A study now shows that being lazy was just two weeks can cause muscles to waste away, waist lines to expand and metabolism harmed.

The long-term benefits of being active have been shown by many studies. They indicate that 1 in 6 deaths can be traced back to laziness. This latest study by the scientists at The University of Liverpool suggests that even short periods of inactivity can damage systems in the bodies of otherwise healthy individuals.

They studied 28 average individuals who did not do formal exercises but took an average of 10000 steps a day. They told them to move less for two weeks but remain on the same diet. At the end of two weeks they found that they had lost 360 gms in muscle mass, their fitness levels had fallen, their waist circumference increased by 0.7 cms and levels of fatty molecules in the blood linked to insulin resistance had risen.

Daniel Cuthbertson who led the study said that these changes would not have seriously affected anyone after 2 weeks but if you had continued the same for 6 to 8 weeks, it would have very quickly lead to serious clinical difference that could ultimately lead to chronic metabolic disease and premature mortality.