5.5 pounds is how much a person who weighs roughly 140 pounds could lose in one year if he or she were to stand for six hours a day instead of sitting according to the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology. But carrying a few extra pounds isn’t the biggest deal, as long as 10 doesn’t turn into 20, and so on. “If a woman is a normal weight and puts on a few pounds, and her BMI (body mass index) is still in a healthy zone, those 10 pounds probably don’t have a huge impact on her risk factors for things like diabetes and metabolic syndrome,” says Holly Wyatt, M.D., head of the metabolism and obesity clinic at the University of Colorado’s Anschutz Health and Wellness Center. So ask why you want to slim down: Do you just feel better when your jeans are less snug? “If losing a little weight achieves that for you that’s great,” she says.
Can you stand to lose?
