Health coaching

Regular desk breaks are ‘good for the heart’

By Emma Hilton, writer at Life Coach Directory

Published on January 13th, 2011

According to health researchers, taking lots of small breaks from our desks could benefit our waistlines and our hearts.

The report, which was published in the European Heart Journal and was conducted at the University of Queensland, Australia has revealed that those who sat down for prolonged periods without moving tended to have a larger waist circumference and lower levels of good HDL cholesterol.

Lead researcher on the project Dr Genevieve Healy said “Our research showed that even small changes, which could be as little as standing up for one minute, might help to lower this health risk.

“It is likely that regular breaks in prolonged sitting time could be readily incorporated into the working environment without any detrimental impact on productivity, although this still needs to be determined by further research.”

If you are currently in a job which requires prolonged periods of sitting at a desk then here are some easy to implement tips to get you on your feet:

Stand up to receive phone calls

Instead of phoning or emailing a college in the same room, try walking over and talking to them directly

Have meetings standing up

Walk up the stairs instead of taking the lift

Position items such as the rubbish bin, printer, kettle, stationary etc at a distance so you have to walk to get to them.

Amy Thompson, a senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation agrees that movement is important during a working day. “If your day involves sitting for long periods it’s really important you take regular breaks by getting up on your feet” She said.

View the original article here