scholarly journals Survival of the Fittest? Examining Lapsing Behaviour in the Context of Elderly People and the Use of Physical Activity Tracker Applications

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Markus Makkonen ◽  
Tuomas Kari ◽  
Lauri Frank
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Elderly People ◽  
Activity Tracker ◽  
Survival Of The Fittest

Forms of physical activity of the elderly

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 221-228
Author(s):  
Piotr Czarnecki ◽  
◽  
Justyna Podgórska-Bednarz ◽  
Lidia Perenc ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Elderly People ◽  
Population Aging ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Good Health ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Polish Society ◽  
Central Statistical ◽  
Key Phrases ◽  
The Impact

Introduction. Physical activity is known to be an important factor influencing health throughout human life. This issue has become crucial for public health due to the aging of the population in both developed and developing countries. Aim. is to present a literature review on the forms of physical activity undertaken by the elderly, as well as on issues related to physical activity and the population aging. Material and methods. The study was prepared on the basis of a review of Polish and foreign literature. The following databases and data sources were used: EBSCO, ScienceDirect and Google Scholar. An additional source of data were the websites of the Central Statistical Office. Strictly defined key phrases were used during the collection of literature. The work has been divided into thematic subsections on the aging of the society, the impact of physical activity on health and the main topic, i.e. forms of physical activity selected by the elderly. Analysis of the literature. The number of elderly people in Polish society has increased by almost 3.7 million over three decades. Therefore, an important topic is prophylaxis aimed at increasing the number of days in good health, largely covering the broadly understood activation of the elderly. The available data indicate that only 12% of elderly people undertake physical activity once a week. The most common form of spending free time actively is walking (as many as 73% of people in this population declare this form of physical activity in one of the presented studies). Conclusion. Organized forms of physical activity are undertaken much less frequently by the analyzed age group mainly due to financial limitations and limited availability of sports infrastructure.

Efficacy of an activity tracker-and app intervention to increase physical activity in the entire family: Pilot single-arm intervention study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie Schoeppe ◽  
Jo Salmon ◽  
Susan L. Williams ◽  
Deborah Power ◽  
Stephanie Alley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Intervention Study ◽  
Post Intervention ◽  
Entire Family ◽  
Physical Activity Guidelines ◽  
Mothers And Fathers ◽  
Activity Tracker ◽  
Activity Trackers ◽  
Family Program ◽  
Intervention Efficacy

BACKGROUND Interventions using activity trackers and smartphone apps have demonstrated their ability to increase physical activity in children and adults. However, they have not been tested in entire families. Further, few family-centred interventions have actively involved both parents, and assessed intervention efficacy separately for children, mothers and fathers. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to examine the short-term efficacy of an activity tracker and app intervention to increase physical activity in the entire family (children, mothers and fathers). METHODS This was a pilot single-arm intervention study with pre-post measures. Between 2017-2018, 40 families (58 children aged 6-10 years, 39 mothers, 33 fathers) participated in the 6-week Step it Up Family program in Queensland, Australia. Using commercial activity trackers combined with apps (Garmin Vivofit Jr for children, Vivofit 3 for adults), the intervention included individual and family-level goal-setting, self-monitoring, performance feedback, family step challenges, family social support and modelling, weekly motivational text messages, and an introductory session delivered face-to-face or via telephone. Parent surveys were used to assess intervention efficacy measured as pre-post intervention changes in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in children, mothers and fathers. RESULTS Thirty-eight families completed the post intervention survey (95% retention). At post intervention, MVPA had increased in children by 58 min/day (boys: 54 min/day, girls: 62 min/day; all P < .001). In mothers, MVPA increased by 27 min/day (P < .001), and in fathers, it increased by 31 min/day (P < .001). Furthermore, the percentage of children meeting Australia’s physical activity guidelines for children (≥60 MVPA min/day) increased from 34% to 89% (P < .001). The percentage of mothers and fathers meeting Australia’s physical activity guidelines for adults (≥150 MVPA min/week) increased from 8% to 57% (P < .001) in mothers, and from 21% to 68% (P < .001) in fathers. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that an activity tracker and app intervention is an efficacious approach to increasing physical activity in entire families to meet national physical activity guidelines. The Step it Up Family program warrants further testing in a larger, randomised controlled trial to determine its long-term impact. CLINICALTRIAL No trial registration as this is not an RCT. It is a pilot single-arm intervention study

scholarly journals The EnergyKids Pilot Study: Comparing Energy Balance of Primary School Children during School and Summer Camp

Nutrients ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 92
Author(s):  
Cinzia Franchini ◽  
Alice Rosi ◽  
Cristian Ricci ◽  
Francesca Scazzina
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Energy Balance ◽  
Weight Status ◽  
Summer Camp ◽  
Negative Energy ◽  
Primary School Children ◽  
Food Diary ◽  
Activity Tracker ◽  
School Time ◽  
Study Participants

Children’s energy requirements may vary during school and summer camp days. To evaluate energy balance during these two periods, seventy-eight children (45% females, 8–10 years) living in Parma, Italy, were enrolled in this observational study. Participants completed a 3-day food diary and wore an activity tracker for three consecutive days during a school- and a summer camp-week to estimate energy intake (EI) and energy expenditure (TEE). Height and body weight were measured at the beginning of each period to define children’s weight status. BMI and EI (school: 1692 ± 265 kcal/day; summer camp: 1738 ± 262 kcal/day) were similar during both periods. Both physical activity and TEE (summer camp: 1948 ± 312; school: 1704 ± 263 kcal/day) were higher during summer camp compared to school time. Therefore, energy balance was more negative during summer camp (−209 ± 366 kcal/day) compared to school time (−12 ± 331 kcal/day). Similar results were observed when males and females were analyzed separately but, comparing the sexes, males had a higher TEE and a more negative energy balance than females, during both periods. The results strongly suggest that an accurate evaluation of children’s energy balance, that considers both diet and physical activity, is needed when planning adequate diets for different situations.

scholarly journals Effects of Activity Tracker-Based Counselling and Live-Web Exercise on Breast Cancer Survivors during Italy COVID-19 Lockdown

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 50
Author(s):  
Andrea Di Blasio ◽  
Teresa Morano ◽  
Federica Lancia ◽  
Gianluca Viscioni ◽  
Angelo Di Iorio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Physical Activity ◽  
Light Intensity ◽  
Physical Exercise ◽  
Cancer Survivors ◽  
Breast Cancer Survivors ◽  
Sedentary Time ◽  
Physical Activities ◽  
Activity Tracker ◽  
Personal Feedback

Background: To prevent and fight the increase of daily sedentary time and to promote and stimulate the positive effects of physical activity and exercise on health, both traditional interventions and new strategies are important for breast cancer survivors (BCS). The research goal was to compare the effects of weekly personal feedback, based on objectively measured physical activity, on the trends of both daily sedentary time and on the physical activity of BCS (E− group) with those of an intervention also including online supervised physical exercise sessions (E+ group), during the Italy COVID-19 lockdown. Methods: The Italian COVID-19 emergency allowed the possibility to also observe the effects of social and personal limitations. A total of 51 BCS were studied over an 18-week period and had an objective registration of day-to-day sedentary time, physical activity, and sleep. Both subsamples received weekly or fortnight personal feedback. Data were analysed considering four key periods, according to the COVID-19 emergency steps. Results: Statistical analysis showed an additive effect for sedentary time and a multiplicative effect both for light-to vigorous and light-intensity physical activities. The E− group had a high overall sedentary time and a different trend of light-to vigorous and light-intensity physical activities, with a reduction from the 1st to the 2nd periods (national and personal restrictions), showing a significant rise just at the end of the national restrictions. Conclusions: The use of an activity tracker and its accompanying app, with the reception of weekly tailored advice and supervised online physical exercise sessions, can elicit proper physical activity recomposition in BCS in the COVID-19 era.

Feelings of well being in elderly people: Relationship to physical activity and physical function

2009 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 306-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuria Garatachea ◽  
Olga Molinero ◽  
Raquel Martínez-García ◽  
Rodrigo Jiménez-Jiménez ◽  
Javier González-Gallego ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Physical Function ◽  
Elderly People ◽  
Well Being

scholarly journals Neural Network–Based Algorithm for Adjusting Activity Targets to Sustain Exercise Engagement Among People Using Activity Trackers: Retrospective Observation and Algorithm Development Study

10.2196/18142 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (9) ◽  
pp. e18142
Author(s):  
Ramin Mohammadi ◽  
Mursal Atif ◽  
Amanda Jayne Centi ◽  
Stephen Agboola ◽  
Kamal Jethwani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Physical Activity ◽  
Machine Learning ◽  
Learning Model ◽  
Step Count ◽  
Daily Step ◽  
Activity Tracker ◽  
Activity Trackers ◽  
Machine Learning Model ◽  
Daily Step Count

Background It is well established that lack of physical activity is detrimental to the overall health of an individual. Modern-day activity trackers enable individuals to monitor their daily activities to meet and maintain targets. This is expected to promote activity encouraging behavior, but the benefits of activity trackers attenuate over time due to waning adherence. One of the key approaches to improving adherence to goals is to motivate individuals to improve on their historic performance metrics. Objective The aim of this work was to build a machine learning model to predict an achievable weekly activity target by considering (1) patterns in the user’s activity tracker data in the previous week and (2) behavior and environment characteristics. By setting realistic goals, ones that are neither too easy nor too difficult to achieve, activity tracker users can be encouraged to continue to meet these goals, and at the same time, to find utility in their activity tracker. Methods We built a neural network model that prescribes a weekly activity target for an individual that can be realistically achieved. The inputs to the model were user-specific personal, social, and environmental factors, daily step count from the previous 7 days, and an entropy measure that characterized the pattern of daily step count. Data for training and evaluating the machine learning model were collected over a duration of 9 weeks. Results Of 30 individuals who were enrolled, data from 20 participants were used. The model predicted target daily count with a mean absolute error of 1545 (95% CI 1383-1706) steps for an 8-week period. Conclusions Artificial intelligence applied to physical activity data combined with behavioral data can be used to set personalized goals in accordance with the individual’s level of activity and thereby improve adherence to a fitness tracker; this could be used to increase engagement with activity trackers. A follow-up prospective study is ongoing to determine the performance of the engagement algorithm.

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