Do you love sitting down and practice your French?

DO YOU LOVE SITTING DOWN AND PRACTICE YOUR FRENCH?

So, do you find yourself sitting a lot?

It really is just great to lay around and be lazy, while practicing your French, no?

Well as relaxing as it can be to… relax, too much sitting can be disastrous for your health!

From heart problems to muscle loss, the side effects to too much sitting around aren’t very pretty.

It can also get boring to sit for too long, which could become the reason why you don’t practice your French enough.

Check out the article below for some tips on how to stay on your feet some more, and still practice your French, and be sure to watch the video for some French you can sit down for!

(This week: the verb S’ASSEOIR – to sit)

My Failed Month of ‘No Sitting’

‘Sitting quietly, doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows by itself.’ – Zen Proverb
Guest blog post by Leo Babauta

In my second month of The Year of Living Without, I committed to not sitting for longer than 30 minutes at a time.

I have to admit failure here.

Well, not complete failure. I sat much less in August than I normally do, and was really pretty good in the mornings about remembering to get up (though I did forget a little in the beginning) and walking around, standing and reading, stretching, etc. I also was very active during the month, going for walks, runs, gym workouts, etc.

The problem came when I was tired, usually later in the afternoon and in the evenings. When I was tired, I just couldn’t seem to follow the plan. I would be tired from a long run (for example), and would lie down to take a short nap, and just wouldn’t want to get up. I forgave myself, and let myself rest. I told myself my body needed it.

Social situations were also awkward — when I would meet someone for dinner or tea, sitting is the norm. At first, I tried standing up, and explained myself, and felt weird standing up when they were sitting — I felt I was making them a little uncomfortable. So I caved there too, and decided not to make my friends or new acquaintances feel weird.

This Year of Living Without is not about making my life miserable, but about learning what it’s like to give up something I don’t want to give up. It’s about learning about resistance, and what it’s like to push back against that internal resistance.

I did learn about that in August.

Here are some lessons:

When you’re tired, it’s really hard to beat resistance.

Rest before the resistance comes. Get lots of sleep to change habits.

It’s hard to remember a day-long habit like not sitting for too long. Start with smaller sections, like just the morning, and then expand.

In the beginning of a habit, have visual reminders where the habit takes place, so you don’t forget. Enlist the help of others to remind you too.

Figure out what you’ll do in social situations before they happen. Talk to people before you meet with them, and tell them about your weird habit, and work out a plan together. Otherwise it becomes awkward and you cave in.

Forgive yourself when you fail.

Standing, stretching, doing exercises, cleaning, running, walking and generally being more active during the day makes you tired later in the day. I was surprised how tired I got.

NOW IT IS YOUR TURN!
Tell us in the comments below, what is your solution to sitting too much, and alternatives to practice your French?

Let me guess.

Do you constantly have the feeling that you can’t hear what the French say and you don’t know how to read all the French words because they are written so much differently than they sound?

Learn 3 secrets that will help you be self sufficient in the way you pronounce French words – even if you don’t know what they mean – so that you can read that sophisticated menu in your favorite French restaurant.