It strengthens leg muscles and improves balance. It burns more calories than sitting. It is also a great antidote to the formation of blood clots deep in the legs.
Standing exercises also engage many stabilizing muscles, so they're a great way to improve your balance and stability, he says. Here are six standing exercises that Osaki recommends to help strengthen your legs and butt—and ultimately improve your day-to-day life.
Standing doesn't count as exercise, and, unlike running or cycling, there is there is no evidence that simply standing at work improves cardiovascular health.
When standing occurs continually over prolonged periods, it can result in inflammation of the veins. This inflammation may progress over time to chronic and painful varicose veins. Excessive standing also causes the joints in the spine, hips, knees and feet to become temporarily immobilized or locked.
Even if you have a quality pair of shoes your feet may still be sore. But aside from sore feet, you may experience swollen feet, ankles, and calves. Circulation in your lower body has to work extra hard to return blood to your heart if you're standing all day, which can cause swelling and aching.
Advocates of standing desks point to studies showing that after a meal, blood sugar levels return to normal faster on days a person spends more time standing. And standing, rather than sitting, may reduce the risk of shoulder and back pain.
Experts have found that you should try to stand for at least 2 hours per day, but up to 4 hours per day could be optimal. This might seem like a lot, but there are lots of ways you can fit standing into your day.
Why is standing good for you? Researchers think it's because standing exercises muscles in your abdomen, butt and legs that are necessary to keep you upright for an extended period. Working out muscles helps to control blood sugar and blood fat levels, which can lower cholesterol.
Standing Core Stabilizer
Promote abdominal strength, increase stability, improve breathing, coordination, and reduce your waistline. Regularly practicing standing core exercises is essential to sculpting your midsection and reducing belly fat.
Risks begin to manifest for those who stand more than four hours per day. What constitutes “too much” standing can also change based on the circumstances. For instance, it is recommended that pregnant women avoid standing for prolonged periods of time.
Simply standing too is an exercise and not just that, it has innumerable benefits too. When you sit, your body's metabolism goes for a toss. As against this, just standing can turn the tables for you. Studies show that when you stand, your body starts burning fat, which it was storing when you were sitting.
The researchers found that standing burned 0.15 calories (kcals) per minute more than sitting. By substituting standing for sitting for six hours a day, a 143.3-pound adult would expend an extra 54 calories (kcals) in six hours.
If that seems like too much, consider this — most experts agree that the majority of people should be able to stand for at least two hours during an 8-hour workday.
Leg pain can have many causes, but your description of aching after prolonged standing or sitting suggests a possible buildup of fluid in the leg veins (chronic venous disease, venous insufficiency).
According to the CCOHS report, prolonged standing effectively reduces the blood supply to the muscles resulting in the acceleration of the onset of fatigue and causes pain in the muscles of the legs, back and neck, as well as pooling of blood in the legs and feet which leads to varicose veins.
Try to alternate between sitting and standing every 30 to 60 minutes. Bottom Line: Try to alternate between sitting and standing. Early research suggests you should only spend 1 hour standing for every 1–2 hours sitting.
But don't pat yourself on the back thinking you've solved all of your health problems just because you're standing all day. Unfortunately, standing for 12 hours in front of your workstation will only make you marginally healthier in the long run because you are still sedentary.
Medical research studies show that standing as little as 30 minutes a day can lower your risk of death from cardiovascular disease. Standing for 90 minutes can lower that risk by more than 33%. The more you stand, the more the benefits add up.
According to the Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS), working in a standing position on a regular basis can lead not only to fatigue and lower back pain but can also cause other health problems such as sore feet, swollen legs, varicose veins and stiffness in the neck and shoulders.
Many ergonomic experts recommend standing about 5-15 minutes out of every hour when using a standing desk, although research is ongoing. One study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine recommends that it's ideal to move, stand, and take breaks from sitting for a total of at least 2 hours in an 8 hour work day.