The results, available online in the February issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine, show that obese, middle-aged women who participated in an exercise program based at their primary care doctor’s office were more likely to continue to exercise over several months compared with those who were self-guided.
“Women who participated in programs in their doctor’s office had a
structured environment allowing them to focus on their lifestyle habits
like eating and exercising, and make changes,” said Molly Conroy, M.D., M.P.H., associate professor of medicine, epidemiology, and clinical and translational science at Pitt.
The Healthy Bodies Healthy Hearts investigators enrolled 99
inactive, overweight women ages 45 through 65 at three UPMC primary care
offices at UPMC Montefiore, UPMC Shadyside and Magee-Womens Hospital of
UPMC. The women were randomly separated into two groups: one in which
they participated in 12 weekly sessions at their primary care
physician’s office consisting of 30 minutes of discussion and 30 minutes
of moderate-intensity exercise; and a self-guided group that received a
manual for independent use.
After three months, assessments showed that the women in the
interventionist-led group had significantly higher levels of physical
activity, such as walking at a moderate pace, with improvements equal to
about 90 minutes per week, compared to the self-guided women who
improved by only about 30 minutes per week.
After a year, both groups reduced their level of activity. The
self-guided participants returned to pre-intervention activity levels;
however, the interventionist-led women were still more active than they
had been before participation by about 60 minutes of exercise per week.
“These outcomes imply that primary care-based interventions can be
very beneficial to keep sedentary women motivated for several months.
Many indicated their confidence was higher and that they felt more
comfortable exercising with support. Follow-up sessions could help women
over the long-term,” said Dr. Conroy. “Future efforts should focus on
finding the best way to sustain that activity, using resources available
in the primary care setting.”
Co-authors of the study include Kathleen L. Sward, Ph.D., M.P.H., of Heartchange; Kathleen Spadaro, Ph.D., of Chatham University;
and Dana Tudorascu, Ph.D., Irna Karpov, M.S., Bobby L. Jones, Ph.D.,
Andrea M. Kriska, Ph.D., and Wishwa N. Kapoor, M.D., M.P.H., all of
Pitt.
The study was sponsored by NIH’s National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute grant K23 HL 085405.