“Sitting is the new smoking”

As early as 2009, it was known that sedentary lifestyle destroys health. One of the largest studies on this subject, conducted in Australia (45 and Up Study), found that each additional hour of sitting per day was associated with 9% increase in the risk of death, regardless of the cause. In addition to the increased risk of death, prolonged sitting increases the chances of developing heart disease, diabetes or certain cancers. Lack of exercise is also a slowed metabolism, which translates into excessive body weight — and 60% of adult Poles already have it.

Ergonomic workstation

In the context of the consequences of prolonged sitting, one must look more broadly than solely through the prism of back pain. Yes, the wrong position of the workplace will result in back pain in the cervical or lumbar region. Correct positioning of the monitor, desk and ergonomic chair will relieve the listed areas of the back, but will not cut off the rest of the body from the source of the problem — that is, immobility.

Office Yoga

An ergonomic workplace is one that promotes movement relative to passive sitting. Consider: which chair will make the office worker move more - an “ergonomic” chair that supports the body from every possible side, or a wooden stool that is so uncomfortable that it requires constant body position changes?

That's what this constant change in body position is all about — the seat, even the most “ergonomic”, still remains a seat, that is, immobility. Changing positions as in yoga classes — spinning in a chair, transferring body weight, standing up and working for a while (standing desk), then returning to a seat but on unstable ground (e.g. a fitness ball) — it is these inconspicuous movements that provide the right stimuli for employees to perform their duties at the computer. The body quickly gets used to such good “moves” and rewards us with better well-being. The perfect complement to these office practices will yoga course from scratch available as part of MultiLife, whose participants learn the most important asanas and increase their body awareness.

Remember the breath

Not only during yoga, but every second of our lives is accompanied by breathing. Proper air flow through all the cells of our body is crucial so that we can function efficiently, both in leisure and at work. Most often, however, we do not think at all about how to make this process support our actions. Unlocking its full potential will help you and your employees course of healthy breathing — one of the author's expert courses MultiLife. Optimal breathing will make every movement more efficient and stress more manageable.

Sitting or standing?

Many times, as a remedy for sedentary work, an alternative in the form of a standing desk is suggested. Although indeed the lumbar spine in this position experiences less loads, still after 8 hours of standing work, these loads will be felt. It is enough to ask the production or warehouse workers about it. The most optimal solution will be adjustable desks — because they are the ones that are most conducive to changes in position, and not to stay in one position of the body.

Steps, steps, steps

The World Health Organization recommends that A minimum of 10,000 steps per day in order to maintain health and fitness. In the realities of office work, this is often quite a challenge. It is therefore worth encouraging employees to look for opportunities to move on their feet before, during and after work. This can be choosing a bus stop a little further, entering the office up the stairs or making yourself a coffee in the kitchen located on another floor. JIf the culture of your organization allows it, you can also at least partially introduce “walking meeting-i” or at least “walking calle” into the office. Those meetings or phone calls, which are mainly based on speaking and do not require intensive work at the desk, can be successfully carried out in a walking or at least standing formula.

Any, even the smallest, change in habits can serve to improve the condition and well-being of all employees. Its implementation will certainly be much easier thanks to Consultation with a personal trainer, which will help to properly plan movement throughout the day. Such a service is also available through MultiLife.

Work with what you have

Intense periods at work correlate with a reduced amount of movement during the day. When employees' attention needs to be located elsewhere, it's hard to expect them to focus 100% on building healthy habits. In such circumstances It is also worth encouraging activities in your free time — after all, there is no shortage of evidence of its positive impact on work efficiency.

Playing sports improves brain health:

• improves thinking,
• improves concentration,
• strengthens mental immunity
• and reduces the risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases.

All these properties affect the quality and pace of work - a fit brain makes better decisions and is more efficient in actions. In addition, the trained body is less likely to get sick, so through physical activity the number of hours spent on sick leave is reduced.

You can take care of physical activity in your free time in many different ways: going to the gym, running, cycling, practicing yoga, training at home with the YES2MOVE platform or swimming in the pool.

One is the most important — it is worth supporting employees in taking care of the optimal amount of traffic, both during work and outside of working hours. Ideally, each of them should have the opportunity to choose such an activity that brings joy and pleasure - then it will be easier to engage in them, even on the busiest day.

Bibliography:

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2. Shen D, Mao W, Liu T, Lin Q, Lu X, Wang Q, Lin F, Ekelund U, Wijndaele K. Sedentary behavior and incident cancer: a meta-analysis of prospective studies. PLoS One. 2014 Aug 25; 9 (8) :e105709.

3. Biswas A, Oh PI, Faulkner GE, Bajaj RR, Silver MA, Mitchell MS, Alter DA. Sedentary time and its association with risk of disease incidence, mortality, and hospitalization in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Ann Intern Med. 2015 Jan 20; 162 (2) :123-32.

4. Henschel B, Mustard AM, Chomistek AK. Time Spent Sitting as an Independent Risk Factor for Cardiovascular Disease. Am J Lifestyle Med. 2017 Sep 1; 14 (2) :204-215.

5. Smith PJ, Blumenthal JA, Hoffman BM, Cooper H, Strauman TA, Welsh-Bohmer K, Browndyke JN, Sherwood A. Aerobic exercise and neurocognitive performance: a meta-analytic review of randomized controlled trials. Psychosome Med. 2010 Apr; 72 (3) :239-52. doi: 10.1097/psy.0b013e3181d14633. Epub 2010 Mar 11.

6. Roig M, Nordbrandt S, Geertsen SS, Nielsen JB. The effects of cardiovascular exercise on human memory: a review with meta-analysis. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2013 Sep; 37 (8) :1645-66.