Think about it. You spend about six hours a day at school. And when you go home, you go straight to the couch to watch TV, play video games or use your mobile phone/tablet. The problem is not sitting; instead, it sits too much.
Who knew sitting could be harmful? Today it is classified as a disorder. Your body is made and meant to move. Physical activity keeps the body alive and healthy. It promotes stamina and energy. On the contrary, inactivity does the exact opposite. However, as technology advances, such as video games and Netflix movies, modern life will be incompatible and further hinder the intention of exercise.
Unfortunately, sitting is significantly more common than it should be, regardless of age, work or lifestyle. Everyone should sit, but not everyone has a plan to counteract and mitigate the negative effects and consequences of sitting. The good news, however, is that it can all be reversed.
The adverse effects of sitting
Research has linked many health and exercise problems to prolonged sitting
time. As a result, the airways, musculoskeletal system and nervous system become deconditioned.
Reduces metabolism
Sitting too much slows your metabolism to less than normal. And that affects
the body’s ability to properly regulate internal functions, meaning a slow metabolism cannot process energy quickly enough.
Sitting puts your health at risk for:
- Obesity and excess body fat.
- An increase in cholesterol, blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.
- An increase in blood sugar, exposure to hyperglycemia and type 2 diabetes.
By exercising for at least 20 minutes every day, the negative effects of excessive sitting are counteracted. So if you do sports or any recreational activity on a daily basis, don’t worry. And if not, then you need to stand and move more often. For example, get up every 20-30 minutes and move for 5 minutes. Or try doing it several times a day.
Just like your computer, it shuts down when it goes to sleep due to inactivity. Simply moving the mouse will activate the computer. Likewise, simply moving your body activates your metabolism to reverse the damaging process.
Disrupts your body alignment
The more important, complex issue concerns alignment and posture. Sitting only 10
minutes your posture and alignment deviate for the worst. Have you ever sat for ten minutes, and then your body goes one way and then the other? These are unconscious adjustments that take place in your body. But you only notice them when you feel tension or pain in a muscle. And by that time the evil is not yet done, but it is just beginning.
This is important to address and understand as these issues lead to musculoskeletal disorders, wear and tear and injury. The problem is when you move. Poor alignment cannot distribute forces properly.
center of gravity
Sitting weakens one of the most important muscles and parts of your body – the
glutes and hips. The hips are the central point where alignment is generated. When the glutes are weak, the hips change position. The position change deviates from the alignment, which promotes imbalance and instability. Your body is intelligent. Other joints compensate based on one to reduce pressure and pain, which reduces range of motion and mobility.
For example, if the glutes are weak, the hips will tilt forward. As they tilt forward, the lower back extends. When the back is stretched out, you can’t lift your knees that high. It mainly puts undue strain on the lumbar region, knees, and hamstrings, affecting more of the lower body than the upper body.
As the hips tilt back, your spine bends forward. And that will limit and limit your shoulder and neck mobility. This position therefore mainly concerns the upper body.
Misalignment leads to dysfunction
When your hips are misaligned, your movements are compensated and
dysfunctional. As a result, you do not move properly functionally. It can be very mild to severe.
For example, if you play basketball with a rounded spine, constantly lifting your arms above your head will cause pain and injury to your shoulders. Or, if you sprint and run with an overloaded lumbar region, it will put a lot of strain on the lumbar and knees.
Think about putting a circle pin in a square hole; you can try to grind it and force it in, but it won’t fit. The same as trying to lift your arms straight overhead with a rounded spine, bringing them into an extended position applies force to the joint.
This is important to understand because misalignment leads to dysfunction. And repetitive dysfunctional movements lead to musculoskeletal problems, pain, strain and injury.
Plus, walking around with any of these musculoskeletal issues during training or on the field puts you at greater risk of injury.
The solution
Not to complicate matters, but physical activity doesn’t fix posture or alignment
issues. Rather, it makes them worse and more prone to injuries, pain, and musculoskeletal disorders as you age.
The solution here is to restore functionality. There are numerous ways to restore functionality, but here’s a quick one. Squeeze your glutes and hold for 15 seconds. Do this standing three times. You can also do the same with lunges. In the lunge position, squeeze your glutes and hold for 15 seconds. These two exercises can help reverse the course of dysfunction.
People often do back and spine strengthening exercises that don’t solve their pain because the cause is the hips. When the glutes are strong, the hips will return to a stabilized, balanced, and well-aligned position. From there, the spine corrects the alignment itself. Also, when the glutes are strong, it naturally activates the abs and core by moving back and forth.
The balance of the hips affects the position of the spine. In addition, the position of the spine affects the position and alignment of the shoulders and neck. Since the hips are most affected by sitting and affect the alignment of the spine, do glute-strengthening exercises first.
I accept
In the end
Mindful repetition is the key to forming good or bad habits. So, to change habits, you have to be aware that you are repetitive. That’s why you know to sit up straight if you’re in a bad position.
For more info on strength training, check out the book INSTANT STRENGTH.
For more info on balance and alignment, check out the book THE BALANCED BODY.
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