Now that we are all more at home (at work), we are also much more quiet during the day. And that (indirectly) does not exactly have a positive effect on our mental and physical health. Even people who are relatively active can feel the impact of sitting still for a long time, whether it's from working (at home) or from sitting in front of the television on weekends. But exactly how much should you exercise to compensate for that sitting still?
Before you panic and start doing your work while running on the treadmill, we've got some good news for you. You can reduce some health risks of sitting for hours on end by exercising regularly and demonstrably. A study published in the British Journal of Medicine seems to have found the golden rule for daily exercise to have the negative effects of sitting for 10 hours straight…
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According to this study, 30 to 40 minutes of daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity could reduce the effects of a nearly inactive lifestyle. In the study, the researchers analyzed 9 different studies from four different countries, in which 44,370 men and women were followed over a 4.5-year period. They looked at how different combinations of exercise (measured by fitness trackers) and inactivity affected their health and risk of death. Overall, the researchers found that high inactivity was associated with a high risk of death in the less active participants.
Not only did this study show that 30 to 40 minutes of exercise a day could make a difference, another study also suggested that 35 minutes of exercise a day can help prevent depression. Exactly what you do about exercise is up to you – make sure you have fun doing it! Try to find activities that get your heart rate up and make you sweat, whether it's a workout in the gym or an intense afternoon of playing with your kids. Go for a walk around your neighborhood, cycle a bit or run up and down the stairs. Or, even more fun:have a dance party with your kids! If you can't exercise for a day, don't panic:stand every 20 to 30 minutes to stretch your legs and walk around the house. Every little bit helps!
