Sitting as the New Fitness Advice? - NW Personal Training

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For years, we’ve heard the warning, “Sitting is the new smoking.” We’ve been encouraged to get out of our chairs, take walking breaks, stand more, and avoid spending long stretches sitting throughout the day. That advice still has merit and moving regularly is essential for our health, but can sitting be the new fitness advice?

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**There’s a type of sitting that may deserve a place in our daily fitness routine: sitting on the floor.**

30 Min of Floor Sitting

Some fitness and longevity experts are now encouraging adults to accumulate up to 30 minutes of floor sitting throughout the day. The goal isn’t to become more sedentary. It’s to challenge your body in a position that requires mobility, flexibility, core control, and the ability to get back up.

Think about how rarely many adults sit on the floor anymore. We sit in chairs, cars, couches, and recliners, often with our hips and knees at roughly the same angle for hours at a time. Over the years, we can gradually lose the mobility required to comfortably get down to the floor and back up again.

Range of Motion & Functional Skills

Floor sitting provides an opportunity to gently challenge those ranges of motion. Depending on your position, it can encourage mobility through your hips, knees, ankles, and spine while requiring your muscles to stabilize your body. More importantly, regularly getting down to and up from the floor can help maintain an important functional skill as we age.

Accumulations is Key

The good news is you don’t have to sit on the floor for 30 consecutive minutes. Accumulation is the key.

Start with just five minutes. Sit on the floor while watching part of your favorite television show, reading, folding laundry, or scrolling through your phone. Try different comfortable positions rather than staying in one position the entire time. Gradually increase your total floor time by a few minutes every week.

You might progress each week:

1: 5 minutes per day

2: 10 minutes per day

3: 15 minutes per day

4: 20 minutes per day

5: 25 minutes per day

6: 30 minutes per day

Use a cushion, yoga mat, or folded blanket for comfort. If getting down to the floor is challenging, start by sitting on a low, sturdy surface and gradually work toward the floor. If needed, keep a stable chair, countertop, or other support nearby when practicing getting up and down.

Keep Your Body Capable of Moving

The goal isn’t to force your body into uncomfortable positions. It’s to keep your body capable of moving through a variety of positions for as long as possible.

I love the idea that something as simple as sitting on the floor can become part of our longevity strategy.

Fitness isn’t always about another workout. Sometimes it’s about preserving the ability to move, play, relax, and live comfortably in the real world.

So, perhaps the new advice isn’t simply “sit less.” Maybe it’s also “sit differently.” Get down on the floor, explore your mobility, challenge your body, and, most importantly, keep practicing the skills that help you stay independent and active for life.

Yours in health & fitness,
Sherri McMillan

The Sock & Shoe Balance and Mobility Test

The Sock & Shoe Balance and Mobility Test