Effectiveness of a Workplace "Sit Less and Move More" Web-based Program in Spanish Office Employees (Walk@WorkSpain)

University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia264 enrolled

Overview

This study assesses the short and mid-term impacts of a workplace web-based intervention (Walk@WorkSpain, W@WS) on self-reported occupational sitting time, step counts, activity-related energy expenditure, physical risk factors for chronic disease and efficiency-related outcomes in Spanish office employees. Half of participants had access to the W@WS website program while the other half was asked to maintain habitual behaviour.

Rising numbers of people have to sit for long hours every day especially for work and transport (3401184). This sedentary pattern that has been detrimentally associated with obesity and cardiovascular disease markers (4604082). However, replacing as little as 10 minutes of sedentary time with the same amount of light or moderate physical activity is associated with substantial health benefits (i.e. reduction of the metabolic syndrome) (26635358). Because eighty percent of adults in developed countries spend one third of their working day doing sedentary, desk-based tasks (24603203) -representing a high exposure to this established health risk- displacing occupational sitting with physical activity may be a feasible option for improving office employees´ health and therefore public health (26984326). In this context, there is a need to develop and evaluate translational research, based on theoretically-derived strategies, that can be successfully embedded into workplaces (26984326).

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Enrollment

264

Conditions

Sedentary Lifestyle

Interventions

A workplace "sit less and move more" web-based program for Spanish office employeesBEHAVIORAL

W@WS encourages office employees to progressively 'sit less and move more' during workdays over 19 weeks. During the first 8 weeks (ramping phase), tips are provided every two weeks to break occupational sitting time through incidental movement during work tasks, introduce short walks (5-10 minutes) during morning/afternoon work breaks and/or commuting time, introduce longer walks at lunchtime and achieve at least 10,000 daily steps as well as increase walking intensity. During weeks 9 to 19, W@WS provides automated guidance with periodic emails encouraging behaviors achieved in the previous phase. Ecological support strategies such as logging daily step counts into a personal account and receiving visual feedback on the achievement of goals are also provided

Active Comparison groupBEHAVIORAL

The Active Comparison group maintained habitual behavior. The A-CG was given a pedometer and a paper diary to register daily step counts and self-reported sitting time throughout the intervention.

Locations (4)

University Ramon Llull

Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

University of Vic-Central University of Catalonia

Vic, Barcelona, Spain

University of Vigo

Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain

Vasque Country University

Vitoria-Gasteiz, Vasque Country, Spain

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Change from baseline occupational sitting time (minutes/day) at post-intervention (19 weeks) and two months follow-up.

A paper diary log assessed self-reported occupational sitting time.

Time frame: Baseline,19 weeks, two months follow-up

Change from baseline step counts (steps/day) at post-intervention (19 weeks) and two months follow-up

A pedometer (Yamax 200) assessed daily step counts

Time frame: Baseline,19 weeks, two months follow-up

Secondary Outcomes

Change from baseline waist circumference (cms) at post-intervention (19 weeks) and two months follow-up

A flexible steel tape (Seca 203) assessed waist circumference

Time frame: Baseline,19 weeks, two months follow-up

Change from baseline body mass index (kgs/m-2) at post-intervention (19 weeks) and two months follow-up

An electronic scale (Seca 899/217) assessed body weight and height to calculate BMI.