Stand Up for Your Health

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The couch may be comfy, but spending too much time sitting is bad for your health. Time to Stand Up for Your Health!   

Research shows that excessive sedentary behavior (or ‘sitting time’) has been linked to serious health consequences. In fact, too much sitting time is equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes per day! The Stand Up for Your Health program (also known as Stand Up) gives you strategies to do just that – stand up more!

The program is designed specifically for older adults who sit more than six hours per day. You’ll learn in a group with your peers and help each other identify strategies to stand up more often and for longer periods of time throughout the day. Stand Up has been researched and proven to reduce sitting time by 68 minutes per day. 

8 weeks. 8 hours. Feel better and do more.

What is Stand Up for Your Health?

Stand Up for Your Health is…

an evidence-based program designed to help older adults reduce sitting time by standing up and moving more. The program meets once per week for two hours for four weeks, followed by a Booster Session at Week 8. 

Sessions take place in a group setting where participants identify barriers to standing more and discuss strategies to increase their standing time. 

Developed by:
Kelli Koltyn, PhD

University of Wisconsin- Madison

Is It For Me?

Workshops are best for any adult who:

  • are age 55 and older

  • sit for more than 6 hours per day

  • are able to stand up without assistance from another person

The Research

Stand Up for Your Health has been researched and proven to:

  • Reduce sedentary behavior by 68 mins/day

  • Reduce problems performing daily activities 

  • Reduce pain interference and intensity 

  • Improve functional performance

  • Improve vitality 

  • Improve general overall health

 Read the research article here

What Participants Say

“The awakening of just standing up and how much it improved my life was valuable. Once you start counting the minutes, you understand how much you are sitting. I have incorporated more standing during the day into our lifestyle.”

Sue Coffman, Vilas County

Questions? Contact standup@wihealthyaging.org

Interested in becoming a facilitator? Visit our Become a Facilitator page to learn more.

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