Is Sitting As Bad As Smoking?

We all know that it’s a good idea to get off our butts and move, but is sitting as bad as smoking? Well, in short, yes. It is estimated that most of us sit, on average, for 8 hours a day. That is a significant amount of time in which your body is put into a position for which it wasn’t designed. According to Dr. James Levine, director of the Mayo-Clinic-Arizona State University Obesity Solutions Initiative, who is credited with saying “that sitting is the new smoking”, we lose 2 hours of life for every 1 hour we sit. I don’t know about you, but that math scares the crap out of me.

In case you need any more proof that sitting is as bad as smoking, take a gander at the following:

• Couch potatoes have a 147% increased risk of a cardiovascular event
• After only 90 seconds of sitting, your body stops processing glucose as easily
• An extra hour of sitting per day increases your odds of developing type 2 diabetes by 22%
• Your triglycerides begin to climb after only 30 minutes in a chair

While doing some sort of cardiovascular activity every day is a great start, the real antidote for all that sitting is NEAT which stands for non-excercise activity thermogenesis.  It basically refers to any energy expenditure that isn’t working out, sleeping, eating or sports. Walking the dog, fidgeting, and yard work are all examples of NEAT. If you look around at your friends, I bet you will find that all the ones who are naturally slim tend to be fidgeters. People with high NEAT not only have a natural defense against all that sitting, but they tend to have an easier time keeping their weight in check.

Here are 3 easy tricks that will up your NEAT:

Switch from a Sitting Desk to a Standing Desk

As someone who threw her back out of for the first time in her 20’s and really screwed it up in my late 30’s, I was an early convert to the no sitting desk.  Back then, standing desks didn’t exist so had to jerry rig one using a set of rolling shelves. Not only has it been great for my back, but it’s also trimmed down my waist line.

Get Out of Your Chair and Walk Every Hour

Dr. Levine suggest getting out of your chair and walking for 10 minutes every hour. This simple trick will counteract sitting’s adverse affect on your health. It will also make you happier. I’ve been know to set a timer so that I don’t forget, but if you are someone who takes a lot of meetings at work, think about making them “walk and talks”. I bet you’ll find that you’re more productive.

Pace While on the Phone

This is such an easy way to ramp up your NEAT. Get a headset if you don’t already have one and every time that you are on the phone, instead of sitting, pace. I have a nice loop that I take around my apartment. Besides getting me out of a chair and improving my health, it also helps me to meet my step goal on my fitness tracker.  Which always makes me happy.