It’s the new year and many of us are resolving to lose weight, become more active and improve overall health. Sure, we find ourselves saying the same thing every year, but I was reminded recently about a doctor’s warning that may motivate us all to get up and get moving this time around.
For a few years, Dr. James A. Levine, director of the Mayo Clinic – Arizona State University Obesity Solutions Initiative, has pushed a provocative message to promote a healthier lifestyle: “Sitting is the new smoking.” Levine contends our lives are shortened by two hours for every hour we sit.
“Sitting is more dangerous than smoking, kills more people than HIV and is more treacherous than parachuting. We are sitting ourselves to death,” the author of Get Up! Why Your Chair is Killing You and What You Can Do About It, said in an interview.
Levine explains that too much sitting increases the risk of death from cardiovascular disease and cancer by as much as 125 percent. It leads to conditions including increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist and abnormal cholesterol levels, he says.
SHAPE UP
Scientifically speaking, Levine calls this condition nonexercise activity thermogenesis, or NEAT. The website www.medicalbillingandcoding.org came up with some interesting statistics that explain the problem in simple terms:
- People sit an average of 9.3 hours per day
- Obese people sit for 2.5 hours a day more than thin people
- Between 1980 and 2000, exercise rates stayed the same but sitting time increased 8 percent
- When you sit, calorie burning decreases, fat-burning enzymes drop 90 percent, good cholesterol drops 20 percent, and risk of diabetes rises
This message is important to any American worker, but it’s especially important for the portable sanitation industry this time of year. Portable restroom technicians arguably have a pretty good job for keeping active — at least during the summer months when event and construction business keeps them hopping. But we should all heed Levine’s advice when workers in the industry are least active. And a more active workday is important all year for our office staff stationed at desks.
As Levine points out, “This is about hardcore productivity. You will make money if your workforce gets up and gets moving. Your kids will get better grades if they get up and get moving. The science is not refuted.”
With that in mind, I offer some tips to keep your body moving at work, especially in these dormant periods:
Encourage walking breaks
Office workers are most at risk of a life-shortening sedentary lifestyle. If you sit behind a desk all day, plan short walking breaks throughout the day. Get up and move around whenever possible: to confer with other workers, to get the mail, or just to walk down the street and back. Get out of the mindset that these walking breaks are time wasters, and realize they are making you healthier.
Add sit-stand desks
Just a few years ago, it was quite expensive to purchase desks that move up and down to allow you to alternate between sitting and standing positions. That has changed since experts started talking about sitting as a major health risk. Today, you can purchase a variety of desktop units that easily elevate your monitor and keyboard for $200 to $300, and desks with electric motors that raise and lower the work surface can be bought for $400 to $500, though you can spend a lot more. Encourage your office crew to stand as much as possible. They may start with brief intervals of standing in front of the computer, and work up to spending most of their day up off their chairs.
Get out of the cab
Portable restroom route drivers enjoy the benefit of lots of moving around during the day. If you service 40 to 50 restrooms on a route, you’re getting in plenty of steps and a wide range of motion and activity. But there are still long stretches where you’re sitting in the cab between stops. Break up long rides with short walks. And on slow days back at the office or warehouse, try to avoid sitting down on the job. And don’t let good habits developed during the busy season slack off when winter comes. Keep moving year-round.
Count your steps
Fitness tracking devices have come down in price, and using a Fitbit or a Misfit or any number of other brands of wearables can be a great motivator to keep moving. These devices will track your daily steps and other exercise activities, as well as monitor your sleep habits. They sync to your smartphone and let you know your progress toward healthy lifestyle goals. Compete against yourself to improve the numbers or purchase fitness trackers for everyone in the company and set up a group so you can encourage each other to get more active.
Meet in person
The phone, email and texting have helped us improve efficiency in communicating with fellow workers and customers. But these technologies all play into more sedentary habits at work. When you have to talk to a driver, walk out to the garage to see him. When you have the time, call on customers in person to get away from your desk. Conduct staff meetings or training sessions standing up rather that seated around a conference table. Better yet, take the meeting outside for a walk around the block or through a park.
Don’t sit down for TV time
It’s easy to reverse the good habits when you arrive home after a long day. Studies show many people spend five hours a day or more watching TV. Of course, the first goal could be to limit the eyeball time. One could argue there isn’t five hours of anything worth watching no matter how many cable channels you pay for. After limiting your screen time, consider sliding that comfy reclining couch away from the TV and replacing it with a treadmill or exercise bike. Allow yourself only to watch TV if you’re walking or riding at the same time.
