3 Hours / 3 CEs

On Demand | Self-Paced Professional Training

This on-demand professional training program on Sedentary Behavior: Implications for Health and Wellness is presented by Jerrod Brown, Ph.D.

This badge-earning program can be shared digitally on platforms like LinkedIn or your resume and counts towards a certificate. Enroll in this program to earn credit towards the Integrated Behavioral Health Certificate and share your new digital credentials with prospective employers and colleagues.

Sedentary behavior is defined as any waking behavior characterized by an energy expenditure ≤1.5 metabolic equivalents (METs) while in a sitting, reclining, or lying posture. Sedentary behaviors are a threat to emotional, cognitive, social, and physical health.

This program explores sedentary lifestyle effects, including the negative effects on lifestyle and mental health. Possible causes and contributing factors for sedentary behavior in behavioral health populations, along with the causes and consequences associated with a sedentary lifestyle, will be discussed. This program covers implications for screening, interviewing, and intervention. Empirically based research findings are highlighted throughout this program.

Relevant topics covered include:

  • Negative lifestyle effects and risky health behaviors
  • Psychological distress and toxic stress
  • Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction
  • Therapeutic lifestyle changes
  • Health-promoting behaviors
  • Problematic coping strategies
  • Chronic low-grade inflammation
  • Excessive screen time exposure
  • Metabolic dysfunction
  • Gut-brain health dysfunction
  • Blood sugar dysregulation
  • Sleep disturbances
  • Emotional dysregulation
  • Loneliness and social isolation
  • Alexithymia

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this training, participants will be able to:

  • 1 Describe sedentary behavior and other related constructs
  • 2 Describe unhealthy lifestyles and risky health behaviors
  • 3 Describe the causes and consequences associated with sedentary behavior
  • 4 Describe screening and intervention techniques and approaches for clients who live a sedentary lifestyle
  • 5 Describe relevant and up-to-date research findings

  • Intended Audience

    This training is designed for professionals seeking to deepen their understanding of how sedentary behavior impacts emotional, cognitive, social, and physical health. It is especially relevant for those working in behavioral health, clinical psychology, counseling, public health, and wellness or lifestyle intervention fields. The program is suitable for individuals at any stage of their career, from early-career professionals to experienced practitioners.

  • Experience Level

    This training is applicable for all career stages: entry-level, mid-career, and experienced professionals.

  • Practice Setting

    • Psychologists
    • Social workers
    • Counselors
    • Behavioral health specialists
    • Clinical psychologists
    • Public health professionals
    • Wellness and lifestyle intervention practitioners
    • School counselors and educators
    • Researchers in health-related fields

    • Mental health clinics
    • Counseling or therapy practices
    • Community health centers
    • Schools and educational institutions
    • Research organizations and academic institutions

Presented By

Jerrod Brown, PhD

Jerrod Brown, PhD, is the Treatment Director for Pathways Counseling Center, Inc., the lead developer of an online Master of Arts degree in Human Services with an emphasis in Forensic Behavioral Health from Concordia University, St. Paul, Minnesota, the founder and CEO of the American Institute for the Advancement of Forensic Studies (AIAFS), and the Editor-in-Chief of Forensic Scholars Today (FST) and the Journal of Special Populations (JSP).

View More Programs from this Presenter
Jerrod Brown, PhD

Training Outline

Key topics covered in this training include:

  • Unhealthy lifestyle and risky health behaviors and problematic coping strategies

  • Psychological distress and toxic stress

  • Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction

  • Therapeutic lifestyle changes and health-promoting behaviors

  • Chronic low-grade inflammation

  • Excessive screen time exposure

  • Metabolic dysfunction, gut-brain health dysfunction, and blood sugar dysregulation

  • Sleep disturbances

  • Emotional dysregulation, loneliness, and social isolation

  • Alexithymia

Earning a Certificate

This is a badge-earning program, which means it will help you earn a certificate that can be showcased on digital platforms like LinkedIn.
View Certificates

CE Sponsorship Information

Palo Alto University, Continuing & Professional Studies (CONCEPT) is approved by, recognized by, or maintains sponsorship provider status with the following boards and agencies. We maintain responsibility for all content in our CE/CPD programs. For more information, visit here. 

  1. American Psychological Association (APA): Approved sponsor of continuing education for psychologists.

  2. Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB): Approved continuing education provider (ACE program, Provider #1480), 11/22/2023–11/22/2026.

  3. Canadian Psychological Association (CPA): Approved to sponsor continuing education for psychologists.

  4. National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC): Approved Continuing Education Provider (ACEP No. 7190).



Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT) maintains responsibility for this program and its content. Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT), is approved by the Canadian Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT), SW CPE is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers #SW-0356 and the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed mental health counselors. #MHC-0073. Palo Alto University, Continuing and Professional Studies (CONCEPT) has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 6811. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. CONCEPT Professional Training, #1480, is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved as ACE providers. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. CONCEPT Professional Training maintains responsibility for this course. ACE provider approval period: 11/22/23-11/22/26. Social workers completing this course receive (clinical or social work ethics) continuing education credits.