Stepping up your game
Posted By:
Monday, April 7, 2025
Sitting is the new smoking. Have you heard this line yet? I try to tell people daily in the office. A decade ago, smoking was the most common cause of early, preventable death. Today, in 2019, obesity and inactivity are the most common cause of preventable death. A sedentary lifestyle is frequently defined as less than 5000 steps per day. The scary statistic is that 70% of the average American's day is spent sitting. Many people fall into the ultra-low activity level of less than 1500 steps/day. These people have increased rates of obesity, chronic disease, diabetes, arthritis and depression. Interestingly, if a person who is active (>10,000 steps/day) converts to a low or ultra-low activity level, their body starts to show these dangerous changes! The correlation with a sedentary lifestyle and poor health has been demonstrated all too frequently.
Pedometers and health monitors are hoping to change that. No one can make you walk or become active. That must come from within. But it is helpful to have reminders to get up and move. Some devices come with a friendly chirp or vibration to let the user know, "Hey get up and move!" Pedometers are also a great way to keep yourself honest and show progress. If you don't measure it, you can't improve it! Keeping an electronic log or journal of your progress will help solidify the desire to move. People like seeing that what they are doing is making a difference.
One of the downfalls of technology is the decreased need to be active. We don't need to go out shopping for clothes, they come to us. We don't need to walk to the movies, we can stream one from home. The key to staying active is making small tweaks to your daily routine. Some ideas to keep your step count high are listed below. If you create a habit of making these conscious decisions, eventually it will become part of your lifestyle and the decisions will come naturally. Good luck!
- Park as far away from your destination as possible.
- Take the stairs. If you can't walk up multiple flights, just walk up one flight and ride the rest of the way.
- Take a brisk walk every morning for 10 minutes.
- Take a walk on your lunch break.
- Stand at your kid's ball games.
- Walk while you talk on the phone.
- Avoid one floor elevator rides.
- Do exercises or walk in place during commercial breaks.
- Walk around the grocery store twice.
- Take the dog for a walk or two.
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04/28/2025 - Ankle Sprains
04/21/2025 - Numb Fingers and Hands
04/14/2025 - Putting the Health Back in Hea
04/07/2025 - Stepping up your game
03/31/2025 - The Sunshine Vitamin
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