Nielson
found that
Kiwis watch
more than
23 hours of
television
a week
tv
watching
has been
linked to
an increased
risk of
obesityWHAT HAPPENS
WHEN YOU STOP
WATCHING
TELEVISION? SARAH
MARINOS SPEAKS TO
SOME WOMEN WHO
MADE THIS DECISION
TO FIND OUT WHY
THEY DID IT
Lizzy Williamson, 41, is a personal
trainer. She gave up TV in 2015 to
help achieve her dream of writing
a book.
“I wanted to write a book about how I
had postnatal depression and hit rock
bottom. I was in a very dark place and
ended up doing little bits of exercise to
help myself. I wanted to share what I’d
learned, but I had a full-time job and
two kids and thought, ‘How can I find
the time?’
But one evening I was about to sit
down and watch TV after my children
went to bed and something said to me,
‘Now would be a good time to work on
that book.’
If I used an hour every night to write
instead of watch TV, I’d gain seven
hours a week.
Watching TV in the evening was my
time. I just crashed. I’d watch Netflix
mostly – I’d find a series and work my
way through the episodes. But when I
gave it up, I started getting up at 5am
and going for a walk. During that time
I’d record material for my book. In the
evening, when I didn’t have as much
mental energy, I’d transcribe everything.
It was a challenge for a couple of
months – I was often tired and wanted
to switch off, and I’d looked forward to
that hour of ‘me-time’. But I stuck to
my plan for a year and ended up with a
completed manuscript and a publisher.
I still rarely watch TV during the week- crashing in front of the TV is no longer
part of my evening. I prefer to read a
book and save TV for the weekend.”»
‘TV was my time
to chill out and to
not have to think’
T
he average New Zealander owns
between six and seven devices –
from televisions and tablets to
smartphones. Together these allow us
to consume a never-ending diet of
programs. Nielsen’s 2016 New Zealand
multiscreen report found that Kiwis
watch more than 23 hours of television a
week, 90 percent of which is viewed live.
And that doesn’t take into account the
time spent watching on devices...
Too much TV viewing has been
linked to a range of poor health issues –
primarily due to the fact that watching
TV usually means spending hours
sitting down. And this has been linked
to an increased risk of obesity, diabetes
and colorectal cancer. Researchers at
the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute
in Australia have also made a link
between the amount of time spent
sitting in front of the telly
and increased risk of
inflammatory-related
diseases.
Meanwhile, US
researchers say
spending more than
six hours a day watching
TV and using a computer
screen can increase the risk
of depression. So how does life
change when you give up TV? We
asked four women who have made the
change...be informed
be nourished
simply be
be energised
be inspired