An app that picked exercise for each person didn't get people more active
Who it’s about: Adults, Workers
- No difference
An app that picked short home exercise for each person did not get people more active than a plain log.
Randomised trial of 112 adults who rarely exercised, in France · vs the same app, writing down activity yourself · they rated themselves · ⚠ not yet checked by other scientists; many people dropped out; only counted people who finished; numbers unreliable
The study
Who took part
112 adults aged 18 to 65 in Saint-Etienne, France, who rarely moved and sat a lot. They were about 45 on average and three in four were women. Many worked for a university or the local council.
What they did
For 4 months both groups aimed for 150 minutes of activity a week in the same app. In one group, the app picked short 10-minute home exercise sets to suit each person. It made them easier or harder over time and showed a progress bar. The other group wrote down their own activity and saw the World Health Organization's advice.
What happened
The two groups did not differ in how long, how hard or how much they exercised. Taken together, people went from about 18 to about 25 minutes of activity a day. People used the coach part for under a minute a day. Only 74 of the 112 people finished, and some of the paper's numbers don't add up.
Source
Impact of a Self-Autonomous Evaluation Station and Personalized Training Algorithm on Quality of Life and Physical Capacities in Sedentary Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial (2024)
DOI: 10.2196/45461 (opens in a new tab)
