Perceived barriers to physical activity according to stage of change and body mass index in the west virginia wisewoman population.

Purpose: Low-income Appalachian women aged 40-64 years are an understudied population relative to physical activity barriers. To inform a cardiovascular risk factor intervention targeting this population through the West Virginia WISEWOMAN program, we determined at baseline participants' perceptions about the presence of 6 barriers to physical activity and respective differences according to stage of readiness for change (SOC).

Methods: Low-income women aged 40-64 who had participated in a state cancer screening program were recruited through 13 clinics.