Right now, you're probably sitting down to watch this video, and staying seated for a few minutes to view it is probably okay. But the longer you stay put, the more agitated your body becomes. It sits there counting down the moments until you stand up again and take it for a walk. That may sound ridiculous. Our bodies love to sit, right? Not really.
現在，你大概正坐下來看這部影片，坐著幾分鐘來看這可能沒什麼問題。但你坐著不動越久，你的身體就會越焦躁不安。它會坐在那倒數時間，直到你再次站起來讓它走走為止。那聽起來可能很荒謬。我們的身體就愛坐著，對吧？其實不然。
Sure, sitting for brief periods can help us recover from stress or recuperate from exercise. But nowadays, our lifestyles make us sit much more than we move around, and our bodies simply aren't built for such a sedentary existence. In fact, just the opposite is true. The human body is built to move. And you can see evidence of that in the way it's structured.
沒錯，小坐片刻能幫我們紓壓，或從運動的疲勞恢復。但在現代，我們的生活型態讓坐的機會遠多於走動，而我們的身體構造完全不適合這樣靜態的生活。事實上，恰好相反才是對的。人體就是造來動的。你可以從它的結構看到證據。
Inside us are over 360 joints and about 700 skeletal muscles that enable easy, fluid motion. The body's unique physical structure gives us the ability to stand up straight against the pull of gravity. Our blood depends on us moving around to be able to circulate properly, our nerve cells benefit from movement, and our skin is elastic, meaning it molds to our motions. So with every inch of the body is ready and waiting for you to move, what happens when you just don't?
在我們體內有超過 360 個關節以及約 700 條骨骼肌，讓人體能做出輕鬆流暢的動作。人體獨特的身體構造令我們有能力對抗地心引力站直。我們的血液需要我們活動才能正常循環、我們的神經細胞能從活動中獲得益處，而我們的皮膚是有彈性的，代表它能因應我們的動作改變。所以當身體的每一寸都準備好等著你動時，要是你就是不動會怎樣呢？
Let's start with the backbone of the problem, literally. Your spine is a long structure made of bones and the cartilage discs that sit between them. Joints, muscles, and ligaments that are attached to the bones hold it all together. A common way of sitting is with a curved back and slumped shoulders, a position that puts uneven pressure on your spine. Over time, this causes wear and tear in your spinal discs, overworks certain ligaments and joints, and puts strain on muscles that stretch to accommodate your back's curved position. This hunched shape also shrinks your chest cavity while you sit, meaning your lungs have less space to expand into when you breathe. That's a problem because it temporarily limits the amount of oxygen that fills your lungs and filters into your blood.
讓我們從問題的中樞講起，真的中樞。你的脊椎是由骨頭與其間的軟骨盤組成的長型構造。黏在骨頭上的關節、肌肉以及韌帶讓脊椎連在一塊。一個常見的坐姿是背部彎曲然後肩膀垂下，一種在脊椎上不平均施壓的姿勢。時間一久，這導致椎間盤磨損、讓特定韌帶和關節過度疲勞，並壓迫到伸展來適應背部彎曲姿勢的肌肉。這種駝背姿勢在你坐著時還會讓胸腔變小，表示呼吸時，肺部擴張的空間減少。那可是個問題，因為這會暫時侷限充滿肺部接著進到血液的氧氣量。
Around the skeleton are the muscles, nerves, arteries, and veins that form the body's soft tissue layers. The very act of sitting squashes, pressurizes, and compresses, and these more delicate tissues really feel the brunt. Have you ever experienced numbness and swelling in your limbs when you sit? In areas that are the most compressed, your nerves, arteries, and veins can become blocked, which limits nerve signaling, causing the numbness, and reduces blood flow in your limbs, causing them to swell.
包覆在骨骼四周的是組成身體軟組織層的肌肉、神經和動靜脈。坐著這動作推擠、施加壓力並壓迫，而這些較為細嫩的組織會真切感受到那壓力。你是否曾在坐著時感到下肢發麻又腫脹？在受到最大壓迫的部位中，你的神經、動脈和靜脈會阻塞，限制神經傳遞訊息，造成麻痛感，且下肢的血流減少，造成它們發脹。
Sitting for long periods also temporarily deactivates lipoprotein lipase, a special enzyme in the walls of blood capillaries that breaks down fats in the blood. So when you sit, you're not burning fat nearly as well as when you move around.
長時間坐著還會暫時讓脂蛋白脂酶失去作用，那是種在微血管壁中分解血液內脂肪的特殊酵素。所以坐著時，你燃燒脂肪的能力就不如活動時好。
What effect does all of this stasis have on the brain? Most of the time, you probably sit down to use your brain, but ironically, lengthy periods of sitting actually run counter to this goal. Being stationary reduces blood flow and the amount of oxygen entering your bloodstream through your lungs. Your brain requires both of those things to remain alert, so your concentration levels will most likely dip as your brain activity slows.
這樣不動對大腦有什麼影響呢？大多時候，你可能是坐下來要動腦，但很諷刺地，長時間坐著事實上和這目標背道而馳。靜止不動會降低血液流動以及透過肺部進入血流的氧氣量。你的大腦需要那兩樣東西來保持清醒，所以因為大腦活動減緩，你的專注度很可能就會降低。
Unfortunately, the ill effects of being seated don't only exist in the short term. Recent studies have found that sitting for long periods is linked with some types of cancers and heart disease, and can contribute to diabetes, kidney and liver problems. In fact, researchers have worked out that, worldwide, inactivity causes about nine percent of premature deaths a year—that's over five million people. So what seems like such a harmless habit actually has the power to change our health.
很不幸地，坐著的負面影響不只存在短期內。近期研究發現，久坐和特定種類的癌症與心臟疾病有關，且可能導致糖尿病和肝腎疾病。實際上，研究人員計算出在全世界，缺乏運動每年會造成約百分之九的早逝率－－那可等於超過五百萬人。所以看起來沒什麼傷害的習慣事實上卻可以改變我們的健康狀況。
But luckily, the solutions to this mounting threat are simple and intuitive. When you have no choice but to sit, try switching the slouch for a straighter spine. And when you don't have to be bound to your seat, aim to move around much more, perhaps by setting a reminder to yourself to get up every half hour. But mostly, just appreciate that bodies are built for motion, not for stillness. In fact, since the video's almost over, why not stand up and stretch right now? Treat your body to a walk; it'll thank you later.
但還好，對付這種累加的威脅的方法很簡單且不用多想。當你不得以只能坐著時，試著不要彎腰駝背，改成脊椎挺直坐好。然後當你不用黏在座位上時就多動點，或許設個提醒，讓自己每半小時就站起來一下。但最主要地，好好體會身體是用來動的，不是呆坐在那。事實上，既然影片都快結束了，何不現在就站起來活動一下筋骨？犒賞身體去散散步；它往後會感謝你的。
- 「固定不動、保持原狀」- Stay Put
But the longer you stay put, the more agitated your body becomes.
但你坐著不動越久，你的身體就會越焦躁不安。 - 「事實上、實際上」- In Fact
In fact, just the opposite is true.
事實上，恰好相反才是對的。 - 「需要、依賴」- Depend On
Our blood depends on us moving around to be able to circulate properly...
我們的血液需要我們活動才能正常循環... - 「計算出」- Work Out
In fact, researchers have worked out that, worldwide, inactivity causes about nine percent of premature deaths a year...
實際上，研究人員計算出在全世界，缺乏運動每年會造成約百分之九的早逝率... - 「就在此刻、馬上」- Right Now
In fact, since the video's almost over, why not stand up and stretch right now?
事實上，既然影片都快結束了，何不現在就站起來活動一下筋骨？
