Dylan Armajani: Run Past Your Goals and Find Yourself
'I Have 20 Times The Energy I Used To Have'
Is your work commute affecting your health?
Posted on Jan 4th 2008 3:12PM by Chris Sparling
We wake, we work, we eat, we sleep. We wake, we work, we eat, we sleep. We wake, we work, we eat, we sleep.
Sound familiar? Or did I forget something? Oh yes, We Sit in Traffic, too.
In recent years, commutes to and from work have become longer -- which, in turn, causes us to spend more time sitting in a car and less time engaging in physical activity (especially when many jobs are fairly sedentary in and of themselves). Here are some interesting stats related to work commute times, and, specifically, how they have changed over the past decade:
~ Average Commute: Up 14% from commute time in 1990
~ Solo Drivers: Up 3.4% from 1990 averages
~ Early Risers: Up 11% from 1990, when this percentage less of workers were waking up before 5am.
~ Early Commuters: Up 25% from 1990, when this percentage less of employees left for work between 5am and 6:30pm.
~ Walkers: Down 34% from 1990, when this percentage more of employees were walking to work instead of driving or utilizing public transportation.
All of these percentages eventually add up to an increased risk of heart disease. When we're rushed, we typically do not reach for the healthiest meal options. When we're rushed, we also tend to not find the time to exercise. When we're rushed our stress levels go through the roof, thereby raising cortisol levels and making it harder to burn fat. We are a nation of over-workers, which may very well be the reason why we are also a nation of over-eaters. My suggestion is to reexamine your own morning commute to work and ask yourself, in all honesty, whether you are affecting your health as a result of your decision to restart the cycle: Wake, work, eat, sleep. Oh yeah, and commute.
