With the Canadian government continuing to recommend physical distancing measures, many of us are finding themselves confined to their homes quite ever before. While some are citing the advantages of having the ability to figure from home and having time for self-care, the closures of recreational facilities and commercial gyms make physical distancing a barrier to physical activity for several .
In response, several health organizations and groups are emphasizing the importance of meeting physical activity guidelines. The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology recommends 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per week, which is roughly half-hour of exercise each day , five days every week . Assuming people are spending half an hour each day exercising, then factoring within the 7.5 to eight hours of sleep the typical adult gets, that leaves 15.5 waking hours unaccounted for.
So, what are people doing within the other 97 percent of the day they spend awake? If you are like the typical Canadian, then 9.5 hours of your day is spent sitting.
The science of sitting
Sitting, a sort of sedentary behaviour (along with lying down and reclining), is one among the foremost prevalent, habitual and "invisible" behaviours we perform. We sit in nearly every aspect of our lives from eating to commuting and dealing to screen time and more.
This is very true of home-based sitting given the present stay-at-home recommendations. Netflix and other streaming services announced significant increases in traffic and new subscribers recently, while app downloads and weekly time spent on apps have also skyrocketed within the past months.
But why is sitting this much so bad? it's going to sound harmless, but chronic excessive levels of sitting are related to an increased risk of developing heart condition , Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and even some cancers. Even among children , for whom chronic disease risk isn't as immediately concerning, excessive sitting poses a possible harm through an increased risk of depression and anxiety.
Perhaps most concerning is that these increased risks are independent of physical activity levels—meaning albeit you exercise regularly, you are still placing yourself in danger for all of those diseases if you spend an excessive amount of time sitting.
Tips to take a seat less
So, what are often done to combat all the sitting we do? Put simply—just standing up. Merely standing up or walking for about five minutes for each half-hour of sitting can help reduce your risk of heart condition , cancer and even death.
Unfortunately, it isn't as easy because it sounds. As a health behaviour researcher at Western University, I help people to develop action plans to scale back their sitting. Because we are so wont to sitting everywhere, all the time, we typically don't mention sitting when describing activities we do . for instance , we expect of watching TV, not sitting down and watching TV.
It's difficult enough to vary a habit or behaviour once you know it's happening. Things get harder once you also consider that almost every environment is meant for sitting: couches, chairs, cars, offices, etc. However, there are things we will do to form "sitting less" easier. Here are some practical strategies that I've found to be useful for my participants to go away you in "good standing":
Shape your environment: a bit like being physically active is simpler with the proper equipment, modifying your space for standing and moving will make it easier to try to to so. this will be done by stacking some books for a standing desk or creating a route to pace within the house while on chatting on your phone.
Remind yourself you're sitting: Because sitting is so habitual for many folks , we frequently need a reminder to interrupt it up. Setting an alarm for each half-hour before sitting down, or just putting a sticky note on your display screen or desk of once you sat down are often a useful prompt to urge up more often.
Pair it up: an opportunity from sitting isn't necessarily an opportunity from what you're doing, like working or watching TV. But if standing/moving distracts you from your task, then pair it with another healthy behaviour like drinking more water. Getting up to drink water will hack your sitting time, as will getting to the washroom more often as a result. Plus, you will get all the advantages of drinking more water too.
Go the distance: When it involves ending sitting time, the more frequent the breaks, the higher . Incidental movement—the moving we do while going about our day like doing laundry or the steps we take while walking around our home—is a simple thanks to hack sitting time. Try tracking your steps, and setting a step goal (aim for two ,000 more this week!) to assist you monitor your progress.
Tell a friend: Keeping accountable with a housemate or friend can help keep you motivated. Most smartphones have a built-in activity tracker which will track your steps, with apps available to share this data together with your social network.
Competing four steps with a lover can put the "health" in "healthy competition!"
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