Over the years, you may have heard a lot of rumors that "sedentary" is the closest way to death.
"Sedentary" equals chronic suicide, is this "alarmism"? No, it's not!
Sedentary behavior is the act of maintaining a sitting or leaning posture while awake and consuming less than or equal to 1.5 Mets (Metu, an energy metabolism equivalent). Generally, sitting more than five days a week, more than eight hours a day, or more than two hours at a time, both of which are called sedentary.
What are the risks of sitting for a long time?
According to relevant studies, sitting for a long time has certain damage to the skeletal system, blood circulation system, reproductive system and digestive system. It has been linked to an increased risk of 14 diseases, including cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, chronic obstructive pneumonia, Parkinson's, and more. Therefore, sitting for a long time can be described as "all harms and no benefits".
How can I reduce the risks associated with sitting?
Since sitting for a long time brings so many health risks, how can we, as a "sedentary army", avoid the harm caused by sitting for a long time? The "secret" is the four words "sit well" and "sit less", maintain a correct sitting posture, and avoid sitting for a long time. On a daily basis, we can relieve the discomfort caused by sitting for a long time through the following actions.
1. Tilt your head back and resist with both hands
Place your hands on the back of your head, push your head forward, hold your neck still, take a break after 10 seconds, and repeat 10 to 20 times.
2. High fives over the head
Stand with your arms stretched out from either side of your body, clasp your hands together above your head, return to your original position, and repeat 20 to 30 times.
3. Turn around in a sitting position
Sit on a chair with your calves perpendicular to your thighs and your arms straight to the sides, forming a T-shape, rotate 90 degrees to the left, return to your place, rotate 90 degrees to the right for 10 seconds on each side, 5 to 10 times for 1 set, 3 to 5 sets per day.
4. Leg circles
Sit on the edge of the chair with your knees bent. Feet on the ground. Raise your right foot so that it is slightly off the ground and turn counterclockwise from below the knee, as if drawing circles in the air with your heels. Keep making counterclockwise circles for 30 seconds and then clockwise for another 30 seconds, then raise your left foot and do the same. If drawing circles is too boring, you can also draw 26 letters to spice it up.
5. Raise the calf
Sit on the edge of the chair and keep your knees bent. With the left foot raised towards the ceiling, the toes facing up, and the leg straight parallel to the ground, the hamstring (the muscles at the back of the thigh) will stretch. Put your feet down and repeat the whole set 5 times. Then, do the same set of movements with your right foot.