those that watch television for 21 or more hours are more likely to be obese.
- The risk of metabolic syndrome rises as you increase the number of hours you spend watching TV or being on the computer.
Being sedentary most of the day affects your metabolism and even if you exercise every day, it might not be enough to reverse that effect.
For instance, in 2009 one study showed that the amount of time you spend seated is linked to a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease.
If you spend most of the day sedentary, you could suffer the effects of excessive sitting despite your best efforts to exercise.
It only takes one hour of sitting before your body drastically slows the production of fat-burning enzymes, according to an article in the New York Times.
Staying seated for long periods of time slows down metabolism and lowers your "good" cholesterol.
What to Do The solution is simple: movement.
Keep in mind, though, that you will need to stand up and do a few exercises fairly often if you spend a lot of time sitting down.
Back pain and other pains are often caused from a disruption in the way the body distributes force, sometimes from sitting for unnaturally long periods of time.
The good news is you can teach your body to auto-correct and return to the natural, correct position.
This can help relieve pain.
It is best to learn the correct, natural position all parts of your body belong in, including your shoulders, back, neck, arms and feet.
Although you may think your pain is related to only one area, in most cases it is a combination of factors that leads to pain in any particular area.
A good example of this interconnectedness is carpal tunnel pain.
Although incorrect positioning of the wrists is implicated, so is incorrect positioning of the shoulders.
The shoulder moves forward, and its position influences that of your back and pelvis.
When the shoulder rotates forward, everything connected to it is affected.
Solving this sort of wrist pain means correcting all of these problems.
One of the best things you can do for your health is to stand up frequently.
It also helps to frequently do simple exercises to move your joints and muscles back into their natural position.
Tips and Exercises to Counteract Excessive Sitting Let's face it- many of us have no choice but to remain seated for long periods, especially when it comes to working.
There are, however, steps you can take to keep yourself healthy and pain-free.
- Move around.
Shift your position every 20 minutes.
Better yet, stand up.
Best yet- stand up and do a few exercises! - Roll your shoulders back, so your shoulder blades touch and your chest moves slightly up and out.
Extend your arms and twist them by opening your hands facing upwards and pointing your thumbs behind you. - Stand up and flex your muscles one by one (not too hard) and then releasing them.
Especially important are your abs, legs and butt. - Trying a few simple yoga poses is an excellent idea.
The stretching brings your body back to its natural state, relieving pain and tension. - Go ergonomic.
Arrange your desk, computer screen, keyboard and chair so that you are sitting in a comfortable, natural position.
Also consider investing in an ergonomic chair. - Get grounded.
Some experts believe that grounding- or sitting on the ground- helps dissipate energy that has accumulated in your body due to EMFs (Electromagnetic Fields).
Their belief is based on the fact that humans have historically had much more physical contact with the earth.
They believe all of our modern electronics interfere with the balance of electrons in the body.
This in turn affects the immune system and encourages chronic inflammation.