How Being Sedentary Can Impact Your Mental Health—Even If You Exercise

New research shows that sitting for long stretches of time—even if we're getting those bursts of activity in at the gym—can adversely impact our mental health.

Take two minutes to read, explore, and reflect. By Wendy Rose Gould & Amy Morin, LCSW, Editor-in-Chief Top of Mind Even With Exercise, Being Sedentary Can Impact Mental Health   Experts have long maintained that moving more throughout the day is key to our physical health. Now, new research shows that sitting for long stretches of time—even if we're getting those bursts of activity in at the gym—can adversely impact our mental health, too.   The study, which took place during the stringent COVID-19 lock downs, involved 284 participants. They were asked about their mental health and current level of physical activity, including how much they sat throughout the day. The study determined that when individuals were spending more than eight hours a day sitting—even with 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity weekly—there were adverse mental health impacts.   Specifically, a sedentary lifestyle has been linked to mental health concerns such as depression and anxiety. It can also affect our motivation, make us feel more fatigued, and can even make it more difficult to manage stress.     Once people force themselves to do things that bring happiness and spend time in the fresh air, they do notice much improvement in their mood. The actions we take have a huge effect on our mood."  — JULIAN LAGOY, MD What This Means For You Because the pandemic has greatly shifted our previous routines, this study is more relevant than ever. It's important to get up and move more throughout the day, whether that means taking a walk around the block once every hour or two, using a sitting/standing desk, or incorporating mini workouts into your daily routine.   On the Bright Side Ways to Stay Positive This Week What's Inspiring Us While sitting all day isn't good for us, standing all day isn't ideal, either. You can strike the perfect balance with a desk that does both, such as Flexispot's Electric Adjustable Height Standing Desk, which allows you to go from one height to another with the push of a button. The brand also makes a cycling desk if you're feeling ambitious! Products to Help You Feel Your Best Sometimes wearing something that's comfortable and makes you feel good can serve as motivation to roll out mat, go for a walk, or head to the gym. Check out the PopFlex Collection and Gymshark's assortment of fitness apparel. Have you heard of "snackable workouts?" It's the concept of incorporating bite-sized, micro workouts into your daily regimen. From We've got eight simple routines for you to try. Read These Next How Many Steps Do People Walk a Day on Average? READ NOW Why Some People Are More Prone to Depression Than Others READ NOW How to Fix a Sedentary Lifestyle READ NOW Spread the Light Share the newsletter with someone you know to make their day a little brighter. SHARE We're open to suggestions! If you have any feedback about this newsletter, let us know at feedback@verywell.com.     You are receiving this newsletter because you subscribed to the Healthy Mind newsletter. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here. If someone forwarded you this email, you can subscribe here!   A DOTDASH BRAND 28 Liberty Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY, 10005   © 2021 Verywellmind.com - All rights reserved. Privacy Policy