Thirty minutes of movement, from heart-pumping circuits of stairs, squats, sprints, or jogs, may very well jump-start your self-care regimen this year, but one additional step can give your health an extra boost, too. According to a new study, continuing to move your body throughout the day matters much more than scientists previously realized, says Dr. James de Lemos, MD, a cardiologist and professor at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Turns out, the simple act of sitting at your desk or behind the wheel for extended stretches can injure heart muscles and could, over time, be linked to heart failure.
Most of the public is pretty well-versed in the basics of heart health, given cardiovascular disease’s grim grip on Americans: Exercise strengthens heart muscles, opens arteries, and lowers cholesterol and blood pressure. But what exactly happens to the heart when the body is stationary is less known. And while sedentary lifestyles have long concerned cardiologists, now, De Lemos says, there’s scientific proof that sitting around, even for those who also work out, is harmful. The study found there is an increase in troponins, a protein found in blood that can often signal heart injury, in participants who spent 10 hours or more a day sitting. Those who moved more had lower amounts. And while levels were nowhere near as high as during a heart attack, the findings, part of the Dallas Heart Study, a drawn-out examination of a diverse group of women and men, led De Lemos to determine that activity post-gym time is important in maintaining heart health. “This is not an either-or situation,” he says. “Most of us know the positive effects of half an hour of exercise a day, but we need to pay attention to the other 23.5 hours of the day in terms of what we’re doing physically.”
Dr. Ravi H. Dave, MD, who is the director of interventional cardiology at UCLA Health, agrees getting going outside the gym is crucial. He suggests taking 10,000 steps a day, a goal also advocated by the American Heart Association. Activity trackers, from the multifunctional Apple Watch Series 3 to singular but solid devices such as the Fitbit Ionic, New Balance RunIQ, and Misfit (for the nonathletic set), generate pretty graphs to chart progress.
For the deskbound, Dave advises drinking three large glasses of water before lunch and three more afterward. “You stay hydrated and must get up for bathroom breaks or to refill your glass,” he says. Sitting on balance balls keeps you in motion, as do walking meetings, pacing the office during phone calls, and health hacks like parking farther from work, taking the stairs, and using a printer in another room or on another floor. And, if all else fails, let a sartorial purchase, like a pair of new Yeezy Boost sneakers, change up your lunchtime routine and get you out and walking (or strutting) the streets. “I gave up my suit for work to wear scrubs,” says Dave, “and now I keep a yoga mat in the office.” Whatever the heart wants!