StiffMap Sources

Last updated: 16 September 2026

StiffMap is a personal log, not medical advice. These are the public guidance documents and studies behind the idea that short, regular movement breaks matter for people who sit all day, and behind the app's choice of a six-hour clock and a default break every hour. Nothing here diagnoses or treats anything.

Guidance

UK Chief Medical Officers' Physical Activity Guidelines (2019) — recommends breaking up long periods of sitting with light activity, on top of weekly exercise. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/physical-activity-guidelines-uk-chief-medical-officers-report
NHS — Why we should sit less — a plain-language summary of the case for reducing and interrupting sitting time. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/why-sitting-too-much-is-bad-for-your-health/
HSE — Working with display screen equipment (L26) — guidance on short, frequent breaks or changes of activity for screen work. https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/books/l26.htm

Research

Buckley et al. (2015) — The sedentary office: an expert statement on the growing case for change towards better health and productivity. British Journal of Sports Medicine. Suggests accumulating standing and light movement across the working day. https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/49/21/1357
Dunstan et al. (2012) — Breaking up prolonged sitting reduces postprandial glucose and insulin responses. Diabetes Care. The trial behind the idea that short, regular breaks matter more than one long one. https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/35/5/976/38538

How StiffMap uses them

The guidance above supports interrupting sitting regularly; it does not prescribe a number. StiffMap's six-hour "locked in" window and its hourly default are design choices that make the map readable across a working day, not clinical thresholds. The movement suggestions are general, gentle, and the same for everyone.