The quarantine has offered a lot of new experiences – some good and some bad. Many of us have enjoyed a lower gas bill but miss social interactions. Others welcome the alone time while others are practically jumping out of their skin for some human contact. One thing that many of us can agree on is that today’s “new normal” has also introduced another challenge – an overly sedentary lifestyle.
You’ve heard it many times, but the truth is the truth. Inactivity leads to health problems. But how can we be active when our job is to sit and stare at a computer for 8+ hours a day? Here are a few tips on how to fight the negative aspect of Safer at Home.
- Hearing Loss – We’re wearing headphones and earbuds more than ever. Protect your hearing by keeping the volume at a manageable level. It is easy to crank it up but fight the temptation. If at all possible, take time off from the earbuds and listen through the computer speakers. If at all possible, do some of your online work without headphones. Your ears will thank you for it.
- Burn Calories While You Work – A supportive chair helps for long periods of sitting, but it’s time to get that stand-up desk. We burn 100-200 calories an hour standing. Compare that to 60-130 calories while sitting. So if you stand for 3-6 hours instead of sitting, that means you can burn more! Eviscerate those extra calories without sweating or physical labor. Stand up!
- Flip the Script – It used to be that we went to work, moved around, spoke with others, and then came home to decompress. Now we’re physically inactive while working, being ignored on Zoom, and staring at a screen for hours on end. Time to kick your downtime up a notch. Go for a walk, meditate, garden, go to the grocery store (with a mask – of course). Now that work is so sedentary, we have to make the leisure time more active to keep our health in check.
It is a fact that inactivity is a leading cause of disease. We are as sedentary as ever right now. Do not wait for the pandemic to be over to get back to an active lifestyle. It is time to acclimate now. Take your health into your own hands and take control.
