When working at a computer, prolonged periods of sitting time resulted in an increased risk of backaches and body pains for me. A sedentary lifestyle of 40 hours per week added up quickly to be a tremendous health risk. I’ve had many health conditions caused by the negative effects of sitting for long periods of time. Luckily, I was able to avoid serious negative effects like diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. But many people aren’t so lucky. Many have experienced these issues due to an increased risk caused by a sedentary lifestyle. Sedentary time can add up over the years and cause these conditions.
Fortunately, I’ve been able to change my lifestyle away from the typical 40 hour week grind. I’m not chained to the desk anymore. I no longer sit at a computer for long periods of time. I can pretty much make my own schedule. However, for those of us who don’t have that luxury, there are still plenty of ways to improve a sedentary lifestyle, even while working a demanding schedule that requires sitting for prolonged periods of time. *Disclosure: From time to time, I use photos from royalty free photo websites that feature products. I’m not affiliated with, or compensated by any product sellers or manufacturers.*
How Often Should You Stand Up From Your Desk
I never have more than 30 minutes of sitting time at once. I used to have a sedentary time limit set for myself at 45 minutes. Since I’ve lowered it to 30 minutes, I’ve experienced much less negative effects from the repetitive strain of sitting at at computer. The health benefits I’ve noticed from this new limit of 30 minutes are less tension, stiffness, and soreness in my muscles. I’ve also noticed a productivity increase and cost benefits. If my sedentary time is longer than 30 minutes, or even 45 minutes, I might be working a longer duration of time, but my mental clarity is not as sharp as it would be compared to sitting for shorter periods of time.
I don’t necessarily get a ton of physical activity in between my 30 minute increments of sitting time. It’s usually just enough to get the blood flowing throughout my entire body, get some movement in, drink some water, maybe eat some food. Personally, these breaks are usually anywhere from 5 minutes to 30 minutes long depending how busy I am. During this time, I’m always either standing or walking. I make sure that I am not sitting, even if it is in a different capacity, like watching tv on a couch for example. I’m always either standing or moving during my physical activity breaks.
The optimal stand-sit ratio recommended by a lot of experts varies between 1:1 and 3:1. This would mean if I stood for 30 minutes, I could sit for 30 minutes. That’s the low end of the spectrum. The more ideal end would be to stand for 90 minutes to every 30 minutes of sedentary time.
How To Sit Less At Work
Get up and get out for lunch
I never eat my lunch at my computer desk. A lot of companies will give their employees free lunch in the office. They think it improves productivity if workers are at their desk for an additional hour (during lunch). They may be eating at their desk, but the company still wants people to be in front of their computers and working. In my opinion, I hated this. Instead of two 4-hour prolonged periods of sitting time in a day, I now had one super long 9-hour period of sedentary time at my desk. Buying lunch was a nice gesture, but it made me more mentally exhausted and left me not wanting to be at work for multiple hours during the afternoon. It definitely decreased my daily productivity, even though I was sitting at my computer for 9 hours instead of 8 hours. Every time I had the ability to get up and get out of the office for lunch, I definitely did.
Coffee break (or other form of caffeine)
I’ve never drank coffee. But a lot of people do, so I wanted to include it. I do drink small amounts of caffeine in other forms, though. Caffeine has a more profound effect on me when I’m standing or moving, as opposed to sitting. If I need to stand up multiple times throughout the day anyway, I’d definitely make sure to take my caffeine break when I’m either standing or walking, when the blood is flowing better throughout my body, not when I’m sitting.
Refill and drink more water
I tend to go down a deep rabbit hole when it comes to water. We won’t get into what kinds of water I drink or don’t drink. Not today, at least. Drinking and refilling water is a perfect variable to help us create a normal routine that decreases sitting time and increases health benefits, while still maintaining a productive career that requires sitting at a computer for long periods of time.
Working at a computer is an endurance event every day. We are holding our muscles in the same, repetitive positions for prolonged periods of time. Staying hydrated throughout the day is very important to me. The more time I spend in a dehydrated state, the more time I cannot hold my posture in a good position. This alone has proved to be a major health risk for me in the past. Staying hydrated is a crucial variable for me to maintain a healthy sedentary lifestyle.
Set a timer on my Apple watch
One of the most common actions I do on my Apple watch is set a timer for 30 minutes. It puts a little bit of pressure on me mentally. When I set the timer, this makes me focus on being more productive during that 30 minutes of sedentary time. I know that I need to stop sitting and get in some type of physical activity. This makes me more inclined to get quality work done during that sitting time. If I didn’t set a timer, and if I sat for prolonged periods of time, my productivity would suffer.
The second most common action I do on my Apple watch is use the “Breathe” function. When I’m working on a computer (especially while sitting), I’m at an increased risk of taking very shallow breaths (not breathing deeply or fully). My 30 minute physical activity reminder is a great time to also use the “Breathe” function on my watch. It helps me become more present in the moment, both mentally and physically. *Disclosure: I’m not compensated by Apple for talking about the Apple watch or the Breathe function. It’s simply one of the products that I find very useful and makes my life better.*
Use a standing desk
Sitting at a desk for long periods of time has had many negative effects on me. That’s why I always try to change my working position every time I come back from a physical activity break. My different positions are sitting at a desk (with a traditional office chair), standing at a desk, sitting in a recliner (laptop only), or sitting on a stool (at a desk).
I never make the mistake of standing all day. Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. The position of sitting at a desk isn’t my enemy. Repetitive strain is my enemy. Repetitive strain basically means holding your muscles in the same position for prolonged periods of time. Changing my working position often is just as important as how good my posture is, if not more.
If this article was helpful, check out my book titled “45 Ways to Improve Computer Posture.” It’s available in both digital and paperback versions.
>>> Click here to pick up your copy
This book explains how to improve your posture through different variables of health and wellness. These include sitting posture, standing posture, sleep, hydration, and breathing. Poor posture is not just how we sit at a computer. The health habits we practice, 24 hours a day, are directly related to how good (or bad) our computer posture is.
Go to SittingPosture.com/book to learn more.
Take care,
Todd Bowen
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