Hi Everyone,
i am recovering from a pretty severe exercise addition and anorexia. i have found paleo and restored a healthy weight. however, i am still struggling with sitting still. i get antsy and feel a constant need to exercise.
part of my problem is i feel guilyy for sitting down - ever! it makes it nearly impossible to study or even sleep at night. i see all these messages that "sitting kills" and i feel like im developing a phobia of sitting.
i am looking to get a better idea of how much time everyone else actually spends sitting. like seriously, do you all sit to eat your meals? do you sit to read a book ever? on average, how much time per day is normal for sitting?
thanks for your help!
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My heart goes out to you savory - you sound like exactly like myself a few years back. I too have struggled with anorexia and exercise addiction. In particular sitting was my unique brand of struggle (and I why I harbor a personal hatred of the anti-sitting campaign since the ability to sit was a MASSIVE achievement for me that took 2 years). I couldn't sit. I was terrified to sit. In fact I spent all day from sun-up to the moment I had to fall exhausted to sleep standing, pacing or walking on the spot. I was like a caged animal, driven by an internal demon and an innate fear that if I stopped moving I would be immediately struck fat or deemed disgusting. That fear took so much from me. I was 15 and I had to drop out of school. I couldn't sit in class or concentrate on lessons. I lost all my friends as I couldn't sit around with them and hang out. I couldn't travel because it involved sitting in a car, or on a plane. I couldn't go to the movies. Family dinnertime became impossible. I stuck out and not in a good way. It was insane, I was out of my mind at the time and it was hell. Sitting is part of the everyday world. It allows socializing, recreation, engagement. I got so bad that eventually I was sent to a psychiatric inpatient setting in another country to be treated. Sometimes I had to be tied to my bed because I was trying to burn off whatever little reserve I had. Eventually I learn't, slowly and painfully, to sit. And you know what? It made no difference on my weight or my health or my blood results. Yes I regained the needed weight in treatment - but that was due to a refeeding meal plan. My general activity level had no actual effect on the calories I needed and I got so much stronger, my skin looked better and I felt calmer when I wasn't feeding the disordered brain pathways that believed sitting would kill me. I started to enjoy life more and I could do more. The first time I could go to the theater and sit through a film was amazing. Taking a leisurely afternoon in a cafe talking to a pal was incredibly soul satisfying. Sitting down opened up my world. I still have troubles with the urges and thoughts today but believe me I would not give up being able to plonk down on my ass when needed for anything. I can actually have a life and experience the world because I do exactly that. Please go and talk to a psychologist, do some CBT and practice, practice, practice sitting. It will not harm you. Ignore all the info and articles about sitting - they only harm in cases like mine and yours. Embrace sitting. It opens up opportunities and is part of human life. Best wishes and I hope some part of my story can help. |
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Paleolithic man wouldn't have sat in chairs, but there would've been a measurable period of time each day consisting of squatting and sitting on rocks or on the ground, aside from the hours of sleeping. Cooking over fire on the ground, foraging for foods on the ground, preparing animals for eating, resting during a hunt or gathering trip, working with any sort of plant or animal materials for rope, net, clothing, etc-- most of this would be squatting or sitting. No scientific proof, but you certainly shouldn't feel guilty about sitting for meals or relaxation!! What is "normal" now is far too much. I try to stand at work, but it's never more than 2-3 hours out of my 8-9 hour workday. I don't spend much time sitting at home, but I do sit to knit, eat meals, watch a TV show or two. However, I still feel like I'm doing pretty good provided I'm standing and moving approximately 8-10 hours a day. |
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Look into a meditation class. It helps you to sit without guilt. Very mild yoga stressing the relaxation and not the strength/conditioning might help too. Avoid the power yoga while you are recovering from anorexia. Often cable companies will have "on demand" goodnight yoga class for free that will fit the bill. |
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I think you're right to realize that while too much sitting is a problem, it's not one you need to worry about. For you, it's really the opposite, which is giving in to your compulsion to exercise (I spent a couple of years doing what I called exercise bulemia, so I can relate a little). What I'd do is worry less about sitting and focus more on figuring out ways that would work for you to spend more time relaxing your mind. Or in physiology-speak, learning to be more in parasympathetic mode and less in sympathetic mode. The constant angst is really stressful and is taking a toll on your adrenals. Learning meditation is a great tactic. I found I had to do assisted meditation (aka 'mediation with training wheels') because I was antsy about just sitting still, so I gave myself something to focus on. Start small and build up. |
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Two things: are you doing Cognitive Behavioural or Dialetical Behavioural therapy? Both can be helpful for ED issues. Obsessive fear/guilt around sitting (obsessive meaning the thoughts keep happening, interrupt your life etc) is definitely part and parcel of eating disorders, and it's one I struggle with as well (I sit all day for work). Simplifying here, but I think the CBT approach would be to say "that's an unreasonable thought, or, that's an ED thought. It's perfectly normal and healthy to sit. Paleo man probably rested as much as he could get away with, doing some random bursts of exercise only when he needed food. I am not going to feel bad about sitting." Also, try to see whether those thoughts are loudest for you when there's other stress in your life. That's key - to start seeing the ED as a volume dial that gets turned up when other things in your life seem scary, uncertain and shitty. And finding ways to turn that volume down - distracting yourself, soothing yourself, etc. Good advice about meditation, too. Also, remember that you are a human BEing, not a human DOing. It's okay to just BE. Finally - here's a great video, some food for thought. Half an hour of activity is just fine! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUaInS6HIGo |
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According to my Fitbit I sit for about eight hours a day. That's probably not ideal but I do think even hunter-gatherers did quite a lot of sitting, especially in very/hot cold climates where it's not really advisable to move around much when it's really hot or really cold. |
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