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The determination of energy expenditure can be accomplished by simultaneous heart rate-motion sensor technique during free-living activity. The simultaneous heart rate-motion sensor data show significant relationship with heart rate-oxygen uptake.

This article presents a model for measuring the relationship between heart rate and energy expenditure. An analysis of energy metabolism, oxygen consumption, and exercise intensity is presented.

This article presents a standardized method of classifying physical activities according to activity type and intensity level. Each activity is assigned a numerical code and a MET value that represents a ratio of the working metabolic rate for the task and a standard resting rate.

This article evaluates the validity of using motion sensors to estimate the energy costs of moderately intense activities such as gardening, housework, and outdoor recreation. Results indicate that motion sensors underestimated the energy expenditure involved in many activities due to their inability to include data from upper body movements.

This article examines the validity of using heart rate measures taken during moderately vigorous exercise to estimate energy metabolism. Results indicate that heart rate measures were correlated with oxygen consumption levels and provided accurate, objective, and noninvasive estimates of energy expenditure.

This article compares the accuracy of using motion sensors, daily written logs, or weekly telephone surveys to measure the amount of time spent on household, recreational, or occupational physical activities. Results indicate that the three measurement methods produced similar estimates of time spent on moderate and intense physical activities.

This article examines the accuracy of using hip and wrist accelerometers to measure the energy costs of housework, yardwork, and recreational activities. Results indicate that adding the data from the wrist accelerometer to hip measurements resulted in minimal improvements in accuracy that were offset by the additional equipment costs.

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether an in-home, individually tailored intervention is efficacious in promoting increases in physical activity (PA) and improvements in physical functioning (PF) in low-active older adults. Participants were randomized to two groups for the 8-week intervention. The enhanced physical activity (EPA) group received individualized exercise programming, including personalized step goals and a resistance band training program, and the standard of care (SoC) group received a general activity goal. Pre- and post-intervention PF measures included choice step reaction time, knee extension/flexion strength, hand grip strength, and 8 ft up and go test completion time. Thirty-nine subjects completed this study (74.6 ± 6.4 years). Significant increases in steps/day were observed for both the EPA and SoC groups, although the improvements in the EPA group were significantly higher when including only those who adhered to weekly step goals. Both groups experienced significant PF improvements, albeit greater in the EPA group for the 8 ft up and go test and knee extension strength. A low cost, in-home intervention elicited improvements in both PA and PF. Future research is warranted to expand upon the size and scope of this study, exploring dose thresholds (and time frames) for PA to improve PF and strategies to further bolster adherence rates to maximize intervention benefits.

This cross-sectional study investigated location of body fat, with specific focus on abdominal fat, among normal weight and overweight women who accurately or inaccurately perceived their weight status. Young, adult women (N= 120; Mage = 19.5 yr., SD= 1.2) were asked to classify their weight status using the Self-Classified Weight subscale from the Multidimensional Body–Self Relations Questionnaire. Actual weight status was operationalized via dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Overweight women who thought they were normal weight had an average of 19 pounds more fat than normal weight women with 1.5 pounds of excess abdominal fat. Interventions to raise awareness among overweight women unaware of their fat level are warranted. However, these interventions should balance consideration of potential detriments to body image among these women.

AbstractObjectivesTo objectively evaluate and describe physical activity levels in children with a stable congenital heart defect and compare those levels with children who do not have a congenital heart defect.MethodsWe matched 21 pairs of children for gender and grade in school and gave them an accelerometer-based motion sensor to wear for 7 consecutive days.ResultsPhysical activity levels did not differ between children with and without a congenital heart defect. During the 7 days of monitoring, children in this study spent most of their time in sedentary behaviours, that is, 6.7 hours of the 13 monitored hours, 54 minutes in moderate-intensity physical activity, and 12 minutes in vigorous-intensity physical activity. Less than one-fifth of all participants, with or without a congenital heart defect, accumulated sufficient physical activity to meet current physical activity recommendations for children and adolescents.ConclusionChildren with a stable congenital heart defect have activity behaviours that are similar to children without a congenital heart defect. Habitual physical activity in children with a congenital heart defect should be encouraged early on in life to develop strong physical activity habits that will hopefully follow them across their lifespan.