Sitting down harms you. It’s strange to think that something so common could be so detrimental to your health, but study after study highlights the dangers of extended sitting.
Whether it’s weight gain, poor heart health, mood troubles, or muscle atrophy, spending too much time on your keester can mess up your health.
Advertisement
Sitting may also have a damaging effect on your bones. For your bones to stay strong, they need to be under some stress. When you offload your weight from your natural body structure to a chair or sofa, your bones are simply left to weaken.
When bones get weak, trouble can follow. The risk for osteoporosis can increase, as can your susceptibility for a bone break. Too much sitting can also impact your bones indirectly by limiting balance and strength. When the risk for falls increases, so does the danger to your bones.
Getting up and more active, on the other hand, can pay big dividends for bone strength. When you’re up and moving your bones have no choice but to support you, pushing them to get stronger and denser.
Supplementing your activity with calcium can add even more benefits to bone health.
Not all activity is created equal. As mentioned, you want it to be load-bearing. Cycling, sitting, and using a foot pedal or swimming won’t have a positive impact. Walking, jogging, dancing, and resistance training will.
Advertisement
It can be hard to avoid sitting in some cases. If you have a desk job and a long commute, it can be really difficult. But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.
Try and get up for a walk once an hour. Head to the bathroom or check in with a colleague. Just get up and move. It’s also recommended to schedule some dedicated exercise time into your day. A walk during breaks or before or after work is a great idea.
Your bones want you to get up and move. The more bone strength you have now, the less you’ll have to worry about trouble in the future.
About eight years ago, Mat Lecompte had an epiphany. He’d been ignoring his health and suddenly realized he needed to do something about it. Since then, through hard work, determination and plenty of education, he has transformed his life. He’s changed his body composition by learning the ins and outs of nutrition, exercise, and fitness and wants to share his knowledge with you. Starting as a journalist over 10 years ago, Mat has not only honed his belief system and approach with practical experience, but he has also worked closely with nutritionists, dieticians, athletes, and fitness professionals. He embraces natural healing methods and believes that diet, exercise and willpower are the foundation of a healthy, happy, and drug-free existence.
