According to one study, it can help reduce up to 2.5 kilos
To lose weight, stand up.
We Europeans spend up to 7 hours a day sitting down
A new study published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that standing up, rather than sitting for six hours a day, could prevent weight gain and even help you lose weight.
Prolonged periods anchored to a chair have been linked to the obesity epidemic, cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The study authors, led by Francisco Lopez-Jimenez, Head of Preventive Cardiology at the Mayo Clinic, point out that Europeans sit for up to seven hours a day, and even physically active people can spend most of the day in a chair.
The study looked at whether standing burns more calories than sitting. In total, the results of 46 studies involving 1,184 participants were analysed. The participants, on average, were 33 years old, 60% were male and the average weight was 65 kg.
The researchers found that standing was burning 0.15 kcal per minute more than sitting. When getting out of the chair, a 65 kg person would spend an extra 54 kcal per day. Assuming there is no increase in food intake, that would be 2.5 kg in one year and 10 kg in four years.
Standing up not only burns more calories,"Lopez-Jimenez explains in a statement," additional muscle activity is linked to lower rates of heart attacks, strokes and diabetes, so the benefits of standing still may go beyond weight control. Our results can be an understatement because when people stand up they tend to make spontaneous movements such as changing weight or balancing from one foot to another, taking small steps forward and backward. People can even walk to the trash can or a filing cabinet.