Once a Week, Spend an Entire Day Outside

The fact is that most of us sit too much; some studies suggest that sitting too much leads to premature death. You heard that right: either get up more, or shorten your life.

I spend LOTS of time on my computer, sitting at a desk... or meeting with other people, sitting at a desk or table... and presenting at meetings, surrounded by artificial lights and the quiet hum of cooling or heating systems.

Just curious... you wouldn't be sitting indoors right now, would you?

To take a big step in the right direction, try this: each week spend at least one entire day outside.

I already try to balance all this sitting with one to two days outside. For example, most winter weekends, I use to go for hiking trails at Margalla hills in Islamabad. I wake up at 6:30 a.m., grab a bowl of oatmeal, then walk to work. My "work" day ends at 3 p.m., but if conditions are good I will ski for another hour. (On the best days, I stop by a creek on the way home for a few stolen moments of quiet time.)

If I didn't do this in the winter, I'd go crazy. Truth be told, I'd get moody and depressed. It's just too dark and cold. Getting dressed warmly and spending an entire day outside ensures that I wring every drop of sunshine out of the winter.

Do you want to be happy and healthy, too?

Do you have a similar story to tell? Or has it been months since you spent an entire day outside? Let's face it, the greatest risk to your health shouldn't be your inability to get off your butt and go outdoors.

For busy professionals, spending one day in seven outside seems to me to be a radical idea that's not at all radical. It has virtually no downside, unless you count muddy feet in the spring and mosquito bites in the summer. It has countless benefits, from stress reduction to the great ideas you are almost certain to get if you push away from your desk, shut down your computer, and remember what the sky looks like.

One last point: there is a world of difference between "deciding" to spend more time outside and pledging to spend one day out of seven outside all day. The former may make a negligible difference in your life, but the latter will likely make a revolutionary difference.

If you need a little nudge outside, take a look at this...