Is Exercise Enough?

Sometimes it is all we can do to squeeze our exercise session in during a busy day at work.  For some of us, it is not uncommon to exercise before we head to work, where we may end up sitting for the majority of the day. Does squeezing in an hour of exercise each day cancel out the hours of sitting that follow?

One study from UCSD in California observed that even in individuals who exercised, fat deposits increased around the pericardium of the heart when they were sedentary for several hours each day.  This effect was compounded when screen or television viewing occurred while a person was sitting.  In other words, TV or screen viewing and sitting for prolonged periods throughout the day leads to a decreased life expectancy even in people who have a committed exercise routine!

One thing this finding emphasizes is incorporating a lifestyle of activity, not merely adding physical activity as a healthy behavior among many unhealthy behaviors that are not dismissed.  Even something as simple as standing up to take a 5 minute break for every hour of sitting you do throughout the day makes a difference in reducing the number of fat deposits that could accumulate around the heart.  Believe it nor not, it can also increase your life expectancy by up to 2 years!  Reducing the amount of time you watch TV or stare at a computer screen can increase your life expectancy by 1.4 years!  It really is the little things!

None of this is to say that incorporating some of these little changes reduces the need for extended physical activity -- not at all!  Rather, I want you to think of physical activity as something that must fill all parts of your life.  Regularly choose to take the stairs; if it's a pretty day, go for a walk.  Take breaks at work, park a little farther from the entrance at the grocery store, take the stairs...the possibilities are endless for how activity can be incorporated into life.  The main thing is to DO it so that you can enjoy your health for as long as you have it.

References:

1. Dwyer, Gregory B. "Health Dangers of Sitting."   ACSM's Certified News. January-March 2013,   23(1).