How often have you thought about your "spreading" hygiene hiney?
A recent email from Valmont Research cited an article about "Sitting Disease."
Naturally, the "science of sitting" intrigued me because we do it the majority of our clinical days. The article begins by comparing our bodies to computers. As soon as our feet hit the floor, our energy begins. Like a computer, our body programs, connects to the Internet, makes noises when on, and is active. And like a computer, if the keypad or mouse is not activated, then the screen begins to hibernate. When our bodies aren't moving, even for just a few hours, they begin to shut down at the metabolic level, meaning no fat burning (cellulite) or breaking down of triglycerides.
The article, Cycling Inquiry Prevention: Sitting Disease, can be found ahere.
Here are some highlights of the article …
• In the United States we spend more than eight hours a day, 56 hours a week, sitting
• When sitting for a full day, our fat burning enzymes, i.e., lipoprotein lipase, decrease activity by 50%.
• Some of you may be thinking, "No worries, I exercise on the weekends." Worry, because your posture all week long may lead to tightening of the quads, hip flexors, hamstrings, and limiting pelvic mobility.
Shrink your hiney and improve your health through:
• Bone strengthening activities/weight bearing exercises
• Standing up whenever possible (standing burns three times as many calories as sitting)
• Walking for two minutes one time per hour (or between patients when breaking down rooms, do a little standing march or add steps to get your metabolism restarted)
• Change stools/ball chair
• Build core strength and gain greater flexibility
"Bottom line" is, you've got to "move it, move it" during the day!
Kristine A. Hodsdon RDH, BS
Director, RDH eVillage
