Many of us who live in modern societies spend too much time being sedentary. We sit at work, we sit at school, we sit during our commute, and we sit during our leisure time when we read, watch TV, and use the computer. The last one is my Achilles heel, as it is not uncommon for me to spend hours at a time in front of a computer screen. There are two free computer applications that I use which mitigate the consequences of my computer use.
The first application is called F.lux (Download F.lux for free here: http://stereopsis.com/flux/). F.lux changes the color temperature of your computer screen relative to where the sun is in your location, which you enter into F.lux after downloading the program. Rather than changing the screen’s brightness, F.lux changes the color temperature, which is measured in Kelvins. The higher the color temperature, the more blue light the color contains. Midday sun is about 6500K, and a candle is about 1800K. F.lux makes your computer screen match your surroundings, so when it is midnight you are not looking at the color temperature equivalent of sunny afternoon.
The problem with looking at a high color temperature late at night is that it inhibits your body’s ability to produce melatonin, a hormone what makes you tired at night. Looking at blue light is great during the day, but at night it will throw your circadian rhythm off and disrupt your sleep! A lower color temperature is also easier on the eyes, although if you need to do color sensitive work F.lux can be disabled easily. F.lux is a nice tool to use that lowers your central nervous system activity before bed and minimizes the negative effects late night computer use has on sleep.
The second application is called Big Stretch (download for free here: http://www.monkeymatt.com/bigstretch/). Big Stretch is a simple reminder program that allows you to set how long you want in between reminders, what you want your reminders to say, and how obtrusive you want your reminders to be. For example, I have my reminders set at fifteen minute intervals, they say “Get Movin,” and pop up on my screen in a new window. Big Stretch is really helpful for reminding yourself to be cognizant of how you are using your time (damnit Facebook), and allows you to get up and stretch, do a squat/pushup, or have a quick walk around the room.
It is important to break up your sedentary time because your body reacts very differently when it is sedentary than when it is standing or moving. One of the biggest physiological effects of being sedentary is the lowering of the enzyme lipoprotein lipase. Decreased lipoprotein levels lowers the fat burning activity of cells and is associated with hypertension, metabolic syndrome, and more frequent and severe coronary artery disease incidents. For more information on why sitting is problematic, read this: http://www.benhirshberg.com/1/post/2012/07/sitting-kills-yoga-balls-and-standing-desks.html
Cutting down on sedentary time is ideal. But for many people that is difficult to do because of work, school, or other environmental reasons. For me, I enjoy using my computer to read articles, write articles, send emails, stay in touch with friends and family, and various other tasks. Using F.lux and Big Stretch are helpful to me in my attempt to manage my screen time, and I hope they help you too.
The problem with looking at a high color temperature late at night is that it inhibits your body’s ability to produce melatonin, a hormone what makes you tired at night. Looking at blue light is great during the day, but at night it will throw your circadian rhythm off and disrupt your sleep! A lower color temperature is also easier on the eyes, although if you need to do color sensitive work F.lux can be disabled easily. F.lux is a nice tool to use that lowers your central nervous system activity before bed and minimizes the negative effects late night computer use has on sleep.
The second application is called Big Stretch (download for free here: http://www.monkeymatt.com/bigstretch/). Big Stretch is a simple reminder program that allows you to set how long you want in between reminders, what you want your reminders to say, and how obtrusive you want your reminders to be. For example, I have my reminders set at fifteen minute intervals, they say “Get Movin,” and pop up on my screen in a new window. Big Stretch is really helpful for reminding yourself to be cognizant of how you are using your time (damnit Facebook), and allows you to get up and stretch, do a squat/pushup, or have a quick walk around the room.
It is important to break up your sedentary time because your body reacts very differently when it is sedentary than when it is standing or moving. One of the biggest physiological effects of being sedentary is the lowering of the enzyme lipoprotein lipase. Decreased lipoprotein levels lowers the fat burning activity of cells and is associated with hypertension, metabolic syndrome, and more frequent and severe coronary artery disease incidents. For more information on why sitting is problematic, read this: http://www.benhirshberg.com/1/post/2012/07/sitting-kills-yoga-balls-and-standing-desks.html
Cutting down on sedentary time is ideal. But for many people that is difficult to do because of work, school, or other environmental reasons. For me, I enjoy using my computer to read articles, write articles, send emails, stay in touch with friends and family, and various other tasks. Using F.lux and Big Stretch are helpful to me in my attempt to manage my screen time, and I hope they help you too.