
We've been proponents of standing desks and treadputers for some time, but we've also met with plenty of reader skepticism on the subject. The New York Times examines why sitting all day is so bad for you, whether or not you exercise.


Based on the results of several recent studies, the Times' Olivia Judson writes:

It doesn't matter if you go running every morning, or you're a regular at the gym. If you spend most of the rest of the day sitting - in your car, your office chair, on your sofa at home - you are putting yourself at increased risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, a variety of cancers and an early death. In other words, irrespective of whether you exercise vigorously, sitting for long periods is bad for you. Indeed, if you consider only healthy people who exercise regularly, those who sit the most during the rest of the day have larger waists and worse profiles of blood pressure and blood sugar than those who sit less. Among people who sit in front of the television for more than three hours each day, those who exercise are as fat as those who don't: sitting a lot appears to offset some of the benefits of jogging a lot.

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The post goes onto discuss why sitting for so long is such a problem, in two parts. First, sitting really is "one of the most passive things you can do," and second, "when you spend long periods sitting, your body actually does things that are bad for you." Head over to the NYT for more details, and see if you can't find a place to stand up while you read. Thanks happygardeningmama002!

Stand Up While You Read This! [NYT]