When we imagine offices we tend to think of closed spaces full of working desks and chairs and none of us have ever thought that offices can be flexible and we can work having different activities other than just plainly sitting on the desktop.
Many people lost their backs to the pains of long working shifts and hours of endless work at the offices, which means all of them utilized less energy than was needed which adversely affected their bodies. Besides complaining about the pain that employees go through while sitting at offices 9 to 5, employees have no other option than to choose this way to have basic resources for their survival.
In this article, we will be explaining the concept of Sedentary behavior and how it affects the body in the longer run. Many people can agree to this that such behavior promotes a lot of medical issues in employees. Over time we have seen multiple positive changes as well but it will take a lot of time to completely change how we work at our offices.
What is Sedentary Behavior?
To know about the adverse effects of this behavior we first need to have a grip on the concept of sedentary behavior and what it does to employees in the longer run. To explain easily, sedentary behavior is a behavior that involves anything or anytime where the human body utilizes minimum energy and this energy is classified as an unhealthy state for the human body. This can be a time where a human spends their time laying and doing nothing or it can be a position of work which is commonly working in the office sitting on the desktop for hours.
This stagnant approach can have super negative effects on your body, mind, and overall being. This can be seen commonly in the office workers as they spend a lot of time working on their desktop sitting in a position that laters hurt their back and their necks. Sitting in one place for hours might sound comforting but it is completely office to what healthy activity is, it can cause a lot of medical issues such as high blood sugar and poor metabolism etc.
Negative Effects of Sedentary Behavior at Workspaces
It might sound comforting when people tell you that you seem at ease when you spend your day slacking on the couch however, there are always two sides to a story, you might become a victim of body vulnerability in which your body will develop certain kinds of disorders due to the lack of physical activities.
Many negative effects are associated with Sedentary behavior and we have listed some of the few to give you a sneak peek about what minimum activity at the workplace can cause to your body. Here are those negative things that can later make you feel sorry for not having enough physical activities,
1. Early Death
It is not a surprise to know that if you sit all day with a minimum working or energy consumption, you will die at an early age with lots of medical conditions that developed solely because of the lack of energy utilization. If a person sits for about 8 hours a day their chances to die to increase up to 59% more than an average human being which means that less physical activity can lead to early death.
To avoid this condition a person should visit the gym at least twice a week to keep their body moving and to utilize their average body energy.
2. Affects Brain
If you will do the same thing the whole day which is just sitting at your desktop or laying on the couch your mind will wander and you will procrastinate stuff. Then you might end up thinking negative things which can affect you both physically and mentally.
You need to take short breaks such as tea break, washroom break, or just a short stroll down to make your mind fresh and healthy. This will make your brain more active and will not make it numb and less frustrated.
3. Zero Workout Time
We all know that exercising is difficult for many and can make many people think that it is tough and will consume a lot of time and effort. But fewer people know that with workout times, your body will adapt itself to an easy routine in which you will not be offering your body any intense or mild work. This will eventually lead to sedentary behavior and will cause a lot of issues.
Try to spend a little of your time at the gym to give your body its energy food and to make yourself adapt to a healthy change.
4. Unstable Blood Sugar Level
Blood sugar levels can initiate many diseases if not treated well and this is the case with many workers as they ignore their blood sugar levels. People who have adopted a sedentary environment tend to have affected blood sugar levels caused by long-term issues in their bodies.
You can even turn put obese if you don’t treat yourself and get your body to work out daily or adopt a healthy workout session.
5. Negative Effects on Back Muscles
This is no surprise when you sit for a longer duration on your desktop you will develop back pains and muscle strains and it will hurt you in the worst ways. Your neck will be affected, your shoulders will develop stress and your spine will be affected which will lead you to have a bad posture full of muscle pain.
Due to this many experts advise people to have ergonomic chairs that can help them have an active sitting posture without any back pain or neck strains that affect the spin in the longer run.
How to Improve Sedentary Behavior?
We are sure after reading the above consequences, you might want to know how to fix this lifestyle and add a healthy change. Well to start having a healthy change, try adapting ergonomics at your workplace and your home so that you don’t slouch on the couch and you don’t end up being in a state of laziness.
Add a healthy workout session or yoga session to incorporate a sense of movement in your daily life. On top of this, you can always go for standing or sitting switching positions at your workplace to avoid sitting in one position for long hours.
Bottom Line
This might seem tough at first to leave a comfy sedentary lifestyle and step into an environment where your movements are counted so that you can stay healthy and productive. But it has a lot of advantages and it can resist you from developing serious diseases, especially any bone or spine disease.
You need to consult an expert physiotherapist to have a better understanding of movements and energy utilization try to visit the gym as much as you can after your 9 to 5 job to fix your muscles and to provide your body with enough energy and relaxing hours. We wish that the guide helped you in understanding why movement and energy utilization are important for the human body and especially for employees belonging to different companies.
