The summer season is filled with music festivals, days putzing round a museum, catching dwell music live shows, and occasions that preserve us on our ft. Typically, you’ll find your self doing plenty of standing round for a number of hours. And consider it or not, these lengthy hours in your ft can go away you feeling sore and fatigued. However is standing a exercise?
In response to Heather Hamilton, ACSM licensed train physiologist and cofounder of Barpath Health, the reply is: Not a lot.
“Standing for an extended time frame will be bodily demanding and should contribute to elevated power expenditure in comparison with sitting or sedentary actions; nonetheless, it’s usually not thought-about a proper exercise within the conventional sense,” she says.
When seeking to examine the field of “what makes a exercise,” Hamilton is on the lookout for actions that elevate your coronary heart price and actions that encourage flexibility and mobility, amongst different issues. “Standing alone doesn’t elevate your coronary heart price considerably, nor does it problem your cardiovascular system in the identical approach that cardio workouts like working, biking, or swimming do,” she says. “Cardiovascular workouts are necessary for enhancing coronary heart well being, stamina, and general endurance.”
Hamilton additionally notes that standing is simply concentrating on the muscle tissues of your decrease physique with out sufficient resistance or depth to successfully strengthen and construct muscle mass. So, it’s a no-go on true power constructing.
Associated Tales
Okay, standing is not a exercise, however are there any advantages to doing it for lengthy durations?
Whereas it’s not checking the field for getting that every day health in, your physique can profit for being in your ft frequently. “Standing for prolonged durations primarily engages the muscle tissues of your legs, core, and again to keep up an upright posture and help your physique weight,” Hamilton says. “This will result in improved muscle tone and elevated calorie burn in comparison with sitting. It could actually additionally present some advantages on your cardiovascular well being by selling blood circulation and stopping extended durations of inactivity.”
Find out how to take care of soreness from standing quite a bit
Though it’s not technically a exercise, typically extended standing could make you’re feeling sore, so, what offers? Hamilton explains that this may be from an extended listing of causes like muscle fatigue, lack of motion, or occasion poor posture. “The muscle tissues are consistently working to keep up an upright posture and help your physique weight, which might result in soreness and discomfort,” she says.
Specifically, standing in a single place for an extended time frame—taking a look at you, all-day music pageant attendees—restricts blood circulation and reduces your physique’s muscle contractions. When this occurs, Hamilton says, your physique will get a buildup of waste merchandise like lactic acid within the muscle tissues, contributing to soreness and stiffness.
You may additionally be feeling sore after standing due to poor posture or conditioning. Hamilton says that poor posture (like slouching or standing and placing added strain on one leg) whereas standing can put added stress on sure muscle tissues and joints, which makes us really feel sore the following day. “If you happen to’re not accustomed to standing for lengthy durations, your muscle tissues is probably not conditioned to deal with the extended demand,” she says. “Lack of power and endurance within the related muscle teams can contribute to soreness.”
Fight these lengthy days of standing by deliberately setting apart time to maneuver round, stretch, and even hydrate. If you recognize you have got an extended day forward, get in a light-weight exercise prior.
Here is a 19-minute, full-body stretch to get your physique warmed up and able to be in your ft: