Pedometer-assessed physical activity in young adolescents.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the physical activity (PA) patterns of children. Forty-four 7th-grade students (19 boys, 25 girls) recorded pedometer data for 2 consecutive weeks. Separate 2 x 3 repeated measures analyses of variance were used to examine differences in total steps/day between boys and girls and between after-school activity participants and nonparticipants.

Reliability of pedometer-determined free-living physical activity data in college women.

This study examined stability and reliability of free-living physical activity assessed by pedometer in 69 young female college students (M age = 18.7 years, SD = 1.2, range: 18-25 years; body mass index = 23.

Children's pedometer-determined physical activity during the segmented school day.

Purpose: To describe the sex-specific patterns of school children's daily pedometer-determined physical (PA) during physical education (PE), recess and lunchtime, and before and after school.

Methods: Eighty-one sixth-grade students (28 boys, age = 11.9 +/- 0.

Relationship between objective measures of physical activity and weather: a longitudinal study.

Background: The weather may be a barrier to physical activity but objective assessment of this hypothesis is lacking. Therefore we evaluated the effect of temperature, rain or snow, and wind speed on the daily physical activity of adults.

Methods: This report contains data from 25 males (BMI (mean +/- SD): 28.

But What About Swimming and Cycling? How to "Count" Non-Ambulatory Activity When Using Pedometers to Assess Physical Activity.

Background: The aims of this study were to describe the amount of non-ambulatory physical activity (PA) undertaken by a sample of Australian workers, and to evaluate different methods of accounting for non-ambulatory activities when using pedometers to measure physical activity.

Methods: Adults age 18 to 64 y (N = 204) wore a pedometer and recorded steps and non-step activity in a logbook for 7 d. Non-ambulatory activity was recorded by 28% of the participants (N = 52) with cycling and swimming the most frequently reported.

Proximal impact of Canada on the Move: the relationship of campaign awareness to pedometer ownership and use.

Objective: Despite increased participation in leisure-time physical activity, inactivity remains an important public health problem. This study examines the immediate impact of the Canada on the Move initiative to promote walking through pedometer use among adult Canadians.

Methods: Data from a rolling monthly sample were collected via the Canadian Fitness and Lifestyle Research Institute's Physical Activity Monitor between November 2003 and September 2004.

Evaluation of quality of commercial pedometers.

Background: The purpose of this study was to: 1) evaluate the quality of promotional pedometers widely distributed through cereal boxes at the time of the 2004 Canada on the Move campaign; and 2) establish a battery of testing protocols to provide direction for future consensus on industry standards for pedometer quality.

Methods: Fifteen Kellogg's* Special K* Step Counters (K pedometers or K; manufactured for Kellogg Canada by Sasco, Inc.) and 9 Yamax pedometers (Yamax; Yamax Corporation, Tokyo, Japan) were tested with 9 participants accordingly: 1) 20 Step Test; 2) treadmill at 80m x min(-1) (3 miles x hr(-1)) and motor vehicle controlled conditions; and 3) 24-hour free-living conditions against an accelerometer criterion.

An Exploratory Analysis of Adherence Patterns and Program Completion of a Pedometer-Based Physical Activity Intervention.

Background: We examined participant characteristics related to pedometer program adherence and completion.

Methods: Participants (n = 177, age = 43 ± 9 y, BMI = 29.5 ± 6.

Pedometer-determined step count guidelines for classifying walking intensity in a young ostensibly healthy population.

Purpose: (a) To establish pedometer steps/min intensity categories (i.e., light, moderate, hard, very hard) for adults under controlled conditions, and (b) use these cut-points to ascertain the number of steps expected in 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity.

Suitability of commuting by bicycle to Arizona elementary schools.

Purpose: To determine the biking suitability (i.e., bikeability) of and prevalence of biking in 14 elementary schools representing two extremes of bused students (2.

Active commuting to school among NSW primary school children: implications for public health.

Regular active commuting by walking/cycling can help maintain an active lifestyle. The frequency, duration and correlates of school active commuting were examined for primary school children in NSW, Australia. Walking/cycling-only and in combination with bus/car were of short duration (median 7 or 4 min, respectively) and their frequency dropped within a short distance (>0.

Pedometer indices for weekly physical activity recommendations in postmenopausal women.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to quantify pedometer-determined steps per day associated with 50, 100, and 150% of the current public health recommendation for weekly physical activity in sedentary postmenopausal women.

Methods: A sample of 111 women from the DREW (Dose Response to Exercise in Women) study provided data. We randomly assigned women into one of three exercise groups expending 4, 8, or 12 kcal(-1).

Health and physical activity research as represented in RQES.

In the past 75 years, articles in Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport (RQES) have contributed to the understanding of the role physical activity plays in the health of individuals and populations. Articles have described laboratory and community research studies in humans and animals, presented reviews of topics and conference proceedings, and presented forums for discussion about current topics in physical activity and health. The articles reflect the growth of the profession from basic inquiry, about physiological responses to exercise (and the development of physical fitness methods and standards), to studies of the effects of exercise on physical fitness and health in various population subgroups.

Use of pedometers to measure physical activity in dogs.

Objective: To determine whether pedometers can be used to measure physical activity in dogs.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Animals: 26 dogs.

Patterns of walking for transport and exercise: a novel application of time use data.

Background: Walking for exercise is a purposeful or structured activity that can be captured relatively easily in surveys focused on leisure time activity. In contrast, walking for transport is an incidental activity that is likely to be missed using these same assessment approaches. Therefore, the purpose of this analysis was to utilize 1997 Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Time Use Survey diary data to describe nationally representative patterns of walking for transport and for exercise.

A preliminary study of one year of pedometer self-monitoring.

Background: Long-term pedometer monitoring has not been attempted.

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to collect 365 days of continuous self-monitored pedometer data to explore the natural variability of physical activity.

Methods: Twenty-three participants (7 men, 16 women; M age = 38 +- 9.

Health benefits of a pedometer-based physical activity intervention in sedentary workers.

Background: Inactivity is a leading contributor to chronic health problems. Here, we examined the effects of a pedometer-based physical activity intervention (Prince Edward Island-First Step Program, PEI-FSP) on activity and specific health indices in 106 sedentary workers.

Methods: Participants were recruited from five workplaces where most jobs were moderately-highly sedentary.

Descriptive epidemiology of pedometer-determined physical activity.

Purpose: The dual purposes of this study were: 1) to provide preliminary descriptive epidemiology data representing pedometer-determined physical activity (PA) and 2) to explore sources of intra-individual variability in steps per day.

Methods: All participants (76 males, age = 48.4 +/- 16.

Walking patterns in a sample of African American, Native American, and Caucasian women: the cross-cultural activity participation study.

This analysis describes walking patterns among African American, Native American, and Caucasian women from South Carolina and New Mexico. Walking was assessed using pedometer and physical activity (PA) record data based on 4 consecutive days on either three (Study Phase 1) or two (Study Phase 2) occasions. Participants walked 5,429 +/- 2,959 steps per day and recorded 159 +/- 59 minutes per day of total walking in the PA record.

BMI-referenced standards for recommended pedometer-determined steps/day in children.

Background: Recommended levels of youth physical activity (PA) should emerge from data related to important health outcomes. The purpose of the present study was to establish criterion-referenced standards for PA (using pedometer-assessed steps/day) related to healthy body composition.

Methods: This is a secondary analysis of an existing data set (including pedometer-assessed PA and objectively measured BMI) of 1,954 children (995 girls, 959 boys; ages 6-12 years) from the USA, Australia, and Sweden.

Motion sensor accuracy under controlled and free-living conditions.

Purpose: Two studies were conducted to examine the concurrent accuracy of the Yamax SW-200 (YAM), Omron HJ-105 (OM), and Sportline 330 (SL) pedometers, as well as a CSA accelerometer.

Methods: In study 1, motion sensor performance was evaluated against actual (observed) steps taken during 5-min bouts at five different treadmill speeds (54, 67, 80, 94, and 107 m x min) using a two-way repeated measures ANOVA (instrument x speed). Additionally, the direction and magnitude of motion sensor error was examined.

Utility of pedometers for assessing physical activity: construct validity.

Valid assessment of physical activity is necessary to fully understand this important health-related behaviour for research, surveillance, intervention and evaluation purposes. This article is the second in a companion set exploring the validity of pedometer-assessed physical activity. The previous article published in Sports Medicine dealt with convergent validity (i.

Pedometer accuracy in nursing home and community-dwelling older adults.

Purpose: The accuracy of pedometers has not been thoroughly tested with older adult populations. The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of walking speed and gait disorders on the accuracy of Yamax pedometers with nursing home residents (NH) relative to older adults living in the community.

Methods: Pedometer accuracy was evaluated against observed steps taken during a self-paced walking test (slow, normal, and fast speeds) in 26 NH residents and 28 seniors' recreation center members (SC).