Sitting the whole day is bad for you. Here's why...

It's no secret that sitting the whole day is bad for your health. But many people don't realize just how harmful it can be. Studies have shown that sitting for extended periods of time can lead to a number of health problems, including obesity, heart disease, and cancer. This blog post will explore the dangers of sitting and explain why it's important to get up and move around every once in a while!

You're not entirely correct. Sure, sitting for a short time can help us relax and recuperate from an activity. However, because of our busy lives, we now sit much more than we walkabout, and our bodies aren't designed for such a #sedentary lifestyle. In fact, the opposite is true. The human body was designed to move, and you can observe that in the way it's structured. Inside us are over 360 joints, as well as around 700 skeletal muscles that allow for easy and fluid motion. The body's unique physical structure allows us to stand upright against gravity's pull.

Walking is important for the circulation of blood in our bodies. Movement allows nerve cells to function properly, and our skin is elastic, thus molding to our motions. So what happens when you don't move?

Let's start with the backbone of the problem, which is also literal. Your spine is a long, skeletal structure made of bones and cartilage discs that float between them. The joints, muscles, and ligaments linked to the bones hold it all together. A typical #sitting posture is to sit with your back curved and your shoulders slumped forward

Because of this, you might experience back discomfort and other health issues. In addition to causing structural changes, chronic hunching can lead to muscle strain and wear on your spine's discs. It also puts a strain on muscles that stretch to accommodate your back's curved posture, contributing to overuse injuries. This hunched posture reduces the amount of space

Around the bones are the muscles, nerves, arteries and veins that make up the body's soft tissue layers. These more delicate tissues are compressed and pressurised, giving them an intense sensation. Have you ever noticed tingling or swelling in your limbs when you sit? In regions where nerve transmission is hampered,

Sitting for long periods also temporarily deactivates #lipoprotein lipase, a special enzyme in the walls of blood capillaries that breaks down fats in the blood, so when you sit, you're not burning fat nearly as well when you move around.

What effect does all of this #inactivity have on the brain? When you usually sit down to utilize your intellect, most of the time you probably do so while sitting still. However, ironically, extended periods of sitting actually work against you. Blood flow and oxygen delivery to your bloodstream are both reduced when you sit still for lengthy periods.  

Unfortunately, the ill effects of being seated don't only exist in the short term. Recent studies have found that sitting for long periods is linked with some types of cancers and heart disease and can contribute to diabetes, and kidney and liver problems. In fact, researchers have worked out that, worldwide, inactivity causes about 9% of premature deaths a year. That's over 5 million people. So what seems like such a harmless habit actually has the power to change our health.

But luckily, the solutions to this mounting threat are simple and intuitive. When you have no choice but to sit, try switching the slouch for a straighter spine, and when you don't have to be bound to your seat, aim to move around much more, perhaps by setting a reminder to yourself to get up every half hour. Even better, have a look at your calendar straight away and see which sitting meetings you can turn into walking meetings with feeting!

Appreciate that bodies are built for motion, not for stillness. In fact, since the reading is almost done, why not stand up and stretch right now? Treat yourself to a feeting. It'll thank you later