Behavioral Exposure for Interoceptive Tolerance (BE-FIT): A stage II randomized clinical trial protocol.

Background: Exercise anxiety is a novel mechanism related to non-adherence to exercise and lifestyle physical activity. We developed a cognitive-behavioral treatment, Behavioral Exposure For Interoceptive Tolerance (BE-FIT), which is a manualized, values-based exposure intervention designed to target exercise anxiety that is delivered as a supplement to outpatient cardiac rehabilitation (CR).

Method: We describe a Stage II randomized controlled trial (RCT) to test BE-FIT, compared to a Health Education Control (HEC) intervention on exercise and physical activity outcomes at end-of-treatment (EOT) and follow-ups (Weeks 12, 18, and 24), and evaluate mechanisms of change (i.