The Effect of Physical Activity Intervention Flexibility on the Time Course of Changes in Body Composition and Metabolism

The investigators goal is to optimise physical activity interventions to help previously inactive women improve their body shape and composition. Many people seeking to lose weight or improve body composition initiate an exercise programme. The most common recommendation of an exercise intervention for someone attempting to manage their weight, has been to 'prescribe' the recommended 150 minutes of exercise per week (World Health Organisation), often using one mode of exercise. An alternative approach might be to offer a portfolio of activities, from which the exerciser can pick and choose, to facilitate greater amounts of physical activity. The problem with this is how do you account for the different intensities of walking, washing the car, playing badminton, cycling, jogging, etc? In this study, the investigators will try to overcome this barrier by allocating a number of "physical activity points" to each activity. Using this physical activity points system, participants will be provided with a points target that they can meet using any combination of activities.

The investigators research aim is therefore to compare this points-based system against the traditional 5x30minute prescription (and sedentary control) for their ability to help previously inactive women to drop a dress size, increase fat burning, positively change their body composition and tone their tummy.

Study Overview

• Status: Unknown
• Conditions: Overweight; Sedentary
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Exercise

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 60
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United Kingdom
  • Birmingham, United Kingdom, B15 2TT
    • University of Birmingham, School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 25 years to 50 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: Female

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Female
• Aged 25-50 years old
• Inactive (less than 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity per week)
• BMI 25-35 kg/m2
• Good general health, as assessed by the School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences' General Health Questionnaire
• Willing to strictly comply with all study procedures and restrictions
• Willing to participate, as demonstrated by voluntary written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• Positive result from the urine sample pregnancy test
• Currently breast feeding
• Currently participating in another clinical trial deemed to potentially interfere with this study
• Current or recent (within the last 30 days) smoker
• Currently taking prescription or non-prescription medication that may interfere with metabolism (including beta-blockers, insulin, bronchodilators, anti-inflammatory agents, thyroxine and medication/supplements that in the opinion of the investigators may affect metabolism).

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Prescribed exercise; Participants will be asked to choose one activity and stick to it for the duration of the intervention. Participants will be able to choose between brisk walking/slow jogging or cycling. The intervention will require the completion of 30 minutes of chosen activity on 5 days of the week, which will be recorded in a physical activity diary.	Other: Exercise
Experimental: Points-based physical activity; Participants will be asked to achieve a pre-set, individualised points target for physical activity each week. Points are acquired through the completion of a minimum 10 minutes of activity, choosing from the extensive list of activities provided; for example, 10 minutes of jogging achieves 4.5 points, whereas 10 minutes of washing a car achieves 1.5 points. The target will be 35-40 points per week, which equates to approximately 6 points per day. Any combination of activity, duration and frequency can be selected.	Other: Exercise
No Intervention: Waiting list control; Participants will be asked to maintain their normal activities and diet. They will be added to a waiting list to receive either exercise intervention after completing the 24-week trial period, so that they do not miss out on the opportunity to receive the exercise intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Change in body composition (fat and fat-free mass in kg)	4 weeks, 12 weeks and 24 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Perceived body shape	4 weeks, 12 weeks and 24 weeks
Maximal aerobic capacity	4 weeks, 12 weeks, 24 weeks
Fat oxidation rates	4 weeks, 12 weeks and 24 weeks
Body tone	4 weeks, 12 weeks, 24 weeks

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Blood-borne markers of metabolic health	4 weeks, 12 weeks, 24 weeks
Psychological measures relating to perceived body image	4 weeks, 12 weeks, 24 weeks
Psychological measures of attitudes towards exercise and physical activity	4 weeks, 12 weeks, 24 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Birmingham
• Collaborators: Cereal Partners Worldwide

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Holliday A, Burgin A, Fernandez EV, Fenton SAM, Thielecke F, Blannin AK. Points-based physical activity: a novel approach to facilitate changes in body composition in inactive women with overweight and obesity. BMC Public Health. 2018 Feb 17;18(1):261. doi: 10.1186/s12889-018-5125-2.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: December 1, 2013
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): December 1, 2017
• Study Completion (Anticipated): December 1, 2017

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: December 12, 2013
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 18, 2013
• First Posted (Estimate): December 24, 2013

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): October 28, 2016
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 27, 2016
• Last Verified: October 1, 2016

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: physical activity; body composition; females
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Body Weight; Overweight
• Other Study ID Numbers: Bham_CPW_PhysActIntervention

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No