According to a 2014 Nielsen study, the average American spends 5 hours per day watching live television. Five hours!
Click here to link to a New York Daily News article about the study.
Look at the weekly time spent watching TV broken down by age group according to Nielsen:
Age 2-11: 24 hours, 16 minutes.
Age 12-17: 20 hours, 41 minutes.
Age 18-24: 22 hours, 27 minutes.
Age 25-34: 27 hours, 36 minutes.
Age 35-49: 33 hours, 40 minutes.
Age 50-64: 43 hours, 56 minutes.
Age 65-plus: 50 hours, 34 minutes.
We are spending the equivalent of entire work weeks watching TV! Look at the amount of time the average kid sits in front of the tube. Could this possibly be contributing to childhood obesity and other chronic diseases? Hmmm…
Make the decision right now to get up off the couch and move. Break away from the screen and go for a walk instead. I am a big fan of podcasts. If you have a particular interest or hobby, there’s a podcast about it. Download some interesting podcasts and get your entertainment on the go.
If you feel you must watch TV, put an exercise bike or treadmill in front of it and at least get some activity while you’re taking in your favorite show.
See you on the hiking trail!
