If you’ve got a job where you sit for 8 hours a day, 40 hours a week (or more!), you’re not quite as healthy as you might think. In fact, sitting too much has actually been linked to a variety of health problems.
“We’ve been trying to tell people this for a long time,” Noam Sadovnik, D.C., a chiropractor and founder and Director of Chiropractic and Physical Rehabilitation at The Center in New York City tells The Huffington Post. “We’re just really not designed to sit for prolonged periods of time.”
So what do you do if you’re bound to a desk all day?
Take some standing breaks!
Instead of hopping in the elevator when you head out to lunch, take the stairs. Hold some of your meetings while you walk, even if it means just taking a lap or two around the building. There are even exercises you can do right at your desk!
And, for all of those times when standing just isn’t an option — like when you’re trying to finish that report before the big deadline or when you’re stuck in that long afternoon meeting — focus on ergonomics.
What’s that?
It’s really just a fancy way of saying you need to pay attention to the way you’re sitting. Make sure you sit up straight, get a sturdy chair that’s set for your specific height, and make sure your computer monitor sits at the right height and angle. That way, you won’t feel as many aches and pains on the ride home!