Many of us sit daily inside a car or an office for hours upon end. I bet you, you’re sitting right now as you read this.
Try hard trainers will then give you the whole “sitting is so bad for you and you must move like an athlete 24/7” mantra. Those guys are annoying and aren’t realistic. Practically speaking, most people make their best living by working on a screen and thus rationally have to sit.
And yes, I know stand up desks are things, but let’s be real, they’re expensive, businesses aren’t buying them, and they’re not as comfortable as the commercials look.
So the most practical solution is to simply take breaks from your desk. This is deeply useful and underutilized in today’s workaholic culture. If the only time you get up from your desk is to quickly grab your lunch sack just to eat at your desk, you’re far from optimizing your health (1).
Let’s look at research to see the optimal strategy for taking desk breaks.
This first study looked at the decline of blood flow towards your brain (2). It compared three 4-hour conditions, a pure sendentary group, a group that took a 2-minute walking break every 30 minutes and a group who took the a 8-minute walking break every 2 hours. Brain blood flow slowed significantly (not good) in the pure sendentary group along with the 8-minute group.
However, the group who took frequent 2-minute breaks was able to offset this and attain healthier brain blood flow. This indicates that shorter more frequent breaks are healthier for the brain.
This second study looked at blood flow peripherally in the lower body (3). It had the 3 same groups as the above study. Unlike the previous study, only the 8-minute group showed favorable effects. By taking fewer, longer breaks, the subjects had better blood flow and artery function.
This indicates that longer, less frequent breaks are healthier for your muscles and tissues. This makes sense as your muscles are much bigger than your brain and need an adequate dosage of movement for optimal blood flow.
This study particularly applies more to us lifters especially those who train directly before heading to the office. After a workout, you want healthy blood flow to maximize nutrient delivery along with recovery (4,5). This could potentially influence hypertrophic gains.
Picture this. You wake up well before the crack of dawn to workout before you clock in because you’re a fitness addicted overachiever. You train hard, put in maximal effort, drink your post workout shake, and drive to work. Once you arrive at work, if you end up sitting idle, blood flow towards your muscle tissue slows down as hours go by.
You see why movement is so important? It’s more than just about burning a few extra calories. It allows for fluids and nutrients to optimize your vascular health which can impact how much muscle gains you extract from your workout.
So study 1 showed us frequent breaks are more important than the actual dosage when it comes to brain blood flow, but the method used in the study design was every half hour which is pretty unrealistic. Most desk workers know if they get up every half hour, they’d lose momentum, be less productive with their tasks, and probably get scolded by their boss.
On the other hand, when it comes to muscle blood flow, study 2 showed us we don’t need to get up that frequently, but we do need a more significant dosage. Those subjects walked for 8 minutes every 2 hours which is more realistic.
So to get the best of both worlds, I’d be willing to bet my rarest marble that you can reap all the benefits by going somewhere in the middle. Perhaps, taking a 6-minute break every 1.5 hours is an ideal compromise. You’d still get plenty of frequency (5 breaks in an 8 hour work day) while still being productive.
Keep in mind, these studies are done with light walking. You’re more than welcome to do some dynamic stretching or stair sprints to expedite the benefits. Ultimately, if you’re not taking any breaks away from your desk, start making it a priority. A few bursts of walking can do wonders for your brain, vascular health, and body composition.
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