On average, Americans spend 13 hours a day sitting in their chairs, and unsurprisingly, it’s causing pain! Not only does sitting for extended periods of time damage your spine, but it can severely damage other areas of your health, too, including mental, cardio, and weight loss. It really comes down to ergonomics: how do the little details, such as our posture, affect our well-being?

According to The Scientific American, sitting for more than half of the day, approximately, doubles our risk of diabetes and cardiovascular problems.

Sitting for long periods of time is particularly bad because the human body was not designed to be idle. Lack of movement can cause back pain and slow metabolism, reducing the amount of food that is converted to energy, which promotes fat accumulation.

What Can We Do?

Luckily, we are not prisoners of our environments. When you are talking on your cellphone, take it as an opportunity to walk around. Instead of emailing colleagues, take a walk to visit them in their area of the building. Try to remind yourself to stand up every so often. Grab water or simply to stand up and stretch your legs and back. These little changes that you can add into your work routine can help you be more productive in the long-run. They will help you combat fatigue and give you a burst of energy.