Hi ,

I hope you are having a great day!

Let me ask you a simple question:

How long have you been sitting right now?

We know that physical activity is good for the heart, brain, and mood — but did you know that sitting continuously for several hours a day can actually undo some of the benefits of that morning walk or gym session?

Multiple studies have shown that long, unbroken sitting stretches can:

• Raise blood glucose levels
• Impair insulin sensitivity and metabolism
• Increase inflammation

So… how often should you interrupt sitting?

You know that I’m not a fan of rigid rules that don’t work in real life. However, studies have suggested that interrupting sitting every 30 minutes is better than every 2 hours — at least in controlled settings. But what happens when real life kicks in?

Imagine this: You have set up your wearable or phone to remind you to stand up every 30 minutes. But you’re stuck in traffic. Or in a long meeting. Or just absorbed in deep work.

How practical is that?

What works better in real life (IRL)

As a Tiny Habits coach, I never recommend relying on disruptive alarms or willpower. Instead, we use anchor moments —existing routines to attach new, helpful behaviours.

For example:

Tiny Habit Recipe:

After the first episode ends, (or when an ad starts), I will stand up and stretch my legs.

It’s tiny. It works. And it helps reduce the risks of prolonged sitting.

Two smarter ways to interrupt sitting

If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ve likely heard me talk about these two strategies:

1. Exercise Microbreaks – short, easy movement bursts you can anchor to routines (e.g., shoulder rolls after every email, pacing during phone calls).
2. VILPA – Vigorous Intermittent Lifestyle Physical Activity, like climbing stairs briskly, walking fast during errands, or 10 squats while the kettle boils. Short, intense, and woven into everyday life.

These strategies don’t require you to set aside time — they just require building around what you already do.

Want to know your sitting risk?

I’ve created a Sitting Time Calculator you can try right now:

🔗 Click here to find your Sitting Risk Score

• Is your sitting risk high, medium, or low?
• Where are your longest unbroken sitting stretches?
• What is one simple habit you can create to break the pattern?

For example, if your longest sitting happens in the evening:

• Can you walk on a treadmill while watching TV?
• Sit on a stability ball instead of the couch?
• Can you use your tablet on a stationary bike?

Let me know what you try — or if you come up with your own Tiny Habit recipe for interrupting sitting. I’d love to hear about it.

Here's to moving more and sitting less!

Best regards,

Shabnam

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Dr. Shabnam Das Kar, MD

Functional Medicine Doctor

Tiny Habits Coach

Email: info@drkarmd.com

Reference

Yin, Mingyue, et al. "Optimal Frequency of Interrupting Prolonged Sitting for Cardiometabolic Health: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis of Randomized Crossover Trials." Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports 34.12 (2024): e14769.