There has been lots of talk about how sitting is the new smoking and you have probably heard big statements like sitting Kills you. Which I think is a bit too much. Like most things in life to benefit from one thing may result in a loss of another thing so a balance is necessary. Instead of pushing one topic and get you to be concerned about sitting. I want to bring to your attention the importance of a balance and how taking breaks and changing your pattern will give the best of both worlds.
Two more hours per day sitting have a 125 per cent increased risk of health problems related to cardiovascular disease, including chest pain and heart attacks according to Smithsonian.com. What we should be saying is the danger or risk of prolonged sitting even standing.
Recent studies (28th February 2018) says too much standing is bad for us: View study
Research undertaken by Curtin University (Australia) found that adults who stood for 2 hours while working experienced an increase in whole-body discomfort and reduced mental state.
The study states:
“ Standing is being used to replace sitting by office workers; however, there are health risks associated with prolonged standing. In a laboratory study involving 2 h prolonged standing discomfort increased (all body areas), reaction time and mental state deteriorated while creative problem-solving improved. Prolonged standing should be undertaken with caution.”
Knowing better the effects of standing hopefully can help creative problem-solving at the expense of reaction time and mental state and discomfort. Now think balance, creating both environments where there is a mixture of standing and sitting. The utmost importance of obtaining an ergonomic workstation that allows adjustability to sit when needed and stand when needed.
Overall to stand or sit both have their own strengths and weaknesses the main importance is to utilise or have the ability to have both options. Depending on the routine, especially for the healthcare industry, standing all day is common and Favour standing as the benefits of moving your body is far better than sitting just keep that balance ! and take a break after
1-2h of standing give your legs the change to rest before continuing the strains of the day.
Overall to stand or sit both have their own strengths and weaknesses the main importance is to utilise or have the ability to have both options. Depending on the routine, especially for the healthcare industry, standing all day is common and Favour standing as the benefits of moving your body is far better than sitting just keep that balance ! and take a break after
1-2h of standing give your legs the change to rest before continuing the strains of the day.
The 3/60 Rule:
So many supporters for what I call the 3/60 rule where it's recommended to stand for 3 min for every 60 mins sitting, but this really addresses office workers which you should definitely take up but for the flip side where standing is the normal stance of the job where this rule does not help, lets scrap that and say just take a break every 60 mins from what you are doing.
I’m here to help, here are some helpful topics to better your health:
More : Sitting Vs Standing