# Is sitting harmful? What do you do about it?



## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

Young Dutch people spend 10,4 hours sitting each day. Yes, that's unhealthy, isn't it? 

So my questions: Do you agree that sitting is becoming a world-wide health problem, replacing smoking? What do you do about it?


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

I voted yes because anything done to excess can be harmful. I recently got a computer stand that can be raised so I can stand up when I want and continue working on the computer. It is very helpful as sitting all day seemed to make my legs sore, but likewise, standing all day can make them sore too. So variety is important.


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

As you said,sitting is becoming a world-wide health problem, however sometimes it's the way it is.
I do run at twice a week and swim once a week, so I don't lose sleep over it


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## Figleaf (Jun 10, 2014)

Lack of exercise is harmful, but I wouldn't single out sitting as especially bad. 'Office bottom' is just the way some people store fat, the result of too many calories in and too few calories out; it's not caused just by sitting, as far as I can see. Standing desks are a ridiculous yuppie affectation - when I had to stand all day (working in a shop where you weren't allowed to sit down) my feet and back ached by the end of the shift, and I was young and thin in those days!

_Replacing smoking?_ Well, I've never yet become hoarse and nauseous from passive sitting...


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## Belowpar (Jan 14, 2015)

Join the protest now

"Sitting is bad for us and we're not going to stand for that!"


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

Yes, it is - I've read a couple of articles which break it down in detail, including one by a man who'd taught himself to stand at his desk and his health problems were immediately resolved.

Here's an article of this sort: 
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/...for-too-long-a-silent-killer-medics-warn.html

When I returned to the violin, I stood to practise, and I stood at my lessons. But one day I just felt tired and I've been fiddling from a seated position ever since. My weight's gone up and I've had more trouble from my IBS - but I'm afraid I'm like Oblomov...


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## Guest (Jul 11, 2016)

Nothing to excess.

D'uh.


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

Yes, too much sitting is unhealthy. The only thing one can do is exercise more, strenghtening the torso and the back in particular, and stretching your spine. For the spine the best thing is to hang on the bar. I have one installed above the doorway here and it is removable, and at my parents' it is drilled in the hallway, so it's stationary . I hang on it as many times as possible when I can, pull ups are not necessary, if you are just stretching the spine. Chiropractor recommended to do this to my parents so I know this is a very good thing. And when after hanging you release the bar don't jump, try to stand of as smoothly as possible, jumping sort of negates all the benefits of stretching. Another spine stretching exercise recommended by this chiropractor was to stand straight, and reach the floor with your palms and hold , if you can. Lying on your back on the straight surface, without a pillow for 30 minutes is good too.
Sometimes that much sitting is unavoidable, so when that happens, while Im sitting, I lean back with my back straight as far as I can and hold, again for as long as I can. This at least does some good to my stomach.


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## Dr Johnson (Jun 26, 2015)

I sometimes find sitting rather tiring. 

When that happens I lie down.


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

Dr Johnson said:


> I sometimes find sitting rather tiring.
> 
> When that happens I lie down.


Reminds me of Winston Churchill in the famous story:

Journalist: "Mr Churchill, to what do you attribute your success in life?"

Churchill: "Conservation of energy. Never stand up when you can sit down. And never sit down when you can lie down."


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## Kivimees (Feb 16, 2013)

I've caused myself pain in my life doing a lot of activities, but sitting isn't one of them.


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

^
Then perhaps, sitting was not the activity you did a lot.


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## TurnaboutVox (Sep 22, 2013)

No, it isn't. The study which claimed this is now seen as controversial. The latest evidence from a methodologically much better UK study published in 2015 is:



> Taking age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, general health, smoking, exercise regime, alcohol consumption and diet into account, the authors found that, over the very long term, sitting for prolonged periods of time in various situations has no effect on mortality risk.
> 
> Lead author Dr. Richard Pulsford from Sport and Health Sciences at the University of Exeter said in a statement: "Our findings suggest that reducing sitting time might not be quite as important for mortality risk as previously publicized and that encouraging people to be more active should still be a public health priority


So you can sit safely to listen to your Bieber, Beethoven, Bartok or Booulez!


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## Dr Johnson (Jun 26, 2015)

TurnaboutVox said:


> No, it isn't. The study which claimed this is now seen as controversial. The latest evidence from a methodologically much better UK study published in 2015 is:
> 
> *So you can sit safely to listen to your Bieber, Beethoven, Bartok or Booulez!*


A victory for common sense!

:tiphat:


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## Huilunsoittaja (Apr 6, 2010)

A way to keep sitting at a minimum for me is not have a comfy chair to sit it. Thus I eventually get sore from sitting in it and am forced to get up and stretch or whatever. I'm kinda thin, and if I'm sitting in a wooden chair, my hip bones really start to hurt because of no cushion. Makes a little more aware that I'm sitting, and so I change posture, shift, get up for breaks, etc.

I sit wayyyy too much. Like up to 12 hours a day, honestly.  Staring at a computer the vast majority of that time...


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

It is not that sitting too much increases risk of mortality, but that sitting too much is just not so good for the legs.


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## Morimur (Jan 23, 2014)

Our bodies are not meant to be inactive for extended periods of time. Unfortunately, most of us working stiffs must sit in front of computer screens for hours on end—especially here in North America where the concept of 'Work–life balance' hasn't really caught on. Unchecked Capitalism is a cruel mistress.


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## Tristan (Jan 5, 2013)

Probably if it's done too much. I know I sit too much -_- It's not my fault that a lot of things I like doing (reading, listening to music, computering, etc.) are done sitting down  On the other hand, I also love hiking and biking and being outside in general, so I try to make time for those things especially if I realize that I've been sitting a lot recently.


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

TurnaboutVox said:


> No, it isn't. The study which claimed this is now seen as controversial. The latest evidence from a methodologically much better UK study published in 2015 is:
> *Taking age, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, general health, smoking, exercise regime, alcohol consumption and diet into account, the authors found that, over the very long term, sitting for prolonged periods of time in various situations has no effect on mortality risk.
> 
> Lead author Dr. Richard Pulsford from Sport and Health Sciences at the University of Exeter said in a statement: "Our findings suggest that reducing sitting time might not be quite as important for mortality risk as previously publicized and that encouraging people to be more active should still be a public health priority
> ...


"For this relief, much thanks!!!"
(Safe to fiddle on then...)


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## motoboy (May 19, 2008)

I'm a 45 y.o. airplane mechanic with a 3 y.o. daughter. I DREAM of the day when I can sit down again!


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## premont (May 7, 2015)

I am prone to take a lying position, when I am listening to music, and I am not lying,


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

premont said:


> I am prone to take a lying position, when I am listening to music, and I am not lying,


:tiphat:!!! Great tradition -

'I am unable, yonder beggar cries, 
To stand, or move; if he say true, he lies.' - epigram by John Donne


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## GreenMamba (Oct 14, 2012)

Depends on where you sit.

(Note: this seems like a Vaneyes-type of post, but he's had plenty of time to make it.)


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## Guest (Jul 12, 2016)

I sit a fair amount, but I also walk 10,000-12,000 steps a day (according to my Fitbit), so I think I'm OK.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Kontrapunctus said:


> I sit a fair amount, but I also walk 10,000-12,000 steps a day (according to my Fitbit), so I think I'm OK.


According to my calculation, that is about 5 miles per day (assume a pace which is 2 steps is equal to 5 feet).


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## Guest (Jul 12, 2016)

Florestan said:


> According to my calculation, that is about 5 miles per day (assume a pace which is 2 steps is equal to 5 feet).


Correct. I do it in two sections--about 3 miles in the morning, then about 2 in the evening.


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## Ukko (Jun 4, 2010)

Marinera: Chiropractor recommended to do this to my parents so I know this is a very good thing.

Your confidence in chiropractic is impressive.


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## Guest (Jul 12, 2016)

Dynamic sitting.


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## Badinerie (May 3, 2008)

Im still trying to work out the difference between 'Sit Up' and 'Stand Down!'


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

dogen said:


> Dynamic sitting.


Maybe a bit like the Hand Jive?


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Another option is to stand on one leg, which enhances sense of balance (or heightens sense of vertigo if one is prone to such). When one leg becomes tired switch.


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

^
I sense a ballet aficionado. Start with one leg, then switch to another, then a plié, and when that gets boring jump and spin in the air.. or is it a figure skating?


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## Vaneyes (May 11, 2010)




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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

Ukko said:


> Marinera: Chiropractor recommended to do this to my parents so I know this is a very good thing.
> 
> Your confidence in chiropractic is impressive.


Well I have confidence in them, depends on a practitioner perhaps, I don't know if all of them are good, but that woman was very gifted. We saw that chiropractor's mother who was ~90 yrs old at the time, she was straight as an arrow, we'd never seen such a posture, especially in a person of her age. She worked with her mother's back, spine, something like that and that was a result. One of my acquaintances used chiropractor for back trauma, seems helped.


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## Dr Johnson (Jun 26, 2015)

dogen said:


> Dynamic sitting.


Should not be performed by novices.


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## ArtMusic (Jan 5, 2013)

I sit and I also exercise a lot. I walk about one hour at least five times a week. Plus weights.


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## premont (May 7, 2015)

Dr Johnson said:


> [dynamic sitting] Should not be performed by novices.


I tend to say, that dynamic sitting is the spontaneous way of sitting, like what children, who are novices per se, do.

We grown-up's have been taught to sit nice and stiff. This is indeed more harmful - at least to the body.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Dr Johnson said:


> I sometimes find sitting rather tiring.
> 
> When that happens I lie down.


Finally. A poster I can relate to and respect!


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

I got so psyched out by this thread that I am now exclusively posting standing up.

A bit awkward yes, but healthy.


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## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

hpowders said:


> I got so psyched out by this thread that I am now exclusively posting standing up.
> 
> A bit awkward yes, but healthy.


Perhaps it is better to psych yourself into thinking you're standing (better: walking) while sitting... :tiphat:


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## Krummhorn (Feb 18, 2007)

I have to sit down in order to earn an income ... have yet to find a method of standing up while playing the pipe organ or the piano.


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## Chordalrock (Jan 21, 2014)

I imagine sitting like a stick for hours every day could be problematic in the long term. Varying your sitting position throughout the day (a lot of people do this naturally) should make sitting less of a problem.


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## TwoFlutesOneTrumpet (Aug 31, 2011)

Krummhorn said:


> I have to sit down in order to earn an income ... have yet to find a method of standing up while playing the pipe organ or the piano.


Have considered buying a raising piano or pipe organ?


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## TwoFlutesOneTrumpet (Aug 31, 2011)

I have a raising desk at work and alternate between sitting and standing, aiming to not sit for more than 30 minutes. It helps that I don't sit in front of a piano or pipe organ


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## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

TwoFlutesOneTrumpet said:


> I have a raising desk at work and alternate between sitting and standing, aiming to not sit for more than 30 minutes. It helps that I don't sit in front of a piano or pipe organ


I favor bagpipes  Good for the lungs too, and they do walk!


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## Bettina (Sep 29, 2016)

I try to get up every twenty minutes or so, to stretch and walk around the room a bit. However, it's hard to remember to do this, especially when I'm sitting on my sofa listening intently to music. Maybe I need some kind of signal to remind me...perhaps I should get up and stretch whenever I hear a trill or a deceptive cadence or something like that...


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

My baby sitter used to be in pain all the time.


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## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

I think the moderators ought to issue regular stand up warnings to TC posters who have been sitting through say, 15.000 posts...


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

hpowders said:


> I got so psyched out by this thread that I am now exclusively posting standing up.
> 
> A bit awkward yes, but healthy.


Try while hanging from the bar, even healthier and imagine being an avangarde of skill and innovation, how many bets you'd win.

I'd try doing this myself , but I'm very bad at multitasking


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## Dr Johnson (Jun 26, 2015)




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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Slouching can be harmful. Puts too much pressure on your spinal discs. I've been sitting around all week. I need to get my **** to the gym.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Crickey! You can't say arze on this site?


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

According to this, 
Standing for Mental Clarity and Physical Health
too much sitting is extremely bad for you.


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## Dr Johnson (Jun 26, 2015)

starthrower said:


> Crickey! You can't say arze on this site?


Every time someone says a*s* online a picture of Julie Andrews deletes itself from the internet.


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

Florestan said:


> According to this,
> Standing for Mental Clarity and Physical Health
> too much sitting is extremely bad for you.


Interesting article, thank you for posting it. The consequences of too much sitting seem dire indeed. 
At school I used to read books that needed memorizing while walking in circles or back and forth in the room, I learned fast that way, thought it's because I'm just a visual-motor type, but it seems like it can be something more than that.


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## Richannes Wrahms (Jan 6, 2014)

So is extended bed rest, often recommended or let be by incompetent doctors. I'm still dealing with pains from sedentary life. Move your butt kids or it will hurt more later, all the time.


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## atsizat (Sep 14, 2015)

If you spend less calories than you take, you will gain weight. That is what I don't like. I need to eat less if I don't move. Eat less and move less or eat more and move more.


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## Dr Johnson (Jun 26, 2015)

Perhaps we all ought to jump more:

http://www.healingdaily.com/exercise/rebounding-for-detoxification-and-health.htm

Seems like it's a popular notion. Who could resist a book titled Born To Bounce?

I'm not sure I could safely follow the suggestion from the first website and safely watch TV while bouncing. My living room ceiling is probably too low.


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## Varick (Apr 30, 2014)

[Hand Raised!!!]

Uhhhmmmm... who's or what's an Oblomov?.....

V


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## Dr Johnson (Jun 26, 2015)




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## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

Varick said:


> [Hand Raised!!!]
> 
> Uhhhmmmm... who's or what's an Oblomov?.....
> 
> V


Perfect reaction from an Oblomov :clap:


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## SiegendesLicht (Mar 4, 2012)

TxllxT said:


> Young Dutch people spend 10,4 hours sitting each day. Yes, that's unhealthy, isn't it?
> 
> So my questions: Do you agree that sitting is becoming a world-wide health problem, replacing smoking? What do you do about it?


In one of your other threads chocolate was unhealthy. You know, TxllxT, I like you, but please stop playing these guilt trip games.


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## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

SiegendesLicht said:


> In one of your other threads chocolate was unhealthy. You know, TxllxT, I like you, but please stop playing these guilt trip games.


Really? I just read how healthy chocolate is... So, who knows, there may be hope for the sitting ducks as well. But I think "Auf die Berge will ich steigen" is healthier. :tiphat:


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Yes! Yes! Thanks to this thread, I now post only standing up.

So please pardon if the words don't go exactly in a straight line and/or/spelling/grammatical errors.

I would rather be a little bit imperfect and standing up than completely correct but sitting down.

Healthy rules!


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## Varick (Apr 30, 2014)

Dr Johnson said:


>


Thanks. I did a google search and read the Wikipedia plot summary. I thought someone did a biography on me for a second. Seriously, it amazes me no matter how much knowledge one seeks in myriad subjects there will always be something like this that falls into "common knowledge" that one is completely clueless about. I had never heard of Oblomov before.



TxllxT said:


> Perfect reaction from an Oblomov :clap:


Yeah, after "researching" this subject, I'm exhausted. Time for a nap!

V


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## SiegendesLicht (Mar 4, 2012)

^ There is another character in that book, one Andrey Stoltz, and he is one of my favorites in the entire Russian literature. The contrast between the traditional Russian and traditional German mentality, represented by these two - Oblomov and Stoltz, is priceless.


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## EdwardBast (Nov 25, 2013)

When I have been sitting too long I walk out my back door and climb the local mountain. Today I wore snowshoes.


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## JAS (Mar 6, 2013)

At my previous employer, there was a "get fit bootcamp." Many of those who attended came back to their cubicles with a very large, heavy rubber ball (at least 3 feet in diameter) and the instructions that they were to use it in place of their chair, for at least a substantial part of their day. Apparently, the idea was that the constant adjustment necessary to keep upright meant that they would "tighten your core." Instead, several people got so focused on their work that they forgot they were sitting on a ball, and suddenly found themselves falling over backwards. Two or three people really got a bad ding on the back of their heads from hitting the side of the desk. Over time, the balls spent more and more time under desks, getting very dusty. Eventually, hardly any of them remained, and I am pretty sure that none of them were getting used. I have seen a couple of these showing up now at my current employer, and I await seeing what becomes their fate. (I have warned a couple of the owners of the danger, and in one case was told that I was already too late with the warning.) 

I also see a number of people standing at their desks, which was apparently recommended somewhere, but I have recently seen studies that say that standing at your desk all day really isn't any better than sitting. (What we apparently need are treadmills so that we can move while standing, and produce electrical power at the same time. I am sure that this will likely catch on in our current corporate environment, as long as the investment for the equipment and capturing the energy produced isn't too expensive.)


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