 A study published last year in the Journal of the American Heart Association linked TV watching with death. Television viewing time was associated with increased risk of all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality. Video game playing too. So do you have to kill your TV before it kills you? They don't think it was the TV itself, but rather a proxy for sedentary behavior. But of course not all sedentary behavior is bad. Look, sleeping isn't. You can't get more sedentary than that. In fact, not getting a good night's sleep may be a novel and independent risk factor for obesity, for example. 43 studies reviewed, and the majority of forward-looking studies have associated spending much of the day sitting with a shorter lifespan. And what's crazy is that the time spent sitting was independently associated with total mortality, regardless of physical activity level. Heart disease mortality was significantly elevated even in people who otherwise exercised regularly. So just going to the gym after your desk job may not eliminate the risks of sitting around all day. Something our bodies never evolved to do. So if we can, we shouldn't sit down on the job and instead try thinking on our feet, whether high-tech or low-tech. Consider a standing desk for reading the newspaper, watching TV, paying bills, whatever tasks we might otherwise do sitting down. Or even better, slide a treadmill under there. Here's my crazy contraption. It's just lots of duct tape and bungee cords, basically. I can usually get in about a good 15 miles a day. Bottom line, we need to stand up for our health.