Get Up, Stand Up!

Whenever possible, I stand. This includes my writing time, and my quiet time at the cafe. When I first started this habit, I felt very self-conscious, but now, it's just fun to see the reactions even a small break with convention receives. I've been asked if I'm waiting for someone, if I'm leaving soon so they can have my table, and if I have a medical condition that makes sitting down painful, or difficult. Some people just can't cope with anything different. It's not that I'm anti-relaxation, it's just that I want to burn the maximum amount of calories each day so that I can eat the maximum amount of good food. There are multiple other benefits of standing over sitting, but as I've said before, I'm greedy, and proud of it!

I don't subscribe to any extreme doctrine, rest is as important activity. One article by a chiropractor stated that the human body wasn't designed for sitting, and another recommended sitting for less that two hours cumulatively per day if you want to live a nice long healthy life. Seriously, this is a thing. Like with science behind it.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uiKg6JfS658
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4K_ENbRgywY

Whether you believe the recent research, or not, it is hard to deny that too much of contemporary life is sedentary, and there is significant evidence to suggest that sitting, or at least sitting too much, has a correlated negative effect on our health. I don't need all of the evidence to be reviewed to act on this.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that I tend towards mild ADHD behavior. Sometimes I just need to move to think, and I've always been rather fidgety and twitchy. I have difficulty sitting through a whole 22 minute television show, which is the real reason I rarely watch television. My husband has gotten used to me shifting in my seat, and getting up to stand at the back of the theater on the occasions that we do go to see a movie together. I also tend to, literally, sit on the edge of my seat if I'm really focused on what we're seeing, and while I do not sign along when I'm seeing a musical - well, not out loud - I have been known to chair dance and wiggle when we're at a live show. Not to put too fine a point on it: I have friends who refuse to go to movies with me because I literally cannot sit still. Unless I am fully engrossed in a project I naturally don't sit for long periods of time, so standing to work, or even relax, isn't that much of a stretch for me, as it may be for others.

So, maybe you're not inclined to adopt a standing desk, or pace your way through American Idol. You can do something to be less sedentary. One recommendation to counteract the negative effects of sitting is to get up from your desk once every hour, and do 5 minutes of activity. I'm not sure a trip to the refrigerator counts as cardio, but longer commercial breaks are perfect for stretching, and other body weight only exercises. As with all exercise, anything you do is better than being sedentary. So, hell yes, that trip to the bathroom counts!