Equinox Personal Coaching Versus Self-Directed Exercise

Effectiveness of Equinox Fitness Club's Personal Coaching Method Versus Self-Directed Exercise Training on Increasing Lean Body Mass in Men Aged 30-44 Years of Age

The purpose of this study is to compare the Equinox Personal Coaching exercise training method to self-directed exercise training in helping subjects become more fit. Men between 30 and 44 years of age who exercise on a regular basis and are interested in receiving Equinox personal training will be invited to participate. The investigators will enroll 36 subjects at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the only site. The hypothesis of this study is that subjects randomized to the Personal Coaching Method will result in significantly greater lean mass accrual than those randomized to self-directed training over the 12 weeks of the study.

Subjects will have 2 Baseline visits over 1 week, then be randomized to receive either Coached training or self-training, which they will do for 12 weeks, then complete two End of Study visits over the final week. Visits 1 and 3 include questionnaires, skinfold fat/lean body mass measurements, and strength and aerobic performance tests, and will take place at Equinox. Visits 2 and 4 include a DEXA scan and ECG, which will take place at UCLA.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Physical Fitness
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Equinox Personal Coaching

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 43
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • California
    • Los Angeles, California, United States, 90095
      • UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 30 years to 44 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Men aged 30-44 years
• Body mass index less than 30 kg/m2.
• Currently exercising with or without coaching more than 4 days but less than 8 days per month for the past three months (Equinox Motivated or Super Motivated categories);
• Willing to commit to 12 weeks of thrice weekly training at the Century City Equinox club with or without an Equinox coach.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Over age 44
• Musculoskeletal conditions limiting participation
• Unstable cardiovascular, pulmonary, metabolic, or other disorders that would preclude high intensity exercise training.
• Abnormal ECG at Screening that indicates the subject is not healthy enough for maximal exercise in the opinion of the principal investigator
• Family history of sudden death associated with exercise, based on self-report

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Equinox Personal Coaching; Participants assigned the Coached group will receive up to 36 sessions about three times a week, consisting of both strength and aerobic exercises, through a program designed by Equinox Fitness Centers.	Behavioral: Equinox Personal Coaching; Specially designed strength and aerobic exercise training program that consists of 36 sessions over 12 weeks.
No Intervention: Self-directed exercise training; Participants in the Self-directed group will receive general exercise training advice as any member of the fitness club would, and will record the details of their exercise in log sheets. They will be asked to continue their usual exercise routine.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in lean body mass	Change in lean body mass (LBM) as measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA)	Baseline and 4 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in muscle strength	Changes in muscle strength in the upper and lower extremities as assessed with standard one-repetition maximum tests for the chest press and leg press exercises, respectively	Baseline and 4 months
Change in aerobic performance	Aerobic performance as assessed using a symptom-limited, treadmill ramp protocol.	Baseline and 4 months
Changes in ventilation and respiratory gas exchange	Measures of ventilation and respiratory gas exchange including changes in maximum oxygen uptake, the metabolic (lactate) threshold, and other parameters of aerobic, cardiovascular, and ventilatory fitness.	Baseline and 4 months
Change in quality of life	A quality of life scale will also used to determine participant's satisfaction with their training and its result.	Baseline and 4 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of California, Los Angeles
• Collaborators: Equinox Fitness Centers

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Storer TW, Dolezal BA, Berenc MN, Timmins JE, Cooper CB. Effect of supervised, periodized exercise training vs. self-directed training on lean body mass and other fitness variables in health club members. J Strength Cond Res. 2014 Jul;28(7):1995-2006. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000000331.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: January 1, 2012
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 1, 2012
• Study Completion (Actual): December 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: December 16, 2011
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 24, 2013
• First Posted (Estimate): January 29, 2013

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): November 28, 2016
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 23, 2016
• Last Verified: November 1, 2016

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Fitness training; Personal training
• Other Study ID Numbers: Equinox Study