Featured Image Credit: Pigmie/YouTube
We've all been told to sit less because sitting too much can be as harmful as smoking several cigarettes a day.
It's important to stay active and keep our bodies moving, but what about the other extreme?
What happens if you stand too much without sitting down?
Well, YouTuber pigmie decided to try it out by not sitting down for an entire week.
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He took on the challenge when he found a study showing that one in four Americans sit for more than 8 hours every day. More recent research after 2019 showed that that figure has increased to 9.5+ hours a day - which is frightening!
During the experiment, pigmie only allowed himself to lie down in bed.
He kept himself busy by eating, leaning, working out, scrolling through his phone, and doing many household chores.
He created a makeshift standing desk to keep him standing while working whilst he waited patiently for Amazon to deliver his proper standing desk.
As the days went on, the urge to sit and relax grew stronger, especially by the end of each day when the YouTuber felt the urge to just sit and put his feet up.
By day three, he started feeling aching in his legs and feet and a 'constant need to stretch' that started disrupting his sleep.
Finally, he stopped the experiment after five days, realising he couldn't keep it up any longer.
The before-and-after shots show the true physical effects of standing for prolonged periods.
'In only five days look at this slouch when I stand,' he said as he presented the images.
He noticed more of a slouch and curvature in his back after not sitting.
'I can see that my hamstrings are still kind of tight which is fighting a little bit with my glutes,' pigmie added.
He noticed a lot more kyphosis in the after shot which is rounding of the upper back, as well as more lordosis which is curving of the lower back and buttocks like a pelvic tilt.
But on the positive side of things, the YouTuber felt a '30% productivity boost' when working at his standing desk as well as an improvement in his digestion.
We always hear the effects of long-term sitting but it's interesting to see the effects of too long standing - I guess too much of anything isn't good for you.
