Webster’s Dictionary defines Sedentary as “doing or requiring much sitting” and “not being physically active” (Stamper, 2022).
With technology advances and the recent pandemic a sedentary lifestyle has become increasingly normal. With people working from home or taking online classes we find ourselves sitting more often. Then think about how you unwind after work or school, you probably sit and watch TV or Tik Tok, etc. However, sedentary lifestyles have major impacts on our health physically and mentally (Check out our other blog posts to learn more!). So how do you know if you're living a sedentary lifestyle and what exactly is it?
SEDENTARY BEHAVIORS:
Frequent Sitting (including watching TV, Reading, Car rides, Etc.)
Getting Little to No Physical Activity
Sleeping Too Much
Listed above are common sedentary behaviors associated with a sedentary lifestyle. However, sedentary also means being not physically active or doing too much sitting. You, like myself, are probably thinking “well I’m active, I exercise once or twice a week and I walk my dogs, etc.”. However, it has been found that to maintain good physical health you need to be getting 150 minutes of moderate physical activity in a week (Winters & Goad, 2021). Moderate physical activity is any form of physical activity that can raise your heart rate and make you break a sweat.
It is easy to fall into the trap of living a sedentary lifestyle, however exhibiting all or most of these behaviors may mean you are living one. No worry though, we all live sedentary lifestyles to a certain degree! For more information on ways to combat a sedentary lifestyle and living a healthy lifestyle check out some of our other blog posts here!
RESOURCES:
Stamper, J. (2022, December 1). Sedentary Definition & Meaning. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved December 9, 2022, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sedentary
Winters, D., & Goad, R. (2021, July 12). ASK AN EXPERT: WHAT IS A SEDENTARY LIFESTYLE AND WHY YOU ALMOST CERTAINLY DON'T KNOW YOU ARE LIVING ONE? Tonic Health. Retrieved December 9, 2022, from https://www.tonichealth.co/blogs/news/ask-an-expert-what-is-a-sedentary-lifestyle-and-why-you-almost-certainly-don-t-know-you-are-living-one
REFERENCED BLOG POSTS:
Physical Affects of a Sedentary Lifestyle -> Here
Mental Health Affect of a Sedentary Lifestyle -> Here