The summer is coming to an end, and soon it will be cold, and we’ll all have less reason to get outside and get exercise we normally wouldn’t.
So we return to our desk jobs, where we sit, sit, and sit some more.
You already know that sitting too much can kill you. But it’s so expensive to buy a fitness tracker, a standing desk, or if you’re super extreme, a treadmill desk. So instead, take a page out of the book of this study by the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
This study found that even two minutes of light-intensity activity, like walking, per hour decreases your risk of death by 33 percent.
That’s it! Two minutes per hour! Why wouldn’t you do it?
This study was actually pretty thorough, too.
With 3,200 participants and three years to measure the effects of light exercise, the research is fairly reliable. It also measured light exercise against longer periods of low-intensity activity, like standing.
And it beat it! Walking for just two minutes every hour beat out longer periods of standing, which is bad news for those who already bought a standing desk.
This isn’t one of those health tips that sounds easy but is actually super inconvenient. This is literally sixteen minutes out of an eight-hour workday.
You could set a reminder on your phone, which is easy enough. Or, there’s an even easier technique: keep yourself adequately hydrated. If you’re drinking enough water, you’ll get up to use the restroom about once per hour anyway.
There’s your two minutes of walking.
Of course, this doesn’t replace regular exercise. You should still do that if you’re looking to keep up cardiovascular health and prevent obesity.
This is just an easy way to save your own life.
How often do you get up and walk around every day?
