The great sitting

Ingrid Müller is a chemist and medical journalist. She was editor-in-chief of for twelve years. Since March 2014 she has been working as a freelance journalist and author for, among others, Focus Gesundheit, the health portal ellviva.de, the publishing house living crossmedia and the health channel of rtv.de.

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Germany is sitting sick. Many people in Germany today live largely in motionlessness. A real foreign word: sport.

Every adult in Germany sits around an average of seven hours a day, day after day. Even more sitting hours come about among the working people - every third person spends more than nine hours on his backside. But that's not all: On average, there are three more hours of free time in front of the television or on the Internet. If you add everything up, there is hardly any time left for exercise or sport. "The life of many people in Germany is largely motionless," is the conclusion of the exercise study by the Techniker Krankenkasse (TK).

Germany stands still

The opinion research institute Forsa asked more than 1000 Germans over the age of 18 in telephone interviews how active they are in everyday life, job, leisure time and vacation. The journey is the goal - this saying no longer applies to most Germans. Every second person takes the car, bus or train to reach their daily destinations. The focus here is not so much on laziness, but more on efficiency - because most of the time it is actually faster with the mobile pedestals.

"Only four out of ten people in this country are still on foot in their everyday life," says Forsa managing director Prof. Manfred Güllner. About two thirds of the population do not even get an hour of exercise per day - "including every trip to the copier", so Güllner. The infrequent movers are mainly found among the West Germans, the people in the East are more enthusiastic about exercise.

Almost 50 percent of employed people also spend their working day sitting down - and even the small exercise units in between fall by the wayside for every second person in their hectic day-to-day work. The need is great: "Two thirds of those who sit a lot regret the lack of exercise and would like to have a more eventful day-to-day job," says Güllner. Overall, 90 percent of the working population would like exercise opportunities in their company - but almost one in three does not find any.

Those who don't like sports gain sovereignty

Not even every second German participates in sport - although many know that exercise is healthy. Those who don't like sports are now in the majority. They are not doing well with it, however, because the guilty conscience gnaws: Every second lazy person admits that exercise would certainly be good for him. Almost as many admit that they feel uncomfortable in their bodies. The most common excuse of those who avoid sports: the weaker self. He stands in the way of almost every second one of them and makes sure that the couch potatoes ignore their running shoes.
The generation of job-stressed mid-20s to mid-50s has the greatest desire to get going - their lack of exercise is particularly pronounced. But with their many appointments they reach their limits - especially when they also have to look after children at the same time.

Sports? A foreign word!

Those who don't like sports move less than sports enthusiasts on everyday routes: Those who prefer to spend their free time in front of the screen do not walk around in everyday life. Even on vacation, he prefers to put his feet up, he doesn't want to know anything about sweat and sore muscles. A book, a towel, a lounger and a clear view of the sea, pool or lake - that's it! Children are often an obstacle to active holidays. One consolation: the desire to lounge around decreases with age. In the age group of 18 to 25 year olds, more than every second person appreciates a vacation on a deck chair. From their mid-60s onwards, only one in five people is enthusiastic about it.

"Movement is becoming a foreign word for more and more people," said TK boss Dr. Jens Baas. "I find it particularly worrying that an entire section of the population seems to be becoming more and more detached from exercise - and that in all areas of life." Baas says: "We do not believe that there is or should be a sports cannon in everyone, and we also do not demonize a lazy evening on the sofa." But there is a need for action. You have to start in the companies, in schools, kindergartens and municipalities. "Otherwise you won't reach the people who need it most."

Just a few minutes are enough

The amount of physical activity is shrinking for many people - sometimes to the point that it is harmful to health. Physical inactivity is already in fourth place among the premature death risks, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Even 150 minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of sporting activity per week were enough to achieve positive effects on health. Sport has a very good reputation as an effective "drug": It is supposed to stimulate sex life, strengthen bones, prevent cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and obesity, brighten the mind in times of depression and even increase mental performance.

Source: TK movement study 2013: "Move yourself, Germany!"

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