Workplace Intervention Including Exercise and Nutrition in Obese Office Workers

A Combined Workplace Intervention Including Exercise and Nutrition for Health Promotion in Obese Office Workers: a Randomized Controlled Study

The main objective of this study is to investigate the efficacy of a 6-month workplace combined (exercise and nutrition) intervention in obese office workers, using a randomized controlled study. An additional objective of this study is to evaluate the individual responses per participant following the program.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Obesity (BMI>30)
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Workplace combined (exercise and nutrition) intervention

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 36
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Greece
  • Greece
    • Trikala, Greece, Greece, 42100
      • Department of Physical Education and Sports Science, University of Thessaly

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Sedentary work at least 8 h per day in the office
• BMI value ≥ 30 kg/m2
• No chronic diseases (physical or mental)
• No use of any medication
• No injuries (in lower or upper body) in the last 6 months
• No participation in organized exercise programs or nutrition intervention during the last 6 months.

Exclusion Criteria: Participants who do not meet the above criteria will be excluded from the study.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention group; The IG will participate in a daily supervised 6-month workplace program (during working hours) including: a. exercise (flexibility, balance, strength, aerobic), and b. counseling and educational activities for healthy diet and hydration.	Other: Workplace combined (exercise and nutrition) intervention; The IG will participate in a supervised 6-month combined intervention program (exercise and nutrition), which will take place inside the workplace settings during working hours. In more detail, the IG will participate, every working day (5 days/week), in a 6-month supervised combined chair-based exercise program (120 training sessions; 25-40 min/day), including chair based seated and chair-assisted standing exercises to improve flexibility, balance, strength and aerobic capacity. Except exercise, the intervention program consisted of weekly counseling and educational activities in healthy diet and proper hydration using presentations, leaflets, individual and group sessions with nutritionist, use of applications for proper hydration, use of goal-setting cards for healthy options
No Intervention: Control group; The CG did not participate in any intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Body fat	Body fat (BF): BF% will be assessed using the bioelectrical impedance method (Maltron 900).	Baseline and 6 months
Body circumferences	The waist and hip circumferences will be measured using an ergonomic circumference measuring tape (Seca 201).	Baseline and 6 months
Blood pressure	Systolic and diastolic blood pressure will be measured, using an electronic upper arm blood pressure monitor (A&D-UA-851).	Baseline and 6 months
Respiratory function	Forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) will be measured, using a portable spirometer (Micro, Medical, Micro).	Baseline and 6 months
Lipidemic profile	A blood sample will be obtained after overnight fasting (12 h), as previously described [37]. Total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and triglycerides will be determined using a biochemical analyzer (Clinical Chemistry Analyzer Z 1145; Zafiropoulos Diagnostica S.A., Koropi, Greece), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) will be calculated using the Friedewald equation.	Baseline and 6 months
Lower body flexibility:	The sit-and-reach test will be performed using a Flex-Tester box (Novel Products Inc., Rockton, IL, USA).	Baseline and 6 months
Static balance	The single-limb stance test (with eyes opened) was performed, as previously described by Rinne et al.	Baseline and 6 months
Dynamic balance:	The timed up-and-go test was performed, as previously described by Rikli and Jones.	Baseline and 6 months
Handgrip strength	Maximal isometric handgrip strength will be assessed using a portable hydraulic dynamometer (Jamar 5030J1, Horsham, USA).	Baseline and 6 months
Aerobic capacity:	The YMCA 3 min step test was used, which will be performed following the metronome cadence (96 beats per minute; 4 steps per cycle). The participants' HR will be measured 1 min following the termination of the step test.	Baseline and 6 months
Adherence to the Mediterranean diet	The adherence to the Mediterranean diet will be assessed before and after the 6-month period using the specific Mediterranean Diet Score (range of total score: 0-55) [34-35]. The MedDietScore measures the weekly consumption of the following 9 food groups: non-refined cereals (whole grain bread and pasta, brown rice, etc), fruit, vegetables, legumes, potatoes, fish, red meat and products, poultry, full fat dairy products (like cheese, yoghurt, milk), as well as olive oil and alcohol intake [35].	Baseline and 6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Thessaly
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Konstantina Karatrantou, University of Thessaly; Principal Investigator: Vassilis Gerodimos, University of Thessaly

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): June 30, 2023
• Primary Completion (Actual): July 30, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): February 28, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 11, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 17, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): May 22, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 28, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 22, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: physical activity; functional capacity; wellness; hydration; dietary habits; occupational setting
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Nutrition Disorders; Overnutrition; Body Weight; Overweight; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Behavior; Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases; Signs and Symptoms; Behavior, Animal; Obesity; Motor Activity; Feeding Behavior; Motor Activity; Movement; Musculoskeletal Physiological Phenomena; Musculoskeletal and Neural Physiological Phenomena; Investigative Techniques; Diet, Food, and Nutrition; Physiological Phenomena; Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Population Characteristics; Health Status; Demography; Exercise; Methods; Nutritional Status
• Other Study ID Numbers: 1760

Drug and device information, study documents

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