Live data from Hacker News

Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

sciencebulletin.org

241–250 of 321 posts

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#241
post #160

I sit ~10 hours daily, including 2+ hours driving. I'm naturally skinny but haven't done much physical exercises in recent years ("busy"). Now, at age of 34, I'm starting to realize that my body won't last forever and finally started to exercise few times per week, after I found motivating enough guide¹. It amazing how much more energized it makes you feel. [1] https://www.julian.com/learn/muscle/intro

I am in a very similar situation. I have started doing a fast walk in the morning.

I am looking into the no equipment, no gym style workouts that take 20 minutes.

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#242
post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Alternatively, you can use a standing desk, or switch between a sitting and a standing desk. That way you have an additional litte exercise during the working hours.

I've read so many (anecdotal) stories about standing desks doing a number on knees and ankles that I think I'd rather go in a tanning bed than get one.

Everyone seems to think going all-in is the only option...I have a standing desk and stand maybe 33% of the day at most. The real issue is likely just taking a break from sitting and walking around the office every hour or so. When standing I am much more likely to walk around in the first place.

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#243

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Stronglifts is a great program and the lifts in it are the basis for gaining strength and size. The 5x5 on deadlifts and squats soon start to get tough when the weight increases. I'd recommend Wendler 531 instead, I made much better progress with that. https://jimwendler.com/blogs/jimwendler-com/101065094-5-3-1-... There are some apps that calculate weights for you and show you what you need to do each session, I use…

This is part of what keeps me distant from weightlifting. Everyone you talk to offers a different routine (admittedly, almost all of them are some combination of squats, deadlifts, etc., all of which are workouts I struggle with). I should probably apply the same process as I have with frontend web frameworks... just pick one and roll with it, it will "workout" in the end.

I think people put to much emphasis on the program to follow. The real secret to progression in the gym is dedication. The guy who shows up 4 times a week for a year doing his own made up program is going to look better than the guy doing the latest program they are recommending online for 2 months then giving up.There isn't any perfect system or quick answers so I find its best to just do exercises you enjoy and set yourself little mini goals and work towards them.

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Stronglifts is a great program and the lifts in it are the basis for gaining strength and size. The 5x5 on deadlifts and squats soon start to get tough when the weight increases. I'd recommend Wendler 531 instead, I made much better progress with that. https://jimwendler.com/blogs/jimwendler-com/101065094-5-3-1-... There are some apps that calculate weights for you and show you what you need to do each session, I use…

This is part of what keeps me distant from weightlifting. Everyone you talk to offers a different routine (admittedly, almost all of them are some combination of squats, deadlifts, etc., all of which are workouts I struggle with). I should probably apply the same process as I have with frontend web frameworks... just pick one and roll with it, it will "workout" in the end.

Almost any program will work well for a beginner. Don't overthink it. The important part of weight lifting is using proper form. Other than that, it's really just about picking it up and putting it down.

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#245

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nice, but if you have body fat then you still need another guide to lose it. I'd rather have a guide that deals with muscles and fat simultaneously. From the linked website: > Recognize that all these guys have low body fat, which helps reveal their muscles. You will not actually lose fat by lifting weights, so weight loss is a separate goal altogether.

> You will not actually lose fat by lifting weights Of course you can lose fat by lifting weights. Calories in < calories out = weight loss (hopefully fat). Any type of physical activity increases calories out.

> Of course you can lose fat by lifting weights. Calories in But the problem is that you can't lift weights without consuming sufficient calories (in a sustainable way).

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#246
post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was inclined to disagree, but seeing the populations involved are elderly, I think you're likely correct. It would be interesting to see what the data shows in younger populations, when almost everyone is able to exercise.

The data always turn out the same way. Healthier people exercise more. Sicker people exercise less. One person sees sick people sitting and concludes that they are sitting because they're sick. Another person concludes that they're sick because they're sitting. We need better-quality studies to really determine if sitting makes people sick.

I don't think we need more studies to draw some useful conclusions, and sadly those conclusions do not bode well for the sedentary lifestyle. We know a lot about how human bodies evolved, both during our time as a species and our precursor species. We can also observe hunter-gatherer groups still active today, which is far more indicative of what kind of activity level we are programmed to get. One recent study I read showed that a modern hunter-gatherer group got a little over 2h of moderate to intense physical activity per day, and this produced a negligible risk of any kind of cardiovascular disease while producing a similar lifespan similar to our own. Humans evolved in an environment of this level of physical activity and we require that to retain our physical capacity and stave off disease.

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#247

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Stronglifts is a great program and the lifts in it are the basis for gaining strength and size. The 5x5 on deadlifts and squats soon start to get tough when the weight increases. I'd recommend Wendler 531 instead, I made much better progress with that. https://jimwendler.com/blogs/jimwendler-com/101065094-5-3-1-... There are some apps that calculate weights for you and show you what you need to do each session, I use…

This is part of what keeps me distant from weightlifting. Everyone you talk to offers a different routine (admittedly, almost all of them are some combination of squats, deadlifts, etc., all of which are workouts I struggle with). I should probably apply the same process as I have with frontend web frameworks... just pick one and roll with it, it will "workout" in the end.

Don't overthink it. Just pick one and go.

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#248

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You will not actually lose fat by lifting weights Of course you can lose fat by lifting weights. Calories in < calories out = weight loss (hopefully fat). Any type of physical activity increases calories out.

> Of course you can lose fat by lifting weights. Calories in But the problem is that you can't lift weights without consuming sufficient calories (in a sustainable way).

You can absolutely lift weights while consuming fewer calories than you burn. It's especially effective for new lifters and is often called recomp (losing fat while gaining muscle).

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#249
post #60
post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How old are you? Some people don't develop endurance until their 30s, 40s, or even later! (see Diana Nyad) I had pretty good endurance in my 20s, but noticed a huge boost in my early 30s.

Interesting! I'm 29. Looking forward to my 30s :)

One interesting data point is to look at the age of UFC champion for your weight, who is probably one of the most fit people in the world.

However, you need to (sadly) keep in mind that weight-cutting is a thing and compensate for that.

So, for example, if you weigh, say, 175-210 pounds, presumably you'd be in either Welterweight or Middleweight.

The champions of these divisions are 34 and 37, respectively.

Of course, they cut a substantial amount of weight, which favors younger fighters. It's possible they'll be at their max fitness in another 5-8 years, even though their capacity to cut weight will have diminished.

There's a message in the zeitgeist that max fitness happens in early 20's, but the evidence, at least in the martial arts world, is that it's late-30's to late-40's.

Re: Too much sitting, too little exercise may accelerate biological aging

#250
post #239

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You will not actually lose fat by lifting weights Of course you can lose fat by lifting weights. Calories in < calories out = weight loss (hopefully fat). Any type of physical activity increases calories out.

Dieting while weight lifting in my experience just leads to various injuries. I don't mean the passing out while doing squats kind. I mean straining muscles in a painful way that can take the rest of the month to recover. Note that this was after ~5 months of training before I got the idea to try and lean out. Overall I just wouldn't recommend it. Maximum weight I would say is body weight, then it's more cardio than…

Maximum lifting weight is going to vary from individual based on their experience and strength.

If your muscles take weeks to recover you should see a doctor. That could be rhabdo or some other condition. It should never take that long.

Post reply on HN