Sitting can be a Health Hazard
Sitting for long periods of time is hazardous to your health. Even if you are active, you still need to get up often and move. That’s because there is a strong association between sitting too much and mortality risks. Exercise does not cancel out the ill effects of too much sitting. Rather, SBAs, or short burst of activity frequently takes you from couch potato to improved metabolic health.
Here are the steps to getting started with daily SBAs:
Step 1. Strap up to get aware. Strap on a training tool like a heart rate monitor or activity counter and use the coutdown timer to alarm you every hour that it is time for your 5 minutes of SBA – short bursts of activity.
Step 2. Fall in love with SBAs, Short Burst Activities. Discover and make a list of SBAs that you can do at the office. There’s a sample list of 8 SBAs at the end of this Activity Tip Sheet.
Step 3. Stand More means Sitting Less. Throughout your day, find ways to stand more.
Step 4. Get NEAT. NEAT stands for non-exercise activity thermogenesis which is any movement activity that gets you moving that is not exercise. Example: Walking over to another’s office to talk to them rather than calling or emailing them when they are nearby.
8 Short Burst Activities or SBAs:
1. Stand up and get some water.
2. Walk around the room when you are talking on the telephone.
3. Add 5-minute walk break with every coffee break.
4. Stand up and walk the length of the hallway every 30-minutes.
5. Take the stairs to the next floor to use the bathroom.
6. Don’t email office colleagues; instead walk to their desk.
7. On the phone, stand and do the flamingo (balancing exercise).
8. Use your chair as a piece of exercise equipment – dips, etc.
And yes, wear your heart rate monitor and record your data all day.