Prevent ‘sitting sickness’ with a standing desk

The human body is made to move. Actually, the body is designed to stand and walk long distances. Unfortunately, with our information-driven society, we no longer use our bodies while working in agriculture or spending as much time outdoors exercising. These days, much of our days are spent sitting, whether we are sitting at our desks for 8 hours a day, or sitting at home, watching TV, or just lounging.

A recent study found that based on 100,000 men and women, the amount of time they spend sitting per day had a big say in how early someone would die. The more a person sits, the more likely he is to die sooner. The most surprising part of this study was the fact that even those with a generally active lifestyle were at risk. This means that if you plan to jog in the morning and sit for the rest of the day, you won’t be any better off than those who don’t exercise at all.

This has a lot to do with blood flow and the design of our body and muscles. In the sitting position, our blood flow is reduced to the lower part of our body. Also, our muscles can start to atrophy from sitting for long periods of time. Muscle tissue shrinks and we are no longer able to metabolize calories as we should.

Since most of us have jobs that require us to sit, there is not much we can do to control the urge to sit. There are a few options, like making sure to take breaks, and we can even go for a walk during lunch (or bring a co-worker for a buddy walk).

One solution that is catching on among many people (and businesses alike) is the standing desk. A standing desk will adjust from a sitting to standing position, allowing you to sit or stand throughout the day (depending on your energy level). With a standing desk, your body will get much-needed activity while being more productive overall with better blood flow.

You don’t have to be on your feet for a long time to get a huge health benefit. Even standing for 1-2 hours (out of an 8-hour day) will go a long way in greatly reducing the problems sitting causes. One of the most popular standing desk companies is Anthro. Take a look at some of their desks and find out more about what you can do to prevent ‘sitting sickness’.