Moderate Aerobic Activity Through Yoga (MAT)

The 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans (PAGA) recommend 150 minutes of moderate intensity activity for adult (18 years and older) Americans to promote health. PAGA also recommends that older adults (65+) engage in multicomponent and balance exercises weekly as a way to reduce falls and injuries from falls. This recommendation includes yoga, however, the current research and recommendations on using yoga to meet moderate intensity activity guidelines is limited. This study will utilize heart rate monitoring to determine if certain styles of yoga can be used to meet the PAGA.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Physical Activity
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Behavioral and environmental

Detailed Description

The 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans recommend 150 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity each week to promote health. The most recent scientific advisory committee had insufficient evidence to provide recommendations on how the physical practice of yoga fits into the physical activity guidelines. Currently, there have been few studies done on yoga and its relative intensity. Previous randomized, cross-over trial to determine the effects of room temperature (hot yoga versus thermo-neutral environment) on subjective and objective markers of exercise intensity. They concluded that using objective markers (%VO2max) both thermo-neutral and hot yoga would be considered light intensity activity. Previous investigation of power yoga, heart rate, skin temperature, and body mass to determine that power yoga could be considered a moderate-vigorous intensity activity.

Currently, there is a gap in the research on understanding the intensity of exercise offered within a typical yoga studio including "flow", hatha/classical, and hot yoga. Most yoga classes are about 60 minutes in length, and yoga classes of that length have not been investigated. There is also minimal research done on whether wearable activity trackers and accelerometers are able to accurately assess heart rate, and therefore activity intensity level in a yoga setting.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 21
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Virginia
    • Blacksburg, Virginia, United States, 24060
      • Samantha M Harden

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 65 years to 85 years (Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Assessed as physical activity readiness i. For those 65-70 years of age. We will also use the Physical Readiness Questionnaire Plus-this "plus" version was developed to be more inclusive of those with limited mobility and not to over-exclude older adults in other clinical trials. If a participant fails the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire + (PARQ+), a physician's approval will be mandatory ii. For those 70-85 years of age. Complete PARQ+ as well as physician approval.
• Comprehension of English language
• Able to physically attend class at the yoga studio

Exclusion Criteria:

• Contraindication to physical activity including but not limited to people who can independently walk and stand. This will be part of the verbal screening protocol using Falls Efficacy Scale (FES). This scale has a minimum of 16 (no concern about falling) to maximum of 64 (severe concern about falling). Participants with FES score > 23 will be deemed high concern about falling and be excluded from participation.
• Assesses the presence and severity of 13 psychiatric symptom domains that cut across diagnostic boundaries. These domains include depression, anger, mania, anxiety, somatic symptoms, sleep disturbance, psychosis, obsessive thoughts and behaviors, suicidal thoughts and behaviors, substance use (e.g., alcohol, nicotine, prescription medication, and illicit substance use), personality functioning, dissociation, and cognition/memory problems in adults. Level 1 of this measure includes 23 questions across the 13 domains.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

4

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: hatha thermo-neutral; The hatha classes will hold each pose for 5 breaths in a room temperature (~70 degrees Fahrenheit) space. Yoga sessions will be led by a 500hr Registered Yoga Teacher. This reduces the risk for injury due to the extensive training the yoga teacher will have received and the knowledge of cuing and sequencing for best practice. All study personnel will be vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, reducing the risk of spreading SARS-CoV-2.	Other: Behavioral and environmental; These are all active comparator yoga sequences
Active Comparator: hatha hot; The hatha hot classes will hold each pose for 5 breaths in a room heated to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Yoga sessions will be led by a 500hr Registered Yoga Teacher. This reduces the risk for injury due to the extensive training the yoga teacher will have received and the knowledge of cuing and sequencing for best practice. All study personnel will be vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, reducing the risk of spreading SARS-CoV-2.	Other: Behavioral and environmental; These are all active comparator yoga sequences
Active Comparator: flow thermo-neutral; The flow hot classes will flow from each pose (one breath per movement) a room temperature (~70 degrees Fahrenheit) space. Yoga sessions will be led by a 500hr Registered Yoga Teacher. This reduces the risk for injury due to the extensive training the yoga teacher will have received and the knowledge of cuing and sequencing for best practice. All study personnel will be vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, reducing the risk of spreading SARS-CoV-2.	Other: Behavioral and environmental; These are all active comparator yoga sequences
Active Comparator: flow hot; The flow hot classes will flow from each pose (one breath per movement) in a room heated to 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Yoga sessions will be led by a 500hr Registered Yoga Teacher. This reduces the risk for injury due to the extensive training the yoga teacher will have received and the knowledge of cuing and sequencing for best practice. All study personnel will be vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2, reducing the risk of spreading SARS-CoV-2.	Other: Behavioral and environmental; These are all active comparator yoga sequences

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Continuous heart rate	Polar Version OH1	orientation to week 0 (baseline)
Continuous heart rate	Polar Version OH1	orientation to week 1
Continuous heart rate	Polar Version OH1	orientation to week 1.5
Continuous heart rate	Polar Version OH1	orientation to week 2
Continuous heart rate	Polar Version OH1	orientation to week 2.5

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Modified Borg Scale	2-items, 1 (very light activity) -10 (maximal effort)	orientation to week 1
Modified Borg Scale	2-items, 1 (very light activity) -10 (maximal effort)	orientation to week 1.5
Modified Borg Scale	2-items, 1 (very light activity) -10 (maximal effort)	orientation to week 2
Modified Borg Scale	2-items, 1 (very light activity) -10 (maximal effort)	orientation to week 2.5
Yoga Self Efficacy Scale	12-item, 9 point Likert scale, higher score, more self-efficacious	Baseline
Stanford Leisure-Time Activity Categorical Item	Score of 1-6, higher is better outcome	Baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Samantha M Harden, PhD, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 8, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): October 28, 2021
• Study Completion (Actual): October 28, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 26, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 21, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): January 11, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 1, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 28, 2022
• Last Verified: June 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: exercise; yoga; heart rate
• Other Study ID Numbers: 21-325

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No