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Trial registered on ANZCTR

Registration number

ACTRN12617000515392

Ethics application status

Approved

Date submitted

5/04/2017

Date registered

10/04/2017

Date last updated

13/04/2018

Type of registration

Prospectively registered

Titles & IDs

Public title

Aussie Fans in Training (Aussie-FIT): A weight loss program in sport settings

Scientific title

A gender-sensitised weight loss and healthy living programme for overweight and obese men delivered within Australian Football League clubs (Aussie-FIT): a feasibility and pilot randomised controlled trial

Secondary ID [1]

Not applicable

Universal Trial Number (UTN)

Not applicable

Trial acronym

Aussie-FIT: Aussie Fans in Training

Linked study record

Not applicable

Health condition

Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied:

Overweight

Obesity

Cardiovascular health risks

Condition category

Condition code

Diet and Nutrition

Obesity

Public Health

Health promotion/education

Intervention/exposure

Study type

Interventional

Description of intervention(s) / exposure

Aussie-FIT is a program designed to promote physical activity (PA), weight loss and healthy living among overweight and physically inactive middle-aged men in Australia, using the context of AFL. Aussie-FIT is based upon the existing, successful FFIT program (developed in Scotland). Aussie-FIT is tailored to engage males via delivery in the AFL context by coaches associated with the clubs, taking into account any salient cultural differences in the relationship between masculinity and health. The original FFIT program was developed by a team of experts in obesity, PA, community-based programs, gender and health, and delivery of men’s weight management programs. Aligned with the original FFIT, Aussie-FIT will be gender-sensitive and will aim to support participants to change their eating habits and food consumed (based on estimated weight maintenance requirements according to age, gender and body weight). The targeted strategies will include portion control, reduction of sugary drinks and energy dense foods, reduction in alcohol consumption, and a gradual increase in moderate PA that is initiated in the club setting but readily incorporated into daily lives to maximise sustainability of lifestyle changes (see Gray et al., 2013, for additional detail on intervention features and rationale).
To help support the men to sustain PA changes, the program will include self-regulation strategies, such as a) helping the men understand how to respond appropriately to certain stimuli (e.g., triggers to being inactive and unhealthy eating); b) assisting them to set effective goals; c) teaching them strategies to avoid engaging in compensatory behaviours (e.g., being more sedentary or eating more following PA), and d) educating them in how to prevent relapse (i.e., returning to pre-intervention behaviours, which might result in weight gain).
The program will be delivered over 12 weekly, 90-minute sessions to groups of 15 men by coaches (i.e., tutor to participant ratio of 1:15). The sessions will include classroom based activities and coach-led PA sessions. Over the 12 weeks, the proportion of time dedicated to PA relative to classroom-based activities will increase, to align with the men’s increases in fitness. Activity monitors will be handed out in week one, when participants will be fully briefed in how to wear and use the devices. Participants will be asked to wear their activity monitor throughout the day and use it as a self-monitoring device.
Four community coaches will be recruited to take the role of Aussie-FIT program tutors. The coaches will ideally be coaching personnel who usually deliver the clubs’ community programs and they will be selected on the basis of recommendations from our key contacts at each club, as well as their interest and enthusiasm for the role and relevant experience. Coaches will be given training in the Aussie-FIT delivery protocol. Coaches will receive two days of face-to-face training, followed by opportunities to practice session delivery and then receive feedback from the research team. Training topics will include PA, nutrition, and behaviour change strategies.
A multicomponent process evaluation (including interviews with fans, coaches, and coded audio recordings of coaches’ communication style in Aussie-FIT sessions) will be undertaken. Our evaluation will explore issues of: 1) implementation (i.e., the process of implementing the intervention such as when, where, and how the fans engaged in PA during and after the intervention period), 2) mediators of outcomes (e.g., motivation to engage in PA or healthy diet), and 3) potential moderators (e.g., age, socioeconomic status, baseline PA and dietary behaviours, baseline BMI). Fidelity of the delivery of Aussie-FIT by trained club community coaches will be examined via coding the content of the audio recordings of the program delivery sessions. We will determine whether the intervention delivery style and content were as intended by coding audio recordings. We will also measure the degree to which the behaviour change techniques have been taught appropriately by the coaches.

Intervention code [1]

Lifestyle

Intervention code [2]

Prevention

Intervention code [3]

Behaviour

Comparator / control treatment

Comparator: waiting list comparison group; will receive the same intervention 3 months after baseline assessment.

Control group

Active

Outcomes

Primary outcome [1]

Viability of the recruitment procedures assessed from study recruitment database

Timepoint [1]

Measured after recruitment closes (on target: yes/ no)

Primary outcome [2]

Participants’ attrition assessed from attendance logs

Timepoint [2]

Measured after 6 months post-intervention commencement (% of participants that completed final measures)

Primary outcome [3]

Acceptability to participants and coaches assessed on by 5-point Likert-scale (that is a composite primary outcome)

Timepoint [3]

Measured at 3 and 6 months post-intervention commencement

Secondary outcome [1]

Weight in kilograms measured with valid and reliable body scale (e.g., Tanita)

Timepoint [1]

Measured at 0 (baseline), 3 and 6 months

Secondary outcome [2]

Height measured in centimetres with valid and reliable height measure

Timepoint [2]

Measured at baseline

Secondary outcome [3]

Physical activity measured with valid and reliable physical activity monitor ActiGraph GTX-9 worn continuously for 1 week at each time-point, on their waist; setup to gather continuous data at 30Hz epoch; blinded assessor.

Timepoint [3]