{"id":628,"date":"2015-09-17T08:43:02","date_gmt":"2015-09-17T06:43:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/?p=628"},"modified":"2015-09-18T10:59:29","modified_gmt":"2015-09-18T08:59:29","slug":"stand-up-for-your-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/stand-up-for-your-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Stand Up For your Health"},"content":{"rendered":"<blockquote>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWriting and travel broaden your ass if not your mind, and I like to write standing up.\u201d \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ernest Hemingway<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Chairs are dangerous?<\/strong> We are so used to being seated that it never occurs to us that something as trivial as a chair can harm our health. It is generally known that a sedentary lifestyle is harming your health. You have probably seen recent articles and blogposts stating that sitting is the new smoking. You can see messages everywhere urging you to move more.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nevertheless, we rarely imagine a world without chairs, seats or sofas &#8211; \u00a0something that has been the case for hundreds of thousands of years. Until a few centuries ago chairs were pure luxury. Standing on your feet most of the time was normal. Humans taking a short rest, sat on the floor, a tree, or whatever was available. I repeat, <\/span><b>a short rest,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> not spending the majority of your life seated as it is the case nowadays.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>So what exactly is so bad about sitting?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A lot!<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Being seated is unnatural for the simple reason that your body is not made for this activity (or lack thereof). On the contrary, your body is made to be moving all day long.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In a nutshell, this is <strong>what happens when we sit<\/strong>:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When seated, your <strong>butt<\/strong>, which keeps you straight with correct posture, <strong>stops being active<\/strong> and gets floppy. Your hip flexors shorten, resulting in a considerable loss of flexibility.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When your butt is not working actively, the job is being taken over by the<strong> lumbar zone<\/strong>, which was not meant to do so. This results in \u00a0back pain, affecting <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nlm.nih.gov\/medlineplus\/backpain.html\">8 out of every 10 persons.<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Bone density decreases<\/strong> due to lack of movement.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Being seated is not as comfortable as one might think. This unnatural \u201cmovement\u201d forces the body to be in <strong>postures that block the blood flow<\/strong>. It can even hinder your respiration and intestinal functions.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are many <a href=\"%20http:\/\/link.springer.com\/article\/10.1007%2Fs00125-012-2677-z\">studies <\/a>linking a sedentary lifestyle with increasing <strong>degenerative diseases<\/strong>, such as heart problems, obesity, diabetes, depression, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Not to mention other <a href=\"http:\/\/journals.lww.com\/acsm-msse\/Abstract\/2009\/05000\/Sitting_Time_and_Mortality_from_All_Causes,.5.aspx\">studies <\/a>that relate reach <strong>inactivity<\/strong> factor to <strong>mortality<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><b><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">All this is very interesting, but despite all the evidence, are we taking these facts seriously?<\/span> \u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I don\u2019t think so.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We ignore this knowledge until the day we can no longer move without difficulty.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Do this little exercise<\/strong> and then let me know the results:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Sit on the floor.<\/li>\n<li>Now try to stand up without holding or supporting yourself.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">An increasing number of people in the Western world are not able to perform this simple exercise. As a species, we have lost the mobility we once had. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This <a href=\"http:\/\/cpr.sagepub.com\/content\/early\/2012\/12\/10\/2047487312471759.abstract\">study <\/a>goes as far as relying on the ability to sit on the floor and stand up without support for <strong>predicting death<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>My Experiment<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For many years, I had a desk job, spending hours and hours seated, trying to catch up on being active outside during my non-working hours.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I suffered a painful neck<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and back ailments of various kinds.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although working out almost daily has always helped to alleviate the problems, it was not enough, and I spent quite a bit of money on therapies and massages.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>But it never occurred to me to stop sitting<\/strong> until I started my own business working most of the time at home.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One day, I decided to get rid of the chairs and couch.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I recycled my ironing table, using it as a <strong>standup desk<\/strong>, and I bought some quality cushions and a low table to do my writing and computer work while <strong>sitting on the floor<\/strong>. Sitting on the ground is very different than in a chair. The floor has been our resting area for thousands of years. Although at the beginning it might be a bit uncomfortable, after a while you will find your preferred comfortable posture.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And believe it or not, I started to get much more than <strong>encouraging results<\/strong>. Today I can say that:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> My back pain has disappeared almost completely.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> My mobility and flexibility in the legs and hips has improved considerably.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to experts we should not spend more than 10 minutes sitting at a time. Although it may seem unattainable, we must go slowly and gradually. Be realistic according to your situation but do not let perfectionism prevent you from daily improvement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>My Three Proposals<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><b>Analyze (seriously)<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the amount of hours you spent sitting daily (home, work, street, transportation, gym &#8230;).<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Stop or reduce them considerably by <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.webmd.com\/balance\/features\/3-easy-steps-to-breaking-bad-habits\"><b>changing your habits<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, even if it\u2019s one habit per week.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Do it for a period long enough to <\/span><b>automatize<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the habit (at least three weeks) and measure the results.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><b>Tricks that may help<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong> Redecorate<\/strong> your living room to create a cozy area to live closer to the ground: tables, zafus, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">fiber carpets, colorful cushions.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Grab a table so you can <strong>work standing up<\/strong> or make one yourself adjusted to your personal height, using books, boxes, shelves&#8230;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Eat breakfast, lunch and\/or dinner standing or <strong>sitting on the floor<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> If you watch TV, forget the sofa and \u00a0watch from the floor. You can train your abdominals or stretch while watching your favorite program.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> If you work in an office, propose creating a working area where you can work on the ground and\/or work standing with high tables. An increasing number of companies are offering this possibility to their employees. Some are even starting to hold <strong>standing or walking meetings<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Walk or take the <strong>bike<\/strong> instead of the car whenever possible. If you take public transport, stand up if you can (give an old lady your seat).<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> If the weather is nice, go outdoors to have lunch. If you have the chance, have lunch in a park or garden where you can <strong>sit on the grass<\/strong>.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> If you go to the <strong>gym<\/strong> and use fitness <strong>machines<\/strong>, avoid the ones where you have to sit down. Consider working out outdoors to prevent sitting and enjoy the sun and fresh air<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. \u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You will begin to recover your natural mobility gradually, noticing more flexible in your back (which will forever thank you ).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And you? Do you spend too many hours sitting? What can you do to reduce this time? Do not forget to take action and share your experiences with us!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hugs!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/KIKI-Firma1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-549\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/KIKI-Firma1.jpg\" alt=\"kiki\" width=\"67\" height=\"48\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cWriting and travel broaden your ass if not your mind, and I like to write standing up.\u201d \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Ernest Hemingway Chairs are dangerous? We are so used to being seated that it never occurs to us that something as trivial as a chair can harm our health. It [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":629,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[71,65,69,66,73,68,72,67,64,70],"class_list":["post-628","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movement","tag-back-pain","tag-chairs","tag-flexibility","tag-floor-living","tag-habits","tag-movility","tag-neck-pain","tag-outdoors","tag-sitting","tag-sitting-new-smoking"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880-300x212.jpg",300,212,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",768,543,false],"large":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"et-pb-post-main-image":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880-400x250.jpg",400,250,true],"et-pb-post-main-image-fullwidth":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"et-pb-portfolio-image":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880-400x284.jpg",400,284,true],"et-pb-portfolio-module-image":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",510,360,false],"et-pb-portfolio-image-single":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"et-pb-gallery-module-image-portrait":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",400,283,false],"et-pb-post-main-image-fullwidth-large":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"et-pb-image--responsive--desktop":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",798,564,false],"et-pb-image--responsive--tablet":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",780,551,false],"et-pb-image--responsive--phone":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880.jpg",382,270,false],"wp_rp_thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/DSC_0880-150x150.jpg",150,150,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Kiki N\u00e1rdiz","author_link":"https:\/\/www.rewildingdrum.com\/eng\/author\/kiki-nardiz\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"\u201cWriting and travel broaden your ass if not your mind, and I like to write standing up.\u201d \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Ernest Hemingway Chairs are dangerous? We are so used to being seated that it never occurs to us that something as trivial as a chair can harm our health. 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