Article – The Truth about Sitting
In recent years the concept of sitting being harmful to our health has picked up quite a bit of steam. The attention is justified! According to Dr. James Levine, director of the Mayo Clinic-Arizona State University Obesity Solutions Initiative who authored the phrase “sitting is the new smoking”, sitting for as little as two continuous hours increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, cancer, back and neck pain, and other orthopedic problems.1 His research claims have support too. A 2010 American Cancer Society study that followed 123,216 adults for 13 years showed that women who were inactive and sat for more than six hours a day were 94% more likely to die during the period studied than those who were physically active and sat for less than three hours a day. Men in the study fared better but still had a 48% higher likelihood of death for those who were inactive and sat more than six hours per day as compared to their active counterparts.2
It is also worth noting that these findings were independent of physical activity levels. The negative effects of sitting were just as strong in people who exercised regularly but then sat greater than three hours per day. Let’s revisit that last statement one more time for clarity. According to the research even if you eat well and workout religiously for an hour a day, but then sit for greater than three hours per day, the sitting behavior will chip away or even cancel out the benefits of all of your exercise at the gym. The reality is you are still considered a sedentary person.3
With such a looming body of evidence demonstrating how harmful sitting is for our health and wellbeing it may be time to invest in some alternatives. Here are my top three suggestions to help you get started.
My first suggestion is to be intentional about getting up at least once every hour when you do find yourself sitting. You can make it as simple as simply getting up and walking around your house or more involved by doing some great stretches for your middle back like you will learn in todays “Exercise of the Month” video. It does not really matter that much what you do when you get up according to the research. It matters most that you make a point of standing up.
Another great idea to get you on your feet more often is to be strategic about how you position both standing and sitting tasks. One way that I have done this is to place breaks like getting the mail, doing dishes, prepping a meal, feeding our dog, and other tasks that involve getting up with other responsibilities like office time that are more sedentary.
A final suggestion is to get some kind of fitness tracking device like a FitBit that shows you how active you are in a given day. Sometimes we don’t even realize how much activity we’re lacking. Fitness tracking devices can provide excellent information that communicates exactly how much activity we are getting in a given day. I personally love the FitBit brand for this because you see your steps like many trackers provide but you also get a measure of your active minutes, those minutes you are up and moving versus sitting. Several of our clients have made some great improvements in their health because of the feedback they’ve received from their FitBits.
Join me in using these suggestions to avoid being another statistic. Together we can move towards optimum fitness instead of succumbing to the diseases linked to excessive sitting.
1- James A. Levine, Get Up! Why Your Chair is Killing You and What You Can Do About It. (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2014): 70-71.
2- Alpa V. Patel, Leslie Bernstein, Anusila Deka, Heather Spencer Feigelson, Peter T. Campbell, Susan M. Gapshur, Graham A. Colditz, and Michael J. Thun, “Leisure Time Spent Sitting in Relation to Total Mortality in a Prospective Cohort of US Adults, “American Journal of Epidemiology, 172, no. 4 (2010): 419-429.
3-Aviroop Biswas, Paul I. Oh, Guy E. Faulkner, Ravi R. Bajaj, Michael A. Silver, Marc S. Mitchell, and David A. Alter, “Sedentary Time and Its Association With Risk For Disease Incidence, Mortality, and Hospitalization in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis”, Annals of Internal Medicine 162, no. 2 (2015): 123-132
by Chris Litten
Client Spotlight – Burke Krueger
Client Spotlight Questions
1. What was the reason you decided to go to a trainer?
To realize the maximum benefit of exercising with a trained professional. To discipline myself to train at a certain place and a certain time.
2. Did you consider or participate in any other form of treatment for your reason before seeking a trainer? Examples: physical therapist, acupuncturist, medication
Only a trainer for the long haul
3. How did you hear about BodyBasics?
Dr. Tait, owner of Rejuv Medical Southwest
4. Did you evaluate other gyms or trainers before deciding on coming to Us? If yes, what were other places missing that BodyBasics was able to provide?
Only BodyBasics
5. Ultimately, why did you choose BodyBasics over other options?
One on one training with professionals
6. What goals did you have when you started at BodyBasics?
To stay healthy and mobile
7. How long have you been training at BodyBasics and what specifically have you achieved over that interval?
Three and a half years
8. What current goals are you pursuing with your trainers at BodyBasics?
To play 18 holes of golf when I am 90!
Welcome New and Returning Clients
The greatest compliment we can receive is a referral from one of our clients or allied health network!
- Chris Vaughan ~ referred by his doctor and fellow client, Dr. Bruce Sadilek from Integrative Medical Associates
- Janelle Parks ~ referred by Dr. Martinez at TMC One
- Mark Blessington ~ found us through Google
- Jeanette Sawyer ~ referred by Seth Peterson, owner of The Motive Physical Therapy Specialists
- Maureen Roll ~ found us through Google
- Dan Peters ~ referred by friend and fellow client Amanda Ritchie
- Irma Ficzeri ~ referred by friend and fellow client Shelley Phipps
- Sharon Walker ~ found us through Google
“Shout Outs”
Shout outs are about us voicing victories we witness you all having at BodyBasics. We’ll keep it to our top 5 each month.
- Trish Harris ~ for experiencing another exercise supported milestone, having the easiest time getting on her horse in 3 months!
- Miguel Suriano ~ for being so consistent since starting his training with us in August. He’s lighter by 15 lbs. and fitter as measured by reducing his time to complete 500 meters on the rower by 4 minutes!
- Shelley Phipps ~ for absolutely ROCKING a recent cruise in Alaska. She hiked. She kayaked. She did yoga. She felt capable to do all with ZERO limitations!
- Irma Peponis ~ for being another shining example of how much age is NOT a limiting factor. at 77 years young and about a month of training under her belt, she has dramatically improved her hip mobility, balance and depth to complete her body weight squats.
- Siva Kondagunta ~ for experiencing a SIGNIFICANT milestone recently, taking several successful steps with just a 4-pronged cane instead of his walker. This something he has not been able to do since a back surgery in 2017!
Recipe – Maple Pumpkin Fall Harvest Trail Mix
As the fall season kicks off we know how busy our lives will get as the holidays approach! This trail mix is perfect to keep nearby when your schedule does not go as planned.
This is a nice blend of spice, sweet and savory!
Recipe By: Slim Pickins Kitchen
Equipment:
Baking Sheet and parchment paper
Ingredients:
1/4 Cup pure maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/8 tsp sea salt
2/3 cup pecan halves
1/3 cup each: pepitas or roasted pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sliced almonds, dried cherries, dried apricots, cinnamon chips
1/4 cup golden raisins
Instructions:
- Line baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside
- Add maple syrup to large sauce pan and heat over medium-high heat until just beginning to boil.
- Stir in pumpkin pie spice, salt and nuts and cook, stirring frequently, until the nuts have caramelized and the syrup has reduced. About 3-5 minutes.
- Spread mixture in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet and let cool completely. The candied nuts will harden as they cool.
- Once hardened, add the cherries, apricots, raisins and cinnamon chips to the pan, and stir until ingredients are evenly distributed, breaking the candied nuts into clusters as needed.
- Store in an air-tight container and enjoy!
Basic Moves by BodyBasics ~ Middle Back Stretches
Community Events
Walk With a Doc at 8:00 A.M. at Children’s Memorial Park
Join yours truly, Chris Litten, as well as our community partners, Dr. Seth Peterson, owner of The Motive Physical Therapy Specialists, and Amber Stazenski, Owner of Pusch It Personal Training, October 5th at 9:00 a.m. for a mix of learning and moving! We’ll start right at 9:00 with Amber leading us off with some of her wisdom. You’ll have to show up to find out what! After that, we’ll all set off together for an invigorating walk along the Rillito River starting at the backstop of Children’s Memorial Park. Dogs and friends or neighbors are DEFINITELY welcome! Dr. Peterson, Chris and Amber are all rallying to increase your fitness and the fitness of our community. For map of location please call us and we will be happy to get all information to you. You can also like our Facebook page. Search “BodyBasics Personal Training” and click on the Move Better, Feel Better, Live Better logo. We provide great content daily.
Team BodyBasics
Chris, Kris, Kristian, Amanda, Dustin, Xavier, Aaron, Mike and Vadim
