One of the effects of spending too much time in a sedentary position is putting on weight. It does not matter whether you have to sit for hours because it is your job or you are doing it voluntarily since your hobby is gaming. In any case the effect in the long run can be rather negative for your health.
In this article you will find some suggestions for keeping your body healthy while enjoying your favourite video games.
What is exactly making gamers more prone to gaining excessive weight?
Actually, there are several possible reasons for such a tendency.
Poor diet
First of all, many gamers are making poor dietary choices. Of course it is not necessarily true for everyone, yet, there is such a possibility. The problem is in the absorbing nature of video games which make people rather detached from the surrounding world as well as the needs of their own bodies. While some people simply do not feel hunger while being engaged into playing their favourite games, others feel the hunger but do not want meal to distract them from playing. If the latter option is yours, you might be prone to having unhealthy snacks rather than full meal which your body needs. Indeed, it is a way more comfortable to have a couple of chocolate bars right behind your screen while still playing then go to the kitchen and have a bowl of soup even if it is already prepared and it does not require warming.
The same goes to drinks. Instead of making a cup of tea or coffee when you need some energy, one will find it easier to have an energy drink. Needless to say, such habits can lead to excessive weight and malnutrition at the same time since they are completely deprived of healthy nutrients.
Spending too much time in sedentary position
There is nothing surprising in the fact long hours spent in a sitting position make a person rather inactive physically. At the same time, sitting itself is bed for people as this position is regarded to be unnatural. A person sitting for a prolonged time can develop a variety of health issues because of poor blood circulation and bad posture. Do not think a special chair for gamers will improve the situation enough for making sitting less harmful. The problem is in sitting itself.
How can you address these problems?
As you can imagine, a useful thing you can do is to include exercises in your daily routine. Do not feel discouraged if you are not a fan of sport as the most important is just to have periods of physical activity no matter how intense they are. Ideally, you should have at least ten minutes of exercising or just walking around every hour of sitting.
Of course, your diet is particularly important. Do not let a game to make you thus absorbed that you either forget about having a meal at all or will make you consume mindlessly anything you have within easy reach. Actually, you should understand that regardless of the food you prefer eating, you should not consume it automatically while still playing. Even if your meal is absolutely healthy, you are still risking to overeat if you are consuming it while playing.
You have certainly heard about the importance of staying focused on your food while eating which allows your brain to better process the consumption and give your body a signal of satiation. Otherwise, you will not be able to understand your own body and consume more and more before you realise you overeat.
When it comes to drinks, it is crucial to have clean water at your table so that you can reach it any time you want to drink and also to remember to drink in the first place, as playing video games can also reduce your feeling of thirst.