Heart Attack Breaks

According to a recent article in The New York Times, sitting in the office all day and on the couch all evening is increasing your risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes, a variety of cancers and early death, even if you exercise regularly every day.

Photo by Charles Toepfer

The article summarizes the findings of several recent studies on the subject. Sitting is the most passive activity you can do, more passive than standing or even chewing gum.

To break it down, not only is sitting not very calorie intensive, but it also causes your body to slow production of hormones such as lipoprotein lipase, a key hormone in regulating body fat. Your overall metabolism slows, and your body becomes inefficient at burning sugars and fats. All of this culminates in an increased risk for heart disease.

While some people have taken drastic solutions such as rigging their desks with a slow treadmill to walk on all day, or simply standing while working, one study showed that all you need to do is break up those long stretches of sitting with some activity such as a short walk, light exercise, or some stretching.

Try this: set up a recurring heart attack (prevention) break every hour. During that break, walk around, stretch, do some push-ups–anything to get your muscles moving a bit and your blood flowing. Breathe deep and reactivate your body. Maybe have Julie give you a random yoga pose. Then, when you return to your chair, make sure you’re sitting in it properly: feet on the floor, back supported, good posture and keyboard ergonomics.

BONUS: Improve your sitting even more by using an exercise ball for a chair.

[via: The New York Times]

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