Dangers of Sitting

Lesson 52

I once heard that sitting is the new smoking, and at first I scoffed at it. Yeah, right! How can sitting be more dangerous than cigarettes? Although they are different, both pose serious potential dangers. I was blown away when I looked more into the science of sitting. We all know about cigarettes by now, but how many of us know about the dangers of sitting?

It is so funny how the object-relationship dynamic can be applied to anything. To be clear, sitting itself is not dangerous, but sitting too much or incorrectly is. Unfortunately, many people sit too much and incorrectly. The problem happens when you have a person sitting all day with the spine compressing down and the front body collapsing in on itself. If you take an honest look at how many people sit while working, it starts to look like the body is getting ready to curl up into a ball or defensive crouch.

This is not just a strong signal to activate the fight-or-flight response, but this position deactivates the glutes and the metabolism too. It tightens the hamstrings, hip flexors, and psoas. The head becomes much heavier to support due to the angle — putting unnecessary strain on the neck and shoulders.

Let’s go over how to sit like a yogi, then in the next lesson, we will discuss alternate positions to sitting. The same principles apply whether you are in lotus pose or sitting in a chair. If you are in a chair, have both feet firmly planted on the ground. Additionally, root down through the glutes as you lengthen up through the top of the head. Roll the shoulders down and back away from the ears, then slide them down the back as much as you can. The hips, shoulders, and head should all be in alignment. If this is new to you, it does take some getting used to at first, but with a little practice, it will become your default. Not only will you be more alert and focused with a long spine, but there will be no unnecessary strain on the body.