​Say what? Did you know that for every cigarette you smoke you take 11 minutes off your life? Well, for every hour you sit you can deduct two hours off your life. That's right. It's more dangerous to sit for an hour than to smoke a cigarette. This is very hard to believe, isn't it? That was a shocker for me to learn. But in defense of sitting, there are ways to sit properly so that it isn't quite so bad for you long term.

You have to break your sitting down into two categories, optional and non-optional. Obviously you have to sit in the car, in a meeting, or other situations, but a lot of the non-optional sitting can be changed if you set your mind to it.

Healthcare travelers and travel nurses are probably on their feet much more than most people so you have a head start. But I'm sure you do have to sit sometimes to do charting, paperwork, research or any number of other things.

The key, of course, is movement, not just standing still. Your body was made for a full range of motion, not to be sedentary. The challenge is to replace sitting with movement. There are many standing options for desks available these days if you work in an office environment and must be at a desk for long hours. Raise your computer and remove your chair and then you have no option but to remain standing and keep moving.

Believe it or not, sitting cross legged on the floor is an acceptable form of sitting that does not harm your health long term. This is because your hips are rotated and offers more range of motion for your lower body.

So, the main thing we all need to work on is just sitting less. I don't have a stand-up desk so I got a box and put my computer on it and moved the chair out of the way and so I do work standing up and moving each day as well as sitting. I figure every little bit helps in my path to a better and more healthy me. I hope you feel the same way.

Good luck with this new challenge!

Mary Crawford, HealthCare Employment Network