Burn With Us

I was clearing out some old bookmarks today and discovered this article about a University of Missouri-Columbia study that found if you spend most of your day sitting down, your metabolism slows down and your risk of disease goes up.

In other words, it’s not just important to get that 30 minutes of activity 5 days a week, you have to spend more time up and around in general or you’re going to have problems.

I’ve kicked around the idea of getting a standing desk myself, but I’m not sure it’s necessary (or that my bosses would go for it). While I do spend the majority of my day jockeying a keyboard, I’m a one-man tech support team for three buildings, 75 teachers, and 600 students with a total of 250 computers and seven servers. I often have trouble calls that get me dashing off to one place or another, sometimes for something as simple as plugging something in but sometimes I end up tracing a cable or climbing into a drop ceiling.

Even if I did have a straight office job, though, I’m sure there’s something that could be done. Hand-delivering documents instead of emailing them is one way to keep moving. Or walking down to someone’s office (or cubicle) rather than picking up the phone or chatting on an instant messaging client. I’m lucky enough to be able to walk home for lunch every day, but there’s no reason anyone couldn’t do a few laps around their building or campus during lunches. Heck, I’ve even seen a few office buildings up in the Chicago suburbs who have their own small park and walking track. If you’re waiting for a response from someone, get up and stretch out. Pound out a few desk exercises like incline push-ups or imaginary jump rope. Sure, you might get some funny looks, but so what? Those looks will change if it helps trim a few pounds off of you.

There’s no question the human body is built for movement, so get off your butt and accommodate it! You’ll feel better for it.