Is being SEDENTARY keeping you STUCK?

You know when you have a “to-do” list as long as your arm but you find yourself staring at the same page of that book you’re trying to read, or the same screen of your computer for over 10 minutes? Do you recognise you are stuck?

Being stuck can be mentally frustrating, physically exhausting and emotionally draining. It can often lead to overwhelm and given time, complete burn out.

If you’ve been there and got the t-shirt, it’s one slippery slope you are desperate to avoid. And yet, many of us find ourselves back there with no clue as to why or how that happened – again!?

Crazy as this might sound, but being SEDENTARY can often lead us to being STUCK.

Our lack of movement in our modern lifestyle is often due to the fast paced technology we all use. The advanced pace of life often sees us sat for hours glued to our phones, tablets, laptops and computers without even realising.

A quick check on a social media channel for a few minutes can see you quickly lose a whole hour in the blink of an eye. That hour of sitting causes us to be more sedentary and can lead to becoming stuck. Stuck with your “to-do” list getting longer, stuck in frustration mode as you haven’t got far with your important things you need to do. This often leads to procrastination, mind monkeys setting in telling you how useless you’ve been that day. Yuk, yuk, yuk!

All these feelings are what often lead to overwhelm and its a catalytic order of events that build up gradually over time to develop a huge monster of just not being able to cope, also known as anxiety.

The link between our mental health and sedentary lifestyle is becoming more apparent, well researched and talked about more openly. It is no longer a taboo subject hushed up and brushed under the carpet.

Staying sedentary actually reduces your earning potential.

If we get stuck with not moving our productivity levels drop, our creative juices deplete, our focus and clarity on what we are “meant to be doing” practically halts to a stand still. We dilly and dally and become more unproductive with every statically sat minute.  Think back to staring at the same page or screen for over 10 minutes – we are stuck in sedentary mode.

At the extreme end of this constant procrastination and staying stuck is burn out. Our bodies physically shut down, we cant think straight, we certainly can not function enough to be at work. Cue more sick days and less days doing the job we are being paid to do. As a direct result leads to loss of income or earnings, especially if you are self employed this can be disastrous for our purses.

Our mental and physical well being are closely intertwined and there is one simple answer that can help both in huge volumes.

That answer is: MOVEMENT.

Movement is key.

Movement is magic.

Marie Fell - the pilates physio

Movement can take on many forms – a gentle walk, a power run, a nice bike ride, an enjoyable swim, a craft and natter group, an exercise class, a home work out, a walk up and down the stairs without purpose.

It doesn’t need to be a devoted 60 minutes here and there as the thought of that for some people is scary and can set off new worries about time restraints itself. It needs to be little and often and gradually increased over time to enable the benefits of moving to truly appear.

When we add movement into our day, magical things start to happen. First we might feel better, even begin to look better and then we’ll want to BE better.

What you put into your body – be it food, exercise, self care, etc is a direct result of what you get out of it. It’s all one big balancing act but if we lack in one area it will massively impact on our ability to function well and optimally.

Simple lifestyle changes make HUGE lifestyle gains.

Once you experience this, it helps you to keep moving forwards and realise what an impact you truly have on your body with the choices you make.

We all have the same choices, its the reasoning we use to take the action we make that differ. It links to WILLPOWER. Some of us have it a lot more than others. Some are so emotionally drained physically and mentally mustering any form of willpower is the last thing on their mind. Surviving the day is often at the top.

If we go for that short walk, snack healthily or sit mindfully with good posture we will feel clearer in our thoughts, able to motivate ourselves to move more and have more va va voom as a result.

marie fell - the pilates physio

Weave some small bits of movement or postural correction into your day and start to reverse the above scenario. Start to feel more energised, more productive, more motivated and driven in your work/life balance.

Notice the power of the mind and body combo in harmony.

When you are mentally tired, your body mimics it.

When you feel positively alive and energised, you’re body will to. You will feel super creative, productive and whip through your “to do” list in a morning and have time left over – imagine that!

If you need to add more movement into your day but don’t know how, my online programme The Desk Rescuer is perfect for you. It gives you simple exercises you can practice in sitting and alternatives at the wall or even on the floor if you want to move a little more.

All exercises focus on spinal mobility, muscle flexibility, improving posture, core strengthening and general toning so its a perfect body and mind workout.

Many sequences are 2 -3 minutes long so you can easily fit them into your busy, static day.

What are you waiting for? Get moving now and reap the rewards.

Marie Fell is the founder of The Pilates Physio here in the UK. She is a qualified physiotherapist with over 12 years NHS experience in a wide array of specialisms and her passion lies in Posture, Pilates and the Pelvic floor! I am dedicated to helping empower ladies and gents to remain fit and active through class or 1:1 private Pilates/physiotherapy sessions. My mission is to empower, inspire and educate others to move freely and keep healthy and teaching Pilates with a clinician’s hat on allows me the best of both worlds.