Sitting down will kill you

This happens to me all the time:

Saturday: Long run/race
Saturday, later: Feet/legs might be tired and/or swollen. I am exhausted.
Sunday: Just a bit tired, maybe a bit sore/slow
Monday, morning: All fine, I run, get ready, go to work, all normal.
Monday, later: After two hours of sitting, I get up and OUCH. Soreness and stiffness all over, it takes a few seconds to be able to straighten up and walk. I walk like Mazinger Z.

Monday, 2 pm: Every time I get up from my desk I feel progressively tired/sore/stiff.

This pattern happens every day. The more I sit, the stiffer I become, the more sore I am. You would think that giving the body the opportunity to relax, quiet down, and rest would be good. It is NOT.

There was a study that came out a few months ago that says that it doesn’t matter how healthy you are and how much you exercise, sitting down is harmful. And according to a survey from 2003, Americans spend more than half their time (between work, driving, etc) sitting.

Phew, I am not American!! But I am still totally bad at this!! I will do all I can not to get up from my desk, I will make tons of my green tea, bring the biggest water bottle, make the least possible trips to the printer, all in the sake of efficiency (ok, laziness!). But now that I am doing the long runs, I am feeling it… I can FEEL how bad this sitting is for my body, so, as I am not only efficient but also proactive, I’ve set my phone alarm to get up and walk around once every hour (yeah, my boss is gonna love it!). Where am I going, you ask? It doesn’t matter!! To the water cooler, to chit chat with coworkers, I might even start smoking to have something to do in all these trips!