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Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

elth.co

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Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#11

Post by wallace_f »

alansammarone wrote: post #5

Every time I read an article like this, I get a bad feeling and I say to myself "I'll definitely exercise more - I don't wanna be all buggy when I get older due to my lifestyle - I'll do this NOW!". Then a couple of hours later, I'm back coding happily seated. I'm sure this is the case for many of us. I wish our brains could keep this bad, guilty-like feeling that makes us take action around for longer.

For me, the hardest part was getting past that when getting into shape. Going to the gym when you're out of shape isn't very fun. Who wants to role play the loser? You're surrounded by people who all look better and are stronger than you. And it's not just mental, it's also physically unenjoyable.

In my experience, if you can just get over that hump to a point where you start to look good, or get strong, or feel good, it becomes an activity, not a chore. Your body is incredible and it's a shame to not see a glimpse of its potential.

This simple concept was very helpful to me, and I hope to others as well.

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#12

Post by modernerd »

I bought a speed rope and started skipping for 20 minutes every morning while listening to audiobooks. https://rpmtraining.com

It’s cheaper than a gym, needs little space, elevates my heart rate more than running ever did, and there are tricks to learn to keep it fresh and progressively raise the difficulty (double-unders, cross-overs etc.).

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#14

Post by snarfy »

alansammarone wrote: post #5

Every time I read an article like this, I get a bad feeling and I say to myself "I'll definitely exercise more - I don't wanna be all buggy when I get older due to my lifestyle - I'll do this NOW!". Then a couple of hours later, I'm back coding happily seated. I'm sure this is the case for many of us. I wish our brains could keep this bad, guilty-like feeling that makes us take action around for longer.

You have about 5 seconds before your brain shuts up those ideas like "I'll definitely exercise more...".

It's an awesome idea, life changing even. 5 seconds later your rational self catches up with the idea and starts to counter with 'but I don't have enough time', 'it's too hard', 'maybe tomorrow', etc.

The next time you get the idea to exercise more you need to stop what you are doing right then and there and do something about it. Maybe it's not the best time to start exercising at 3am when you have the idea, but at least put it down in your calendar with an alarm/reminder/something. The point being you need to take action on those ideas as soon as you have them, or they are gone.

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#15

Post by mmsimanga »

Today is day 2 of my standup desk for my home computing. Not enough time to give a summary but one thing I have noticed already is I am moving around a lot more. After about 30 minutes of standing I have do something else, walk outside, or do a few squats or stretch. Reason I built stand up desk are all the reasons in the article.

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#16

Post by hacker_9 »

alansammarone wrote: post #5

Every time I read an article like this, I get a bad feeling and I say to myself "I'll definitely exercise more - I don't wanna be all buggy when I get older due to my lifestyle - I'll do this NOW!". Then a couple of hours later, I'm back coding happily seated. I'm sure this is the case for many of us. I wish our brains could keep this bad, guilty-like feeling that makes us take action around for longer.

Start small - take the stairs over the lift, do more walking etc. Just make it part of your life, no need for exercise to stop and start in the gym.

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#17

Post by rahulchowdhury »

alansammarone wrote: post #5

Every time I read an article like this, I get a bad feeling and I say to myself "I'll definitely exercise more - I don't wanna be all buggy when I get older due to my lifestyle - I'll do this NOW!". Then a couple of hours later, I'm back coding happily seated. I'm sure this is the case for many of us. I wish our brains could keep this bad, guilty-like feeling that makes us take action around for longer.

Well, I would suggest that instead of going all in at once, try making fitness a habit step by step.

1 - Cut sugar from your diet 2 - Reduce junk food from your diet (start having homemade food) 3 - Start doing bodyweight exercises

and so on.

It will be much easier to stick to the plan if you break your goal into smaller actionable steps.

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#18

Post by hacker_9 »

mmsimanga wrote: post #15

Today is day 2 of my standup desk for my home computing. Not enough time to give a summary but one thing I have noticed already is I am moving around a lot more. After about 30 minutes of standing I have do something else, walk outside, or do a few squats or stretch. Reason I built stand up desk are all the reasons in the article.

I exercise regularly and have always thought of a standing desk as far too extreme, Especially as programmers as we need to think though problems over several hours. The added stress of standing would just be far too much.

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#19

Post by microtonal »

alansammarone wrote: post #5

Every time I read an article like this, I get a bad feeling and I say to myself "I'll definitely exercise more - I don't wanna be all buggy when I get older due to my lifestyle - I'll do this NOW!". Then a couple of hours later, I'm back coding happily seated. I'm sure this is the case for many of us. I wish our brains could keep this bad, guilty-like feeling that makes us take action around for longer.

It’s easier when you build it into your daily routines. E.g. I have to go to work anyway, so I take a bike.

Re: Sitting down too much is doing more harm to your body than you can imagine

#20

Post by inDigiNeous »

alansammarone wrote: post #5

Every time I read an article like this, I get a bad feeling and I say to myself "I'll definitely exercise more - I don't wanna be all buggy when I get older due to my lifestyle - I'll do this NOW!". Then a couple of hours later, I'm back coding happily seated. I'm sure this is the case for many of us. I wish our brains could keep this bad, guilty-like feeling that makes us take action around for longer.

I wish these article writers wouldn't write in the "YOU" mode, instead write "how sitting on front the computer is killing me" and then realize maybe there's a better way to communicate this without making us feel guilty.

Pain teaches me away from sitting too long, but the catch is of course to have some alternatives, like taking a break or standing, or doing yoga, if I didn't have those experiences and routines I wouldn't really probably know or recognize the pain, as the pain would be every day with me.

Standing desk is a great invention, but I've noticed I cannot stand all day long, as I cannot sit all day long, best solution for _me_ is to alternate between standing and sitting, that seems to do the trick.

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