Whether you work from home or in an office, chances are you spend a lot of time sitting. Research shows that the average adult spends over 6-7 hours a day in a seated position, and this number can go up to 8 hours or more for office workers (in the best-case scenario).

Long periods of sedentary time are associated with worse cardiometabolic outcomes and can aggravate musculoskeletal discomfort, especially when overall physical activity is low. The exact risk depends on total sitting time, fitness, age and how much movement occurs outside work, so there is no useful single percentage that applies to everyone.

This is the typical case of going against nature—humans have always been on the move throughout their evolutionary history. Hunting, gathering, building—all these activities involved active physical labor rather than sitting.

When you move, contracting muscles assist venous return and energy use rises. Replacing some sitting with light activity can improve post-meal glucose and other cardiometabolic markers, but claims such as removing a fixed percentage of the heart’s workload or raising LDL by a fixed amount are too specific to generalize.

Standing is useful mainly because it interrupts continuous sitting, but standing alone is not equivalent to exercise and has not been shown to halve cardiovascular risk. Short walking or activity breaks generally produce stronger metabolic effects than simply swapping a chair for a standing desk.

How to Adapt to a Sedentary Job:

  • Take breaks every 30-45 minutes—this can be easily done by using smartphone apps.
  • During breaks, stand up, walk around, and do some light stretching.
  • While sitting, try to move as much as possible—change your position, wiggle your legs, and adjust your torso.
  • Place a massage mat under your feet or roll a massage ball with your foot.
  • Work while standing or alternate between sitting and standing—height-adjustable desks are available for this purpose.

Another option is to use a laptop stand, which allows you to work while standing. Another is investing in a height-adjustable desk, which can be altered for sitting or standing positions, providing flexibility to change your posture throughout the day. It’s also beneficial to take a break every hour for a walk or exercises. Some research recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week to maintain heart and vascular health.

If you have a sedentary job and lifestyle, exercise becomes not just a privilege but a necessity.

Here’s a baseline to aim for: a minimum of 30 minutes of medium-paced walking daily and two strength-training sessions per week.

Of course, this is if you wish to maintain your health in the long run. This won’t completely solve the problem, but it will partially offset the negative impact that constant sitting has on your blood circulation, heart, metabolic processes, and spine.