Las Fabulosas: Beauty & Style
Sitting Disease: The Risks of Sitting at Your Escritorio for Too Long
By Robyn Moreno for Las Fabulosas
According to recent studies, Americanos are sitting way more than ever — and the results aren’t looking good. The average worker is burning almost 150 fewer daily calories than his or her employed parents once did. And obesity, which affects Latinos disproportionately, is becoming more and more commonplace.
Studies done at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, Md., have shows that a sedentary lifestyle can cause a host of medical ailments. These may include sleep apnea, colon cancer, cardiovascular disease, and an increase in blood clots, which can lead to strokes. Another scary finding? Life expectancy in the U.S. would be two years higher if adults reduced their time spent sitting to just three hours a day.
“The body is not meant to be static,” says Dr. Susan Lowery, a chiropractor. “It’s meant to move. It is vital to change your position frequently to prevent damage.”
To help prevent damage, Dr. Lowery recommends shifting your posture every 15 minutes. “We encourage patients to adjust their chairs (for example, moving them up or down) just slightly every 15 minutes,” she says. You can also set screen timers on your computer or smartphone to remind you to stand up, do light back stretches or hamstring stretches, change your position slightly, or simply place a pillow behind your back.
It’s also important to get out for lunch at least twice a week. And if you really want to go the extra mile, consider bringing your yoga mat to work to do some easy moves throughout the day. Whatever your mood, it is imperative you get busy moving. It may just save your life.
Robyn Moreno is a proud Latina of Mexican-American heritage, and has co-written, and
co-edited two Latino-centric books: Suave: The Latin Male, a fashion book about Latino
style icons, and Border-Line
Personalities: A New Generation of Latinas Dish on Sex, Sass, and Cultural
Shifting, an honest and irreverent anthology about life as
a modern Latina.
