James Foley of Iconhealthclub is back with some advice that us office types should definitely be listening to.
Are you sitting down all day in your office? Sitting down in car or bus on your commute? Then sitting down on the couch after you get home?
You are doing serious damage to your body as we're not made to sit down all day. Dr. Mark Tully of Queens University Belfast estimates that on average, an office worker spends nine hours or up to 80% of their day sitting. We are sitting down more than ever before and are spending more time sitting then sleeping!
Drawbacks of sitting down all day
- You’re shaving off seven years of quality life.
- Recent studies have found that sitting down for long periods is linked with some types of cancers and heart disease, while can also contribute to diabetes, kidney and liver problems.
- Prolonged sitting is just as bad for your health as smoking according to researchers at Queen’s University Belfast and can bring on health issues such as cancer.
- When you sit your muscles are relaxed and the enzymes that help break down fat drop 90%.
- Inactivity is the fourth biggest killer of adults, according to the World Health Organisation.
We are sorry to tell you the bad news but don’t worry there are ways to change this. It's easy to counteract no matter how lazy you are. Doing exercise after work is simply not enough. Below are 9 tips to help you during the day. Remember, sitting isn’t bad for you, just too much of it will damage your health.
9 Tips to improve your health during work
- Get at least 30 minutes activity every day.
- Have a meeting internally? Take the meeting outside and go for a walk. Not only will you get some exercise, but it may increase the creativity too. Have staff meetings in which everyone stands up for the duration of the meeting or do jumping jacks during the meeting…..or maybe not!
- Put the walking shoes on- park the car that allows you to walk for a bit, or get off the car/luas/train a stop or two before your usual stop.
- Swap chocolate with nuts- instead of going to the shop and picking up a chocolate bar, buy a portion of dry nuts. Ok, you need chocolate for your cup of tea? Buy dark chocolate as it’s much lower in sugar and studies have shown to boost blood-flow to the brain.
- Make sure to get out and walk around the area when you’re on lunch. A new study finds that even gentle lunchtime strolls can perceptibly and immediately lift people’s moods and ability to handle stress at work.
- Aim to drink at least 2 litres of water throughout the day. Try using small cups when drinking the water, to encourage you to get up more frequently.
- Cut down on convenience- we are all guilty of using internal messaging communications such as Skype/Gmail. Rather than communicating this way, walk over to their desk instead and say hello!
- Switch to different sitting positions throughout the day as you may get decrease blood flow in the legs, which could cause leg swelling or edema.
- If you have regular calls, use a headset or speakerphone to encourage yourself to get up and move around the office while talking.
It’s important to keep fit. Make sure to go to a gym after work too, 1escape is the perfect gym for all your needs. Make sure to relax too with their sauna, steam rooms and swimming pools!
For more great training tips visit Avonmore Protein Milk’s training hub
