@Article{info:doi/10.2196/31501,
author="Larsen, Lisbeth Hoejkjaer
and Lauritzen, Maja Hedegaard
and Sinkjaer, Mikkel
and Kjaer, Troels W",
title="The Effect of Wearable Tracking Devices on Cardiorespiratory Fitness Among Inactive Adults: Crossover Study",
journal="JMIR Cardio",
year="2022",
month="Mar",
day="15",
volume="6",
number="1",
pages="e31501",
keywords="activity tracking; cardiorespiratory fitness; mHealth; mobile health; motivation; physical activity; self-monitoring; wearable; cardio; fitness; cardiorespiratory; behavior change",
abstract="Background: Modern lifestyle is associated with a high prevalence of physical inactivity. Objective: This study aims to investigate the effect of a wearable tracking device on cardiorespiratory fitness among inactive adults and to explore if personal characteristics and health outcomes can predict adoption of the device. Methods: In total, 62 inactive adults were recruited for this study. A control period (4 weeks) was followed by an intervention period (8 weeks) where participants were instructed to register and follow their physical activity (PA) behavior on a wrist-worn tracking device. Data collected included estimated cardiorespiratory fitness, body composition, blood pressure, perceived stress levels, and self-reported adoption of using the tracking device. Results: In total, 50 participants completed the study (mean age 48, SD 13 years, 84{\%} women). Relative to the control period, participants increased cardiorespiratory fitness by 1.52 mL/kg/minute (95{\%} CI 0.82-2.22; P<.001), self-reported PA by 140 minutes per week (95{\%} CI 93.3-187.1; P<.001), daily step count by 982 (95{\%} CI 492-1471; P<.001), and participants' fat percentage decreased by 0.48{\%} (95{\%} CI --0.84 to --0.13; P=.009). No difference was observed in blood pressure (systolic: 95{\%} CI --2.16 to 3.57, P=.63; diastolic: 95{\%} CI --0.70 to 2.55; P=.27) or perceived stress (95{\%} CI --0.86 to 1.78; P=.49). No associations were found between adoption of the wearable tracking device and age, gender, personality, or education. However, participants with a low perceived stress at baseline were more likely to rate the use of a wearable tracking device highly motivating. Conclusions: Tracking health behavior using a wearable tracking device increases PA resulting in an improved cardiorespiratory fitness among inactive adults. ",
issn="2561-1011",
doi="10.2196/31501",
url="https://cardio.jmir.org/2022/1/e31501",
url="https://doi.org/10.2196/31501",
url="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35289763"
}