In the United States, the average
person spends anywhere between four and six hours a day standing. With so much
of the everyday routine requiring that an individual be seated at a desk or
behind the wheel of a car, it’s no wonder that just over a third of Americans
are considered clinically obese. Furthermore, when popular means of recreation
generally involve a flatscreen, laptop, tablet or smartphone, health
deteriorates.
Though time to formally exercise is
often difficult to find, by merely spending more hours on one’s feet, studies have shown that lifespan and
overall health increase. Seek to implement a few of the following suggestions
into your daily routine and you’ll be surprised to see how much better standing
can really make you feel.
While Working at the Office
1) Intentionally Park the Car
Farther Away
•
The average American commuter already spends 38 hours a year stuck
in traffic. With that in mind, there’s little need to look for the closest possible
parking spot at the office. Purposefully park far away and allow your legs and
feet to do a bit more work. Additionally, opt for using the stairs instead of
the elevator.
2) Set a Desktop Timer
•
While working in your office, set a desktop
timer to go off every half hour or so. At each half hour interval, take a few
brief moments to stretch. Unbeknownst to most, stretching not only improves
flexibility and decreases the risk of personal injury, it also enhances blood
flow to all of the body’s muscles. Says the Wasatch Foot And Ankle Institute of the very injuries that routine
stretching helps eliminate, “Many activities are hard on the feet because of
quick repetitive movements, constricting footwear, and/or increased exposure to
injury or trauma.” Plus, you’ll have a
friendly reminder to tidy up the desk a bit.
3) Talking on the Phone
•
A new study conducted by the Internal Data
Corporation recently found that 79 percent ofpeople between the ages of 18 and 44 have their
smartphones on them 22 hours a day. Regardless of your age, there’s no need to
text or talk on the phone while seated at a desk. When a call comes in or you
need to phone an associate, simply stand up by your desk or walk up and down
the hallway while engaging in conversation.
4) Personalized Emails
•
Over 100 billion emails are sent and received each day online. Though
there’s no data
currently available as to the geographic destinations of those daily emails, it’d be interesting
to know how many of them are sent to a coworker who’s seated no more than 10 feet away.
Instead of a digital message, get on your feet and make it a face-to-face
interaction.
5) Drink Plenty of Water
•
Well-known are the reasons for which a
person should forego a can Diet Coke for a bottle of water. In order to avoid
the sugary temptation, keep a bottle of water atop your desk. As you continue
to drink the bottle dry, not only will hydration levels improve, but you’ll be spending
more time on your feet heading to both the office water cooler and restroom.
While Relaxing at Home
5) Commercial Breaks
•
As of 2014, the average life expectancy of an
American citizen was 78.6 years. Shockingly enough, roughly 9.1 years of that time
is spent watching television with two of those years spent purely on
commercials. Sure, though you might not be willing to sacrifice a single second
of “The Walking
Dead,” during
commercial breaks, perform a few basic exercises to keep your
body active.
6) Lose the Remote
•
Nothing is quite as annoying as losing the T.V.
remote. That being said, in an effort to spend a greater portion of your life
upright, wedge it between the couch cushions every now and again. If you really
want to change the channel or volume level, you’ll have to get on your feet to make
it happen. “Discipline” is the name of
the game with this tip.
7) Books on Tape
•
It’s true that reading does wonders for the brain;
unfortunately, you probably already spend enough time seated comfortably on
your living room’s love seat.
Multitask with a book on tape as you run errands, pick the kids up from school
or take care of some household chores.
8) Be Leery of Your Posture
•
Each year, 31 million Americans experience
lower-back pain. In many instances, poor posture is to blame. Identifying
perfect posture form can be a difficult task; however, it most certainly doesn’t occur when
the spine is slouched over the top of a desk. Follow the instructions on this guide to make sure
that your posture is the way it should be.
9) Leave the Cell Phone In a Single,
Central Location
•
With the phone on loud, it can be left in a
centralized location. Enjoy your weekends with the family. If the phone rings,
you’ll be on your
feet in no time to attend to whatever demands your attention. Until then,
however, there’s no need to be
sitting down, fidgeting with a cell phone.
10) Spend Quality Time With Children
•
In 2000, married fathers spent an average of
just 6.5 hours a week caring
for their children. Married mothers reported slightly better numbers, spending
nearly 13 hours a week taking care of their kids. Children are always lively
and full of energy. Not only will you be exercising by spending time with them,
but further enhancing meaningful relationships which, at the end of the day, is
definitely most important.
Lucas Miller is a young, health-conscious
college student at Brigham Young University. When not writing, running or
studying, he’s working tirelessly to perfect what
he claims is the “World’s Greatest Pompadour.” Find him on Google+.
* Image Credit #2: Pixabay
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