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Trial registered on ANZCTR
Registration number
ACTRN12619000868189
Ethics application status
Approved
Date submitted
22/05/2019
Date registered
19/06/2019
Date last updated
5/09/2019
Date data sharing statement initially provided
19/06/2019
Type of registration
Prospectively registered
Titles & IDs
Public title
Integrating Smartphone Technology and the Outdoor Built Environment to Promote Aerobic and Resistance-based Physical Activity in the General Population: The ecofit Randomised Controlled Trial
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Scientific title
Rationale and study protocol for the ‘ecofit’ randomised controlled trial: Integrating Smartphone Technology, Social Support and the Outdoor Built Environment to Promote Community-based Aerobic and Resistance-based Physical Activity in the general adult population.
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Secondary ID [1]
298308
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Nil known
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Universal Trial Number (UTN)
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Trial acronym
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Linked study record
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Health condition
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied:
Physical inactivity
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Condition category
Condition code
Public Health
311430
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0
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Health promotion/education
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Intervention/exposure
Study type
Interventional
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Description of intervention(s) / exposure
The ecofit is an innovative 9-month multi-component physical activity intervention study. The intervention aims to increase aerobic and resistance-based physical activity through the use of smartphone technology, social support and the outdoor built environment in the general population. The intervention targets individuals who do not meet the current aerobic and/or resistance-based physical activity guidelines in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie City Council areas, New South Wales (NSW), Australia.
The intervention incorporates:
- The ecofit smartphone app:
The app is comprised of multiple functions, including: Standardised workouts, Workout locations, Workout categories, Self-monitoring functions (These include, to set weekly workout goals, track workout history, track past work out goals and monitor progress), Exercise library, Resources (The resource folder include information regarding the physical, psychological and clinical benefits of aerobic and resistance-based physical activity and the current physical activity guidelines). These resources have been specifically designed for this study. It is not mandatory for participants to use all aspects of the app, i.e., accessing the resource folder is optional. Having the app usage data will allow us to monitor adherence to the intervention.
Standardised workouts: Each workout is composed of eight resistance-based exercises (i.e., two core, two upper body, two lower body, one chest and one back) that targets major muscle groups. Participants can choose between two types of workouts ('Fixed' or 'Trail-based'). At the ‘Fixed’ locations the equipment is clustered in one spot, whereas at the ‘Trail-based’ exercise location, the outdoor exercise equipment is located along a trail. Once the workout type has been chosen, participants will select between three types of training categories; ‘resistance only’, ‘resistance and aerobic’ or integrated resistance and aerobic’. The resistance only option consist of eight resistance-based exercises. While all exercises will cover the same body parts (i.e., two core, two upper body, two lower body, one chest and one back), the types of exercises may vary slight between parks depending on the availability of equipment. The ‘resistance and aerobic’ option consists of an added aerobic workout (i.e., run, jog or brisk walk) for 20 minutes upon completion of all the resistance-based exercises. The ‘integrated resistance and aerobic’ option alternates one resistance-based exercise with a short bout of aerobic activity (i.e., 60-second run). To allow for participant progress and targeting users of different fitness levels, the app has built in three different difficulty levels (i.e., beginner, intermediate, and experienced). For example, a beginner-level push-up is completed on the knees whereas an experience-level push-up is completed on the toes.
- 90 minute introductory group session run by an exercise physiologist:
The session will help to educate participants on: (1) how to perform correct techniques of the exercises included in the program; (2) how to access and use the ecofit app; (3) and provided with an app user guide. Participants will be encourage to do 2 or more app workouts per week, for the duration of the intervention.
Assessments are conducted at baseline, 3-months (primary time point) and 9-months (follow-up).
The intervention will be administered by an Exercise Specialist.
This study will generate novel findings regarding the effect of using smartphone technology, social support and the outdoor build environment to improve physical activity levels in the general population.
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Intervention code [1]
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Behaviour
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Intervention code [2]
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Lifestyle
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Intervention code [3]
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Treatment: Other
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Comparator / control treatment
Wait-list control group; intervention will be delivered after treatment for intervention group. They will be encouraged / instructed to go about their day as normal. No additional activities will be provided/required.
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Control group
Active
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Outcomes
Primary outcome [1]
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Upper body muscular fitness: Upper body muscular endurance will be measured using the validated 90 degree push-up test. Participants will be instructed to keep their body in a straight line from the toes to hips, and to the shoulders. One push-up repetition consists of lowering the body until the elbows bend 90 degrees and the upper arms are parallel to the floor, followed by pushing back up to the start position. The push-ups are done in time with a metronome, which is set at 40 beats per minute (20 push-ups per minute). The test assesses the maximum number of repetitions that can be performed correctly in rhythm without breaking form for more than two consecutive or non-consecutive push-ups.
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Assessment method [1]
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Timepoint [1]
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baseline, 3 months (primary) and 9 months (follow-up)
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Primary outcome [2]
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Lower body muscular fitness: Lower body muscular fitness will be measured using the validated sit-to-stand test which has recent norms for adults aged 18-80. The sit-to-stand test measures lower body muscular strength and endurance by the number of times the person can stand up and sit down on a regular chair in one minute.
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Assessment method [2]
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Timepoint [2]
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baseline, 3 months (primary) and 9 months (follow-up)
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Secondary outcome [1]
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Physical activity: Physical activity will be objectively measured using water proof Actigraph GT9X Link wrist-worn accelerometers. The Actigraph has shown acceptable validity and reliability compared to other commercially available activity monitors. The sum of daily minutes spent in moderate to vigorous physical activity will be monitored by the Actigraph and used to determine participants current physical activity levels. Each participant will be instructed about correct wear and fitting of the ActiGraph activity monitor during the baseline assessment and asked to wear the monitor on their non-dominant wrist for seven consecutive days. Participants will provided a log book to record resistance-based physical activity activities, and record times when the monitor was removed and physical activity undertaken.
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Assessment method [1]
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Timepoint [1]
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baseline, 3 months and 9 months
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Secondary outcome [2]
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Body composition: Body composition will be measured using the validated dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). The GE Lunar Prodigy Scanner (Model part: Spellman, Lunar 8743) will be used to conduct the scans. Participants will lie on a scanner bed while scanning arms pass over their body measuring muscle and fat composition. The scan takes approximately six minutes to complete.
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Assessment method [2]
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Timepoint [2]
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baseline, 3 months and 9 months
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Secondary outcome [3]
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Aerobic fitness: Aerobic fitness will be measured using the validated YMCA step test. The step test measures cardiorespiratory fitness by step up and down a platform at the rate of 24 step-ups/minute for three consecutive minutes. Upon completion of the test, participants are to sit quietly for 1-minute. Participants performance level is determined by the recovery heart rate at the 1-minute mark post completion.
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Assessment method [3]
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Timepoint [3]
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Baseline, 3-month and 9-month
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Secondary outcome [4]
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Body mass index: Body mass index (BMI) will be calculated using the standard equation (weight [kg]/height[m]²). Weight is measured to the nearest 0.1 kilogram without shoes and in light clothing using a portable digital scale. Height is measured to the nearest 0.1 centimetre using a stadiometer. Individuals are classified as being within the healthy weight range if they have a BMI 18.5-24.9. BMI scores of less than 18.5 is classified as underweight, BMI scores of 25-29.9 is regarded as overweight and a BMI of 30 and over is categorised as obese.
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Assessment method [4]
370721
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Timepoint [4]
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Baseline, and 3 month only.
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Secondary outcome [5]
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Self-report resistance-based physical activity: Self-reported resistance-based physical activity will be measured using a modified version of the validated Godin Leisure-Time questionnaire. The modification includes the average number of minutes per session, as well as adding an additional question regarding resistance training i.e., average times per week participating in resistance training.
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Assessment method [5]
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Timepoint [5]
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Baseline, 3 month and 9 month
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Secondary outcome [6]
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Active travel: Active travel will be measured using three active travel items/questions from the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ). Items include, “Do you walk or use a bicycle at least 10 minutes continuously to get to and from places, other than work”; “In a typical week, on how many days do you walk or bicycle for at least 10 minutes continuously to get to and from places, other than work?”; and “How much time in minutes and hours do you spend walking or cycling for travel on a typical day?”. These three questions all fall under the Active Travel banner.
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Assessment method [6]
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Timepoint [6]
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Baseline, 3-month and 9-month
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Secondary outcome [7]
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Self-reported happiness: Self-reported happiness will be measured by one question, “In the past month, have you felt happy”. Participants can choose from six response options ranging from “never” (1) to “all the time”. This question is from: Richards J, Jiang X, Kelly P, Chau J, Bauman A, Ding D. Don't worry, be happy: cross-sectional associations between physical activity and happiness in 15 European countries. BMC Public Health. 2015;15(1):53, DOI: 10.1186/s12889-015-1391-4.
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Assessment method [7]
370724
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Timepoint [7]
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Baseline, 3 month and 9 month
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Secondary outcome [8]
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Depression, Stress and Anxiety: Mental health outcomes will be measured using a composite, validated self-assessment, the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21). DASS-21 is a 21-item self-report instrument designated to measure the severity of symptoms relating to depression, anxiety and stress. Each item is scored using a 4-point Likert-type scale, ranging from 0 (item did not apply to them at all) to 3 (item applied to them very much, or most of the time), to rate the extent to which participants experienced each state over the past week. For example, over the last week, “I have found it hard to wind down” (0 = not at all, 1 = some of the time, 2 = a good part of the time, 3 = most of the time). Scores are determined by calculating the sum of scores of the relevant items within each of the three scales.
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Assessment method [8]
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Timepoint [8]
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Baseline, 3-month and 9-month
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Secondary outcome [9]
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Self-report aerobic physical activity: Self-reported aerobic physical activity will be measured using a modified version of the validated Godin Leisure-Time questionnaire. The modification includes the average number of minutes per session, as well as adding an additional question regarding aerobic training i.e., average times per week participating in aerobic training.
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Assessment method [9]
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Timepoint [9]
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Baseline, 3 month and 9 month
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Eligibility
Key inclusion criteria
Participants aged 18-80
Access to a smartphone
Not meeting current aerobic and/or resistance-based physical activity guidelines
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Minimum age
18
Years
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Maximum age
80
Years
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Sex
Both males and females
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Can healthy volunteers participate?
Yes
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Key exclusion criteria
Have a medical condition that might be adversely affected by increased physical activity
Currently participating in an alternative physical activity program
Intending to participate in other physical activity programs during the study period
Not available for assessment sessions
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Study design
Purpose of the study
Prevention
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Allocation to intervention
Randomised controlled trial
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Procedure for enrolling a subject and allocating the treatment (allocation concealment procedures)
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Methods used to generate the sequence in which subjects will be randomised (sequence generation)
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Masking / blinding
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Who is / are masked / blinded?
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Intervention assignment
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Other design features
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Phase
Not Applicable
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Type of endpoint/s
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Statistical methods / analysis
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Recruitment
Recruitment status
Recruiting
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Date of first participant enrolment
Anticipated
20/06/2019
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Actual
28/08/2019
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Date of last participant enrolment
Anticipated
1/04/2020
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Actual
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Date of last data collection
Anticipated
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Actual
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Sample size
Target
240
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Accrual to date
23
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Final
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Recruitment in Australia
Recruitment state(s)
NSW
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Funding & Sponsors
Funding source category [1]
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Government body
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Name [1]
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National Health and Medical Research Council
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Address [1]
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National Health and Medical Research Council
GPO Box 1421
Canberra ACT 2601
Australia
16 Marcus Clarke St,
Canberra ACT 2601
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Country [1]
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Australia
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Primary sponsor type
University
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Name
University of Newcastle
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Address
University of Newcastle,
University Drive,
Callaghan, NSW, 2308.
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Country
Australia
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Secondary sponsor category [1]
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None
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Name [1]
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Address [1]
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Country [1]
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Ethics approval
Ethics application status
Approved
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Ethics committee name [1]
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University of Newcastle Human Research Ethics Committee
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Ethics committee address [1]
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University Drive, Callaghan
NSW 2308, Australia
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Ethics committee country [1]
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Australia
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Date submitted for ethics approval [1]
303425
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Approval date [1]
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22/04/2018
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Ethics approval number [1]
303425
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Summary
Brief summary
The aim of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of ecofit, which is an innovative community-based multi-component physical activity intervention that promotes aerobic and resistance-based physical activity through smartphone technology, social support and recently installed outdoor exercise equipment in Newcastle area, NSW, Australia.
Participants in the intervention group will have access to the ecofit smartphone app, an introductory group session and up to 10 exercise locations, whereas the 'wait-list' control group only have access to the exercise locations. To assess the effectiveness of ecofit program, the intervention group will be compared to a 'wait-list' control group.
We will measure upper and lower body muscular fitness (co-primary outcomes) and a host of secondary outcomes at baseline, 3- and 9-months.
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Trial website
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Trial related presentations / publications
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Public notes
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Contacts
Principal investigator
Name
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Prof Ronald Plotnikoff
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Address
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Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition
The University of Newcastle, Callaghan,
NSW, 2308, Australia
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Country
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Australia
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Phone
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+61 2 49854465
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Fax
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Email
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[email protected]
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Contact person for public queries
Name
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Prof Ronald Plotnikoff
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Address
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Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition
The University of Newcastle, Callaghan,
NSW, 2308, Australia
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Country
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Australia
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Phone
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+61 2 49854465
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Fax
93635
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Email
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[email protected]
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Contact person for scientific queries
Name
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Prof Ronald Plotnikoff
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Address
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Priority Research Centre in Physical Activity and Nutrition
The University of Newcastle, Callaghan,
NSW, 2308, Australia
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Country
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Australia
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Phone
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+61 2 49854465
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Fax
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Email
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[email protected]
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Data sharing statement
Will individual participant data (IPD) for this trial be available (including data dictionaries)?
No
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No/undecided IPD sharing reason/comment
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What supporting documents are/will be available?
No Supporting Document Provided
Results publications and other study-related documents
Documents added manually
No documents have been uploaded by study researchers.
Documents added automatically
Source
Title
Year of Publication
DOI
Embase
mHealth to Support Outdoor Gym Resistance Training: The ecofit Effectiveness RCT.
2023
https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2023.01.031
Embase
Validity of muscular fitness self-assessments in the ecofit smartphone application: A correlation study.
2022
https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0278374
Embase
Integrating smartphone technology, social support and the outdoor built environment to promote community-based aerobic and resistance-based physical activity: Rationale and study protocol for the 'ecofit' randomized controlled trial.
2019
https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conctc.2019.100457
Dimensions AI
Adherence to therapeutic exercise for lateral elbow tendinopathy – A scoping review
2022
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2022.09.079
Dimensions AI
A multi-component, community-based outdoor gym intervention: the ecofit effectiveness trial
2022
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2022.09.078
Dimensions AI
Placebo gait retraining for use in knee osteoarthritis clinical trials does not change surrogate knee load measures: A randomized pilot study
2022
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2022.09.080
N.B. These documents automatically identified may not have been verified by the study sponsor.
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