title: Metabolic and Energy Cost of Sitting, Standing, and a Novel Sitting/Stepping Protocol in Recreationally Active College Students.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to compare the differences in metabolic and energy cost (MEC) of college students while seated, standing, and during a sitting/stepping protocol. Participants were assessed via indirect calorimetry for 20 min in each of the following conditions: 1) seated in a standard office chair, 2) standing in place, and 3) a sitting/stepping protocol in which participants performed 1 min of stepping in place at 90 bpm, sat for 9 min, then repeated the stepping and sitting sequence once more. Participants completed each of the 3 trials in the aforementioned order, preceded with a 3 min acclimation period in each condition. A significant difference in MEC was observed between the 3 conditions,p< 0.001. Pairwise comparisons indicated that the sitting/stepping protocol resulted in significantly greater MEC than the seated and standing conditions (p< 0.001). Additionally, the standing protocol resulted in significantly greater MEC than the seated protocol (p< 0.001). The significant differences and large effect sizes between conditions indicate that interspersing sedentary bouts with brief activity can substantially increase MEC. Broader application of these findings may provide health promotion professionals with novel strategies to reduce sedentary behavior and improve health.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Human Sciences, University of Minnesota Duluth, Duluth, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Charles J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Fountaine
authors.affiliation: Department of Health and Human Performance, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN.
authors.forename: Josh
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Johann
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Human Sciences, University of Minnesota Duluth, Duluth, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Craig
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Skalko
authors.affiliation: Department of Health and Human Performance, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, TN.
authors.forename: Gary A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Liguori
keywords: Inactivity physiology; energy expenditure; postural changes; sedentary behavior