A sedentary lifestyle may be hurting your health more than you think

While the possibilities offered by everyday life have made our lives more comfortable, they have also made us more passive. Now we have cars when we want to go somewhere. We don’t have to collect our food from the garden when we want to cook. There are machines to do most of our work. We even have to sit in front of the screen to have fun.
The recent pandemic bans also caused more time spent at home and a more sedentary lifestyle. However, a sedentary life may harm your health more than you think. Investigations show that sitting for more than 5 hours a day can lead to numerous soundness issues, especially cardiovascular diseases.

A lethargic lifestyle is one of the greatest threats to your healthiness. According to the World Health Organization, a stagnant lifestyle improves the risk of death, creases the risk of cardiovascular disorder, diabetes, and obesity, and increases the risk of certain types of cancer, hypertension, osteoporosis, lipid disorders, hormonal imbalance, depression, and stress.

Everything is Connected

In a lifestyle where you sit for hours and move very little, you will burn fewer calories and gain more weight. Over time, this weight gain brings joint disorders, sleep disorders, and musculoskeletal disorders.

Also, even if you don’t have a problem with obesity, being too sedentary increases the risk of hypertension and diabetes. As a consequence, your risk of heart illness and stroke gains.

Your body is designed to move. Being inoperative for an extended period causes muscle loss and osteoporosis. At the same time, blood circulation is adversely affected. Clot formation in the veins becomes more straightforward—the risk of developing deep vein thrombosis and potentially fatal pulmonary embolism increases.

All these triggering conditions also pave the way for inflammation and cause pain. If you have constant fatigue, feel pain in your body, especially in your lower back and back, have increased unhappiness or anxiety, or can’t sleep enough, all of these may be due to being too inactive.

Movement is a natural need of your body, like water and nutrients. Just as you are thirsty when your body needs water and hungry when it needs food, your body sends you a signal to move. These signals can manifest as body pain, lethargy, reluctance, and a feeling of heaviness.

What should you do in such a situation?

If you have a job that requires you to be inactive for a long time, or if your physical activity has decreased during the pandemic period, you should first create an exercise program that is suitable for your situation.

The age, health status, and previous sports history of the person are essential in starting the exercise. Those who have a sedentary life for a long time or have a health problem can begin with lighter workouts and gradually increase the pace.

If you are over middle-aged and have complaints such as shortness of breath, dizziness, and chest pain when you move, you should first consult a cardiologist.

What Can You Do To Be More Active?

• A brisk 30-minute walk a day can be a good start.
• Using the stairs increases your muscular endurance and cardiorespiratory endurance.
• When it is necessary to stay at home, you can practice exercises that you can do at home.
• Finding suitable exercise videos on the internet for exercises can practice the movements correctly and increase your motivation.
• If you have to stay in front of the screen for a long time, set your alarm at 20-minute intervals and move for 5 minutes.
• You can do several sets of jumping moves to activate your blood circulation.
• You can take advantage of the opportunities offered by digital technology (mobile phone applications, smart watches).
• The most important thing is to make the exercises a habit by including them in your daily routine. Day by day, you will begin to feel the benefits of exercise for your body.