If you're like many people you read about how to lengthen your life and how to look younger. Maybe it's time to look at it in a different way. Instead of what you should be doing to lengthen your life, try looking at what you're doing that shortens your life, and stop doing it. Here are seven things you may be doing right now that will shorten your life.

1. You Sit Too Much

Many if not most people have jobs that require all-day sitting. Add to that couple of hours of sitting in the car while you commute, and then getting home and sitting all evening and practically your entire day is spent on your tush. Sitting even three hours per day has a life-shortening effect, and sitting for 11 hours per day increases your risk of death in the next three years by 40 percent. If you must sit for many hours each day, get up at least once per hour for a short walk, a little exercise and stretching. Try being more active in the rest of your life.

2. You Watch Too Much TV

A little TV is okay, but every hour per day of TV watching reduces your life by 23 minutes. Two hours of TV watching per day can lead to diabetes and heart disease, and statistically brings about earlier death. Part of that is explained by the sitting that normally accompanies TV watching, but only part. Sitting and watching TV reduces your lifespan more than sitting on its own.

3. You Eat Red Meat

Your mortality risk increases directly with how much red meat you eat. Red meat contains excessive saturated fat and cholesterol, and that accounts for some of the increased mortality risk, but you have increased mortality risk even eating very lean cuts of red meat. Stick to a maximum of two servings per week of red meat. Replace it with fish for your best health results.

4. You Don't Sleep Enough

Lack of sleep is associated with a large number of health problems. Sleeping six hours per night or less increases your risk of diabetes, heart disease and decreased mental capacity. Too little sleep also increase your risk of mortality. This is definitely true over the long term, but is even true with one day of reduced sleep. This is because your risk of accident, vehicle, workplace and otherwise, increases with even one night in which you do not get enough sleep.

5. You Don't Have Enough Enjoyable Sex

Men's risk of mortality increases if they go too long without having an orgasm. Women's risk of mortality increases if they do not enjoy sex or if they do not have sex frequently enough. Read a racy romance novel and get yourself in the mood to improve your longevity.

6. You Smoke

You had to know this was coming. Smoking is so bad for you in so many ways it has to shorten your prospective lifespan, and it does. Estimates of shortened lifespan range from 11 minutes per cigarette smoked to about half an hour per package smoked, but whatever the correct number is, smoking definitely shortens your life.

7. You Drink Too Much Alcohol

One drink per day is fine, but for every drink over and above that one, you shorten your life by 15 minutes. If you want to drink, stick to one per day for the best health results and the longest life.

Picking up some good habits such as exercising regularly, eating more fish and vegetables and reducing the stress in your life will all extend your life expectancy. Now lose these seven bad habits and your life expectancy will increase further still.