“Sitting is the new smoking.” This is what many health professionals are now saying about the incredibly sedentary lifestyles that most Americans lead, and the serious health risks that can result from sitting too much. And when you take into account that the average American sits for approximately 9-10 hours of their entire day, from a metaphorical smoking standpoint you can now see that too much sitting is very, very bad for your health. Case in point, studies show that sitting for long hours at a time can lead to a greater risk of developing conditions like diabetes, obesity, depression and some types of cancer.
Now according to a study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Science, the average American only clocks about 5,000 steps a day, when the recommended amount is at least 10,000. Sounds like a ridiculously high and impossible number of steps to shoot for? Actually it isn’t at all! All you need to do is get a bit more fit-savvy by using the following strategies to help you log more steps in your day. Use these strategies consistently and before you know it, you’ll be hitting and even smashing the 10K goal!
1. Take walking meetings.
From our first business meeting of the day to happy hour, most 9-5’ers prefer to sit. But just think of how many steps you could log if your turned your typical office meetings into walking meetings instead – which is especially easy to do when you’re meeting one-on-one with someone. For example, instead of taking the usual meeting with a colleague in your office, suggest a stroll around the building while you both walk, talk and brainstorm. By doing this you’ll log in more steps, and studies also show that walking can help sharpen mental skills which will then help your ideas flow.
5 Easy Ways To Get Your 10,000 Steps Daily was originally published on blackdoctor.org
