A New review of a study of 44,000 middle aged people who wear fitness trackers, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, shows that just 11 minutes of fast walking can offset many of the long term effects of sitting still.
Those who sit still the longest - defined as being in the bottom third for activity for up to 10 hours a day - were 260% more likely to die prematurely. For them just 11 minutes of brisk walking every will get them into a better place.
However 35 minutes of rapid walking every day, was found to produce the greatest statistical health gains. for those in the middle third.
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You beat me to it Lilypocket - my Border Collie doesn't believe in bad weather, tired human or any other excuse to miss the daily run. But, dogs take work and energy to look after and not everyone can cope - my neighbour walks her cats who love it.
No offence to you but those reports really infuriate me. It’s bad enough having a worn out hip without being reminded that my general health is deteriorating as a result.
Unfortunately the covid onslaught is going to turn the NHS into an emergency only service for a good while yet. Have a look at versusarthritis.org to see if they have any suggestions to help you with minimising the effects on your general health.
If you have £8-10,000 hidden down the back of your settee a private operation will be a definite possibility .
An operation can be had in lithuania for about 7.500 euro, with the possibility of a refund from the NHS if they cannot provide the operation in the UK. However this may change on leaving the EU.
Thanks for posting. I have never been 'a walker' but I was unlucky enough (or should that now be lucky enough!) to get a blood clot in my leg after a 5hr no break car journey (they discovered I have Factor V Leiden) in my late 40's in 2001. Due to my GP missing the problem, it was too late to save the valves in my leg and with the threat of serious ulcer issues developing I quickly persuaded myself to take up fast walking (with Nordic poles) twice a day for 30 minutes and have done this consistently ever since, rain or shine. In brief the benefits have been: the leg has healed itself & anxiety/borderline depression in the early AF days overcome plus no doubt avoiding other chronic issues as I do have a desk job with too much sitting and loved cakes & chocolate bars!
Brings back a few memories. I was sat at home, my son came in, sat opposite me and without any further ado said "your right leg is swollen, go to the hospital. This was followed by a "yes it is", "no it isn't " session until my entire family ganged up on me and I was ejected from the house , muttering and grumbling to go to the hospital.
I have a clear memory of walking along the main corridor - take 4 steps and breathe - etc, and eventually got there. The Doctor on duty said " trousers off and onto the bed by a scanning machine". Bloods were taken. "Cant see anything" said the operator, "Go and have a sandwich and come back in half an hour when the bloods result should be back".
"Right "I said. By now it was lunch time . So off we went to the hospital cafe where my wife said "What are you having"? "Faggots and peas " I said, "What " ? She said. "I am not dying on an empty stomach" I said. So faggots and peas it was. Very tasty too.
Back we went. "Where have you been " they said, "Blood tests show that you have a clot". Back on the bench I went. The Doctor came over and started listening all over my body. You know they are having fun when they call over their students to have a listen as well.
"I shall be writing to your cardiologist" he said.
For me this was good news as it was the first step in getting an appointment for open heart surgery to fix my valves.
Thanks very much for this most useful information. I try hard to do what my Apple Watch instructs me on a daily basis, and, naturally enough, my wife tries much harder than I do and as a result succeeds much more often than I ever do!
I'm always phased by percentages, though. What does "260% more likely to die prematurely" mean? I shall read the article more fully later to find out.
Thanks for your good wishes which are reciprocated. We also have a mysterious presence known as 'somebody', who causes all manner of strange events and mysteries to happen . We enjoyed a sunny, crisp and clear walk this morning. When we sat down for lunch 'somebody' had opened a bottle of red wine.
As you know wine goes off once it has been opened, so we had to dig out a few glasses and have a glug each, being careful not to swig down the whole bottle. My wife is now in the kitchen, making a chocolate yule log. I suspect the kitchen fairies will be knocking up her step count as she goes and once again her step count will exceed mine. It is however a sacrifice I am willing to make.
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