Effect of Novel High-intensity Interval Training on Health and Fitness Outcomes in English Adolescents

Effect of Novel High-intensity Interval Training on Cardiometabolic Health and Physical Activity Levels in English Adolescents: A School-based Exploratory Controlled Before-and-after Trial

Low-volume high-intensity interval exercise training may improve aspects of health and fitness in young people, but interventions must be practical and engaging. The investigators examined the effect of a novel school-based low-volume high-intensity interval training programme on health, fitness and physical activity outcomes in adolescent school pupils. 101 English adolescents aged 13-14 years took part in the study. Participants were healthy male and female volunteers, recruited from four schools in Northeast England. Using a non-randomised design, two schools took part in the intervention, and two were assigned to the control. Those in the intervention group completed a 10-week school-based high-intensity interval exercise training programme. The intervention took place three times per week, and comprised of 4-7 repetitions of 45 s maximal effort exercise (boxing, dance, soccer and basketball drills), each interspersed with 90-s rest. Participants were encouraged to work maximally during the 45-s repetitions. Control participants were instructed not to change their lifestyle, dietary or physical activity habits during the intervention period, and maintain their normal school physical education routine. Study outcomes were blood lipid and glucose levels, body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness, carotid intima-media thickness, physical activity levels, serum C-reactive protein levels and blood pressure.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: High-intensity Interval Training
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Novel high-intensity interval exercise training

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 101
• Phase: Not Applicable

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 13 years to 15 years (Child)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Must attend one of the four schools that the study will take place in
2. Must be in the Year 9 English school year (aged 13-15 years)
3. Must provide parental consent and participant assent
4. Must be free from exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Symptoms of or known presence of heart disease or major atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease
2. Condition or injury or co-morbidity affecting the ability to undertake exercise
3. Diabetes mellitus
4. Early family history of sudden cardiac death
5. Condition or disorder which is communicable via blood
6. Pregnancy or likelihood of pregnancy

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention; Participants were required to complete a high-intensity interval exercise training intervention, which took place three time per week for 10 weeks. The exercise sessions comprised of 4 to 7 repetitions of 45 s maximal effort exercise, based on boxing, dance, soccer and basketball drills), interspersed with 90-s rest. During each repetitions participants were encouraged to reach >90% of their individual maximal heart rate. Participants were asked to maintain their dietary habits throughout the intervention period.	Other: Novel high-intensity interval exercise training; Please see information already included in the 'intervention' arm description.
No Intervention: Control; Participants were asked to maintain their usual diet, physical education and physical activity habits during the intervention period and were not aware that an exercise intervention was taking place at other study sites.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Change from baseline (0 weeks) waist circumference at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) blood lipids at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks) (assessed via finger prick blood sampling)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) blood glucose at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks) (assessed via finger prick blood sampling)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) blood pressure at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) carotid artery intima-media thickness at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) body mass index at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) serum C-reactive protein at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) 20m shuttle run test performance (indirect measure of cardiorespiratory fitness) at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) daily physical activity levels (assessed via accelerometry) at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) body weight at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) percentage body fat at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)
Change from baseline (0 weeks) skeletal muscle mass at the post-intervention time point (10 weeks)	Baseline (0 weeks) and post-intervention (10-weeks)

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Heart rate during high-intensity interval training exercise sessions	Up to 10 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Teesside University
• Collaborators: Liverpool John Moores University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Kathryn L Weston, PhD, Teesside University, Middlesbrough,UK

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Weston KL, Azevedo LB, Bock S, Weston M, George KP, Batterham AM. Effect of Novel, School-Based High-Intensity Interval Training (HIT) on Cardiometabolic Health in Adolescents: Project FFAB (Fun Fast Activity Blasts) - An Exploratory Controlled Before-And-After Trial. PLoS One. 2016 Aug 3;11(8):e0159116. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0159116. eCollection 2016.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: February 1, 2011
• Primary Completion (Actual): November 1, 2011
• Study Completion (Actual): December 1, 2011

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: December 3, 2015
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 7, 2015
• First Posted (Estimate): December 10, 2015

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): December 10, 2015
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 7, 2015
• Last Verified: December 1, 2015

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: adolescents; high-intensity interval training; cardiometabolic health; school-based exercise
• Other Study ID Numbers: TEES-008/11

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: Only group level data will be published from this study.