Arianna Merritt, M.Ed.

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"Sitting Disease": How do we prevent it?

Does convenience come with a price? These days you really don't have to do much exercise if you don't want to.  You can have almost anything delivered to your house (i.e. food and supplies).  Also, if you commute to a desk job or are a student there is a lot of sitting involved there too.  Think about it, many individuals get up and take either the bus or drive to school/work, they then sit in lecture or at a computer doing their work. Then they come home.  The setup isn't designed to include much physical activity.  There is so much sitting that researchers have labelled in the "Sitting Disease".

"According to a poll of nearly 6,300 people by the Institute for Medicineand Public Health, it's likely you spend a stunning 56 hours a week planted like a geranium" (Women's Health, Nov. 2009).

So a thought that has been on my mind for a while now is: How do you encourage students to become physically active???

I mean in elementary and high school we used to have recess, lunch break and gym class where we could go and have fun. However in later years of high school and in university/college, it isn't mandatory to participate in any activity. I have seen many students that lead a very sedentary life. There is no time to fit in working out when there are books to read, papers to write or exams to study for. What people sometimes forget is that in order to have a healthy mind we need a healthy body. We need to take care of it by eating healthy and being physically active.

How do you encourage students to get moving???  Everyone NEEDS 60 minutes of cardio everyday.

Thank you for reading and your presence at this beach retreat. You Rock! I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts in the comment section below.

See you at the beach!