Spending your days sitting down seems like it would be nice and relaxing. While this is true, the long-term effects of doing this day after day, month after month, can negatively affect your health. Being inactive for extended periods of time with minimal movement and no exercise is far from relaxing — it’s deadly!

How Does Being Inactive Hurt Your Body?

As a result of an inactive lifestyle, your body will begin to change for the worse. You will burn fewer calories that will lead to weight gain, your muscles will lose strength, your stamina will diminish, and your immune system will have trouble functioning properly. In addition to your body breaking down, you will become more prone to future health risks down the road.

What Health Risks Are Associated with Being Inactive?

The longer a person remains inactive, the more side effects and health risks they will face. A lack of exercise will result in:

• Heart Disease
• Type 2 Diabetes
• Stroke
• High Cholesterol
• Obesity
• Osteoporosis
• Depression & Anxiety
• Premature Death

How Can You Become More Active?

Becoming more active might seem scary at first, but in reality it is very attainable and all it takes is one step (followed by another, and another…). Rather than jumping right into the gym or taking classes right away, you can start becoming more active by:

• Moving around while you watch television or listen to music (pedal on a bike, do arm and leg raises, etc.)
• Using the stairs instead of the elevator
• Stretching when you wake up and before you go to bed
• Standing up for a few minutes to break up the amount of time you spend sitting
• Going for a 30 minute walk each day

Living a sedentary lifestyle won’t just make you lazy, it can lead to serious health problems down the road. For other useful tips and information, visit our blog! If you’re interested in learning more, or visiting The Arbors Assisted Living community, schedule a tour by contacting one of our five convenient locations:

Bohemia
Hauppauge
Islandia East
Islandia West
Westbury