Within the final a number of years, examine after damning examine has known as out the well being dangers of extended sitting. But regardless of broadly worded suggestions to limit our sedentary conduct, there are nonetheless no official pointers telling us precisely how a lot sitting is an excessive amount of.
Given what’s sensible for most individuals, we consider aiming to restrict your sitting to 6 hours a day is an affordable ask. As consultants in motion, we predict this quantity squares with how a lot sitting the physique can tolerate earlier than it begins to take a toll on mobility.
How effectively do you progress after hunkering down in a chair for 10 to 12 hours? We wager that you just really feel stiff and clunky. You don’t want a examine to let you know {that a} king-size dose of sitting is detrimental to your physique.
Nonetheless, sitting is so elementary to trendy life that many individuals ignore the harm it does, not to mention notice what number of hours they spend in the identical place day after day. For those who’re one in every of these folks, now could be your likelihood to seek out out.
This evaluation will take you thru a 24-hour interval throughout which you’ll word any time you sit in a chair, park your self on a stool or bench or mattress (whereas sitting, not mendacity down), or nestle your physique into a settee. We recommend doing the evaluation on a typical weekday (weekdays are when most individuals spend a very good share of the day sitting).
Two sorts of sitting get a go: sitting or squatting on the ground and exercising whereas sitting. Cyclists, rowers, kayakers, and different exercisers who work out in a seated place don’t want so as to add that point to their sitting stock.
The Take a look at
From the time you stand up within the morning to the time you hop into mattress within the night, observe the time you spend sitting. This consists of sitting at your desk, in your sofa, in a automotive, at a café, whereas driving public transportation, and extra. Once more, there are solely two exceptions: sitting or squatting on the ground and exercising in a seated place.
Your rating is the variety of hours you spent sitting throughout your evaluation. Spherical minutes under 30 down and minutes above 30 up (for instance, 7 hours 26 minutes is 7 hours; 7 hours 45 minutes is 8 hours).
For those who’re shocked by how a lot you sit, you’re not alone. A number of the most well-trained athletes we all know get a shock once they calculate their numbers. What’s necessary now could be that you just’re conscious of it and might take steps — literal steps! — to keep away from extended intervals of sitting.
What your outcomes imply:
That is what your rating tells you about the place you might be and the place you may try to be.
- 6 hours or much less: We’re impressed! Until you will have a job that requires standing (and possibly you do), it’s not straightforward to hit this mark. Stick with it.
- 7 to 9 hours: Relying on the place you might be on this vary, we offer you a B+ to a C+. For those who’re at 9 hours, it could seem to be an enormous leap to get down to six, however our expertise tells us that when you begin spending extra day trip of a chair, change comes pretty simply. You’ll start to wish to sit much less.
- 10 to 12 hours: You earn a stable C-. It’s essential reformat your days considerably, however we’ve seen tons of of individuals do it. So can you.
- 13+ hours: We remorse to say that you’re failing on this one space. A very powerful factor so that you can bear in mind is that you just don’t have to vary in a single day. It’s not solely superb to steadily enhance the time you spend in your toes somewhat than in a chair, but it surely’s additionally preferable.
When to retest:
How usually must you retest? Every day. Monitoring the hours you spend sitting every day will help you construct consciousness round your habits — and supply a jumping-off level to make adjustments. You may uncover that sure components maintain you seated longer than what’s beneficial, and also you may develop inner alerts to extend the period of time you spend standing or transferring.
Sitting for lengthy intervals could be frequent, however it may possibly undermine your well being. Standing up, nevertheless, is a straightforward act that may infuse your day with useful motion. Study extra at “The Very important Position Standing — Versus Sitting — Performs in Your Well being” from which this text was excerpted.
