I take into account myself a floor individual—I’ll take sitting and mendacity on the ground and the liberty to sprawl out over the sofa or a bench. After watching the Netflix docuseries Reside to 100: Secrets and techniques of the Blue Zones, I discovered that being one with the bottom has a possible reference to longevity and total well being. The Blue Zones, or areas on the earth with the very best concentrations of centenarians (individuals over 100 years previous), have lately gained extra consideration.
Whereas you will have heard about sure Blue Zone traits like plant-based diets, a glass of purple wine a day, or consuming dinner with associates, the behavior of sitting on the ground has largely flown underneath the radar, however it was an enormous issue for a specific Blue Zone. In Okinawa, Japan, its inhabitants often sit on the ground. Within the docuseries, longevity professional Dan Buettner (who’s credited for the popularization of the Blue Zones) defined how the houses of 90 and 100-year-old Okinawans contained little furnishings—only a desk that was low to the bottom and a tatami mat or Japanese ground mat. In Okinawa, it’s conventional to take a seat on the ground to eat, learn, calm down, or join with others. Even the 103-year-olds he met would stand up and down from the ground 30 instances a day. Specialists attribute this way of life issue to their distinctive longevity (together with different components reminiscent of high-antioxidant meals and shut communities). This follow appears so easy it’s virtually too good to be true… We investigated.
How does sitting on the bottom contribute to good well being?
Constantly getting up and down from the ground isn’t just an element of centenarians’ life in Buettner’s analysis. Different research have additionally discovered the power to take a seat down and get again up from the bottom predicts longevity. In a 2014 examine, researchers developed the sitting-rising take a look at (SRT) in an try to know the hyperlink between musculoskeletal health and survival. The SRT is scored from 0 to five, with a rating of 5 indicating efficiently sitting down and standing again up from the bottom with none assist (together with fingers, knees, or aspect of the leg) and any wobbling or shedding your stability. The examine evaluated over 2,000 individuals aged 51 to 80 and located SRT scores to be a big predictor of all-cause mortality.
As Buettner defined within the docuseries, getting up and down from the ground is mainly like doing 30 squats (besides moderately than knocking out 30 squats on the health club, these centenarians are mindlessly doing it all through the day). Squats aren’t only for sculpting your butt; they’re additionally massively useful to your bodily well being. They may help increase bone mineral density, which provides energy to your skeleton and backbone, strengthen your decrease physique, decrease the possibilities of injuring your knees and ankles, and enhance flexibility within the tendons, muscle tissue, and ligaments that get tighter as you age, in addition to growing muscle mass (we start to lose muscle mass in our 30s, and the speed will increase after age 60).
Getting up and down from the ground all through the day builds energy, mobility, and suppleness, that are the primary parts of total well being, however Buettner believes one other big correlation between sitting on the ground and longevity is what it prevents. In accordance with the CDC, a fall is the main explanation for harm and injury-related demise for individuals aged 65 and older. Sitting and rising from the ground is a obligatory ability for independence and autonomy as a result of day by day actions typically require the power to maneuver on this manner. A excessive SRT rating additionally indicated a decreased danger of falls since you’re engaged on mobility, flexibility, and energy to forestall unhealthy falls.
Tricks to embrace sitting on the bottom
In the entire Blue Zones, individuals have interaction in additional lively life. They’ve been train snacking earlier than it even had a reputation. Sitting on the bottom appears to complement this sort of lively way of life. Think about how your life could change when your bodily setting encourages the follow. Learn on for tricks to embrace the behavior of sitting on the bottom.
Work from the ground
Overlook the standing desk—possibly all of us want ground desks. Give it some thought: You most likely stand up a number of instances a day to refill your water bottle, use the restroom, and see what’s within the fridge. Should you work from the ground, by the top of the workday, you’ll have effortlessly built-in 30 squats into your WFH routine. Attempt organising your laptop computer in your espresso desk or lap desk and sit on or towards a pillow for consolation.
Arrange areas in your house that make sitting on the ground extra snug
Should you don’t earn a living from home, it might be just a little bizarre to start out working from the ground in your workplace, however that doesn’t imply you’ll be able to’t undertake the behavior. Create areas in your house that encourage rest and connection after work, areas that invite you and your mates to take a seat round to play playing cards or swap courting tales. Throw in some props like pillows and a comfortable rug to hygge-ify it. When you’re at it, stack up some books subsequent to the area to make it your designated studying nook. Sharing this new follow with your mates may be fulfilling, too (and simply think about you and your gal buddies nonetheless gathering on the ground in your 90s).
Put on snug clothes
Tight, inflexible denims should not welcome right here. Sporting snug pants is not going to solely improve the possibilities of you sitting on the ground, however it might additionally offer you a mild nudge to attempt some Wall Pilates or go for walks all through the day, growing your possibilities of dwelling much less sedentarily.
Construct your energy and mobility to make ground sitting simpler
Not all of us will be capable to bounce proper into sitting on the bottom on a regular basis. As we mentioned, it does take a specific amount of energy and mobility to embrace this follow. Petra Fisher, a motion coach, has an ideal video collection that goes over these limitations to ground sitting and demonstrates methods to reinforce your energy and mobility (particularly in your knees, hips, and toes) to make it a neater behavior.
Attempt totally different sitting positions
Should you’re not used to sitting on the bottom, it will not be essentially the most snug place to be at first. Our our bodies are accustomed to sitting in chairs and counting on the assist that they provide. With out that assist, we find yourself slouching, which is able to in the end trigger extra ache and discomfort. Fisher recommends utilizing props like a blanket or cushions to assist your physique on the ground, in addition to shifting typically and attempting out totally different seated positions to extend blood stream and luxury. Try her video for extra tricks to make ground sitting extra accessible.
Supply: The Every Girl
