On an average day, most people sit for roughly six and a half to eight hours. Sitting for this amount of time daily can cause an increase in health problems such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and metabolic disorders. Physical activity is crucial to lowering these risks and increasing your muscle strength, improving sleep, maintaining weight and reducing stress and anxiety.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity per week. That number can be intimidating to some, but scheduling regular activity breaks can help lower that intimidation. Knowing how to incorporate physical activity into your day is important, but it’s also crucial to have a balance between sitting and standing.
Many people work out once a day and then sit for the remainder of the day. This type of lifestyle can still result in a highly sedentary state. For instance, exercising for 30 minutes during an eight-hour (seated) workday is a relatively small amount of time spent being active. In this scenario, most of the workday is still spent sitting.
The goal should be to reduce sedentary behavior and increase overall movement to improve cardiometabolic health, including blood pressure and blood sugar levels. This extra movement can be achieved by exercising before or after work, moving during lunch breaks, incorporating short, active breaks between meetings or standing at your desk whenever possible.
Here are some solutions to help maintain balance and increase your activity:
Focus on Steps
According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), “[t]he average American walks around 4,000-5,000 steps per day, but inactive people may get only 2,000 steps a day or less.” Their research showed that an increase in daily steps from 4,000 to 8,000 resulted in a 50% lower risk of all-cause mortality, and an increase to 12,000 daily steps had a 65% lower risk. It’s important to note that you don’t need to jump right up to 10-12,000 steps. The main thing is to increase your usual steps so you can lower the risk of health problems. For instance, if you are taking 4,000 steps a day, that is considered a lower level of physical activity. Increasing that number of 4,000 to 6,000 steps per day can decrease your health risks. Keeping track of your steps and working to increase them should be the goal.
Tracking Your Steps
Tracking your steps per day is the key to raising your average steps. There are a few ways to track your steps. One way is a fitness watch like Fitbit, Apple or Garmin. Fitness watches are usually on your person all day, so it will track all the steps you take. It not only tracks your steps but usually helps you with workouts and measures your heart rate. Another way to track is to utilize free fitness apps on your mobile device such as Apple Health or Google Fit. This can be more cost effective; however, you must keep your mobile device on while you take those steps. Otherwise, you could be getting incorrect data.
Both options are a great starting point to increase your activity levels. They both have positives and negatives, but weighing the options and finding the best option for you is key.
Improve Your Ratio of Sitting and Standing
Using ratios can help correct the imbalance between standing and sitting:
- 3:1 — for every 30 minutes of sitting, spend 10 minutes standing/active
- 1:1 — for every 30 minutes of sitting, spend 30 minutes standing
Both ratios are great to keep in mind when wanting to lower your sedentary levels per day. For instance, after sitting for 30 minutes, schedule a time to walk and get water or go to the bathroom. The key is to find a ratio that helps you increase your activity state in a comfortable way. If those sound too overwhelming, you could even start by standing up and moving for one to three minutes for every 30 minutes you spend seated.
Prioritize Your Workout
Even though it’s a smaller portion of your day, prioritizing regular exercise (cardio, strength, yoga and mobility) should not get left out of the equation. Regular, planned exercise is vital to your physical and mental health, enhances your quality of life and helps to tack on extra movement minutes.
Being intentional with your time can help you be more active. It can be initially challenging to schedule active breaks, but it is important for your health and well-being. Strategies such as tracking steps, increasing your average steps and utilizing ratios of standing and sitting can help decrease your risk of disease and other health problems. Get creative with your movement! Grab a friend, take frequent walks to the water fountain, or schedule walk-and-talk meetings. The key is to simply move more.
by Arielle Collins
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