Mindfulness Walking Intervention to Enhance Resilience (iWalk) (iWalk)

December 2, 2025 updated by: Chung-Yi Chiu, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

A Randomized Controlled Trial of a Walking Meditation Intervention (iWalk) to Enhance Resilience in Adults

This study is a randomized controlled trial of the walking meditation intervention (iWalk) program, a multi-component intervention integrating walking meditation, education, and group sessions designed to enhance resilience in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS).

The objectives are to evaluate:

  1. Recruitment capability and retention rates,
  2. Acceptability and adherence to the intervention,
  3. Feasibility of assessment procedures, and
  4. Preliminary effects on psychological, physiological, and behavioral outcomes.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The iWalk Program is an 8-week, multi-component behavioral intervention integrating mindfulness-based stress reduction and walking meditation to promote resilience and self-regulation in people with MS. The intervention combines weekly educational content, guided walking meditation, and group reflection delivered both in-person and virtually. Participants in the experimental group will attend three one-hour sessions per week (two via Zoom, one in-person) focusing on mindfulness, interoception, emotional regulation, and positive coping.

The waitlist control group will receive usual care during the trial period and will be offered participation after study completion.

Assessments include psychological questionnaires, electroencephalography (EEG), cognitive tasks, balance testing, and physical activity monitoring using Fitbit and Hexoskin wearable sensors. Data analysis includes assessing quantitative and qualitative changes in resilience, stress, mindfulness, mood, interoceptive awareness, quality of life, and physical activity over 8 weeks.

The total study duration is 10 weeks per participant, including baseline and post-intervention assessments.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

90

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Illinois
      • Urbana, Illinois, United States, 61801
        • Recruiting
        • University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
        • Contact:
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Chung-Yi Chiu, Ph.D.

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. 18 years or older,
  2. clinical diagnosis of a neurodegenerative disease such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, stroke, etc.,
  3. have not practiced meditation regularly (e.g., 10 mins per day) and have never attended any meditation classes or community programs,
  4. never received meditation training via coaching/certification/life coaching,
  5. have internet access,
  6. with no severe cognitive impairment, i.e., have a score of ≥ 21 on Modified Telephonic Interview for Cognitive Status (TICS-M),
  7. be able to walk with or without an assistive device (Patient determined Disease Steps score ranged from 0-6),
  8. are willing to be randomized to an intervention or a control group,
  9. are willing to wear Fitbit (a wrist smart watch) for eight weeks,
  10. are individuals who are right-handed according to the Edinburgh Handedness Questionnaire,
  11. are willing to participate in all assessments, including in-person testing using electroencephalography (EEG) and cognitive tests, online survey/questionnaires, and online interviews or focus group discussions,
  12. are willing to wear a Hexoskin t-shirt, which is a heart rate variability monitor, while doing the assessments in person.

Exclusion Criteria:

Participants who cannot speak, read, write, or listen in English.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: iWalk Program
This group receives the complete iWalk program.
Behavioral: iWalk Program
A multi-component behavioral program integrating walking meditation, education, and group sessions to enhance resilience and stress regulation in adults with and without chronic conditions.
Active Comparator: Education Only without Walking Mindfulness Practice
This group receives only education part of the iWalk program without walking mindfulness sessions.
Behavioral: iWalk Program
A multi-component behavioral program integrating walking meditation, education, and group sessions to enhance resilience and stress regulation in adults with and without chronic conditions.
No Intervention: Control Group
This group does not receive any intervention and are placed on a waiting list.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Connor Davidson Resilience Scale for Adults (CD-RISC 25)
Time Frame: The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
Multiple Sclerosis Resilience Scale (MSRS)
Time Frame: The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
Stroop Task
Time Frame: The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
Symbol Digit Modalities Test
Time Frame: The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
Wisconsin Card Sorting Test
Time Frame: The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
Sustained Attention to Response Task
Time Frame: The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.
The baseline means assessments done two weeks before the intervention start date. Post-intervention assessments will be conducted two weeks after the intervention. Follow-up 1 is 24 weeks from baseline, and follow-up 2 is 48 weeks from baseline.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

June 1, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2029

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 31, 2029

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 16, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 2, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

December 16, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

December 16, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 2, 2025

Last Verified

December 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB25-0202

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

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Adults

Clinical Trials on iWalk Program

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

CROs by country

CROs in Uganda

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Subscribe