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Your Move


HOW SITTING ALL DAY CAN CAUSE HEALTH PROBLEMS — EVEN IF YOU EXERCISE


WORKING OUT FOR 30 MINUTES EVERY DAY “MIGHT NOT BE ENOUGH” TO COUNTER THE HEALTH
ISSUES CREATED BY PROLONGED SITTING, SAID THE AUTHOR OF A SWEEPING NEW STUDY

By Gretchen Reynolds
September 14, 2022 at 5:58 a.m. EDT

Sitting all day may erase many of the benefits of a daily workout, new study
shows. (Jamal Jordan for The Washington Post)
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Are you an active couch potato? Take this two-question quiz to find out:

Did you work out for 30 minutes today?


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Did you spend the rest of the day staring at your computer and then settle in
front of the television at night?

If you answered yes to both questions, then you meet the definition of what
scientists call “an active couch potato.” It means that, despite your commitment
to exercise, you could be at risk for a variety of health problems, according to
a sweeping new study of how people move — or don’t move — throughout the day.



The study, which involved more than 3,700 men and women in Finland, found that
many dutifully exercised for a half-hour, but then sat, almost nonstop, for
another 10, 11 or even 12 hours a day. These were the study’s active couch
potatoes, and their blood sugar, cholesterol and body fat all were elevated.

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But the study found, too, that men and women who got up and moved around even a
little more often, whether by strolling gently or fitting in more exercise, were
substantially healthier than the active couch potatoes.

The results tell us that a single 30-minute, daily workout “might not be enough”
to alleviate the downsides of prolonged sitting, said Vahid Farrahi, a
postdoctoral scientist at the University of Oulu and lead author of the new
study.

In other words, if we exercise but also sit for the rest of the day, it’s almost
as if we had not worked out at all.

The good news is that a few simple steps — literal and otherwise — should
safeguard us from becoming an active sofa spud.

Sign up for the Well+Being newsletter, your source of expert advice and simple
tips to help you live well every day

THE PERILS OF BEING SEDENTARY



The World Health Organization and other experts advise us to work out moderately
for a minimum of 30 minutes most days of the week. A brisk walk counts as
moderate exercise.

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Substantial scientific evidence shows this half-hour of exertion buoys our
health, spirits and life span. The problem is how we spend the remaining 23½
hours a day.

“It’s only in the last five years or so that we’ve begun to understand that
physical activity isn’t the whole story,” said Raija Korpelainen, a professor of
health exercise at the University of Oulu in Finland and co-author of the new
study.

Super short workouts can be surprisingly effective

In the past, most research examined sitting and exercise separately, and tended
to ignore or downplay light activities such as ambling to the mailbox or
fetching another cup of coffee.

So, for the new study, which was published in July in Medicine & Science in
Sports & Exercise, Korpelainen and her co-authors turned to a large trove of
data about almost every child born in Northern Finland decades ago. As they
grew, researchers tracked their lives and health and, after the group became
adults, asked 3,702 of them to wear a scientific-grade activity tracker for at
least a week.

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The researchers could see, in six-second increments, whether someone was
sitting, lightly strolling or formally exercising throughout the day. Because
the trackers were measuring movement, standing counted as inactivity, like
sitting. With that data, they characterized people, rather bluntly, by how they
moved.

The active couch potatoes, who accounted for almost a third of the group, sat
the most, lounging for more than 10 hours a day. They met recommended exercise
guidelines — getting about 30 daily minutes of moderate exercise. But after
that, they rarely got up, accumulating fewer than 220 minutes a day of light
movement.

Another group likewise worked out for 30 minutes and sat for long hours. But, in
between, they rose often and strolled about. Compared with the active couch
potatoes, they spent about 40 percent more time — nearly an extra 90 minutes
each day — in what the researchers call “light activity.”

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A third group sat, uninterrupted, for up to 10 hours, but also amassed about an
hour of exercise most days.

The final group, which the researchers rightly dubbed “the movers,” did just
that, exercising about an hour most days, while also moving lightly for about
two hours more than the active couch potato group.

When the researchers cross-checked these groups against people’s current health
data, the active couch potatoes had the worst blood sugar control, body fat
percentage and cholesterol profiles.

The other groups were all better off and to about the same extent, with
relatively improved blood sugar control and cholesterol levels and about 8
percent less body fat than the active couch potatoes, even when the researchers
controlled for income, smoking, sleep habits and other factors.

MOVE JUST A LITTLE MORE



The lesson from the research is that in addition to a brisk workout, we need to
move lightly and often, cleaning, taking the stairs, strolling the halls or
otherwise not remaining still. The sweet spot in this study involved about 80 or
90 extra minutes of light activity, “but any additional movement should be
beneficial,” Farrahi said.

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You can also try to squeeze in a little more exercise. In this study, people
benefited if they doubled their workouts to 60 minutes, total. But, again, “do
what you can,” Korpelainen said. Just adding an extra 10 or 15 minutes to a
daily walk will matter, she said, even if you do not quite manage an hour of
exercise.

“The goal is to be sitting less,” said Matthew Buman, a professor at Arizona
State University in Tempe, who studies movement and metabolism but was not part
of the new study. “We can each decide how best to get there.”

Exercise boosts the brain — and mental health

This study has limitations. It only looks at people’s lives at one point in
time. It also involved Finns, most of them Caucasians and all somewhat active,
who may not be representative of the rest of us, and did not include a
completely sedentary comparison group.

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Even so, “it should nudge us to think about how we spend our time,” Buman said,
and perhaps reconfigure our lives and spaces so we move more. “Try putting the
printer and recycling bins in another room,” he suggested, “so you have to get
up and walk there.”

“I like to remind myself to go over and just look out the window often,” Farrahi
said. “The solutions don’t have to be intimidating,” he continued. “Keep it
simple. Try to move more, however you can, whenever you can and in ways that you
enjoy.”

Do you have a fitness question? Email YourMove@washpost.com and we may answer
your question in a future column.


READ MORE FROM WELL+BEING

Well+Being shares news and advice for living well every day. Sign up for our
newsletter to get tips directly in your inbox.

Mind: Considering therapy but don’t know where to begin? We rounded up tips for
starting and getting the most out of it. Another option to think about: group
counseling. For other ways to improve your mental well-being, here’s what
science says about exercise, meditation and more.

Body: Do you really need an annual checkup every year? If you want to add
healthy years to your life, here’s what longevity research says is most
important.

Life: We know the world can feel bleak sometimes. But here’s how experts say you
can still create a meaningful life amid the chaos. Also check out some of our
guides about building relationships with others, including why you always think
your friends are upset with you, and how to recognize and respond to
gaslighting.

Food: Looking to eat healthier? Here are 6 tips for getting started. And if
you’re a picky eater, we’ve got some strategies to help you explore more foods.
We’ve also compiled some tips for eating right before and after you exercise.

Fitness: Getting back into the habit of working out can be tough. Start with
these tips. Even short workouts can be surprisingly effective. Read more about
how to make sure you’re giving your body enough chance to recover, and how to
deal with sore muscles.

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