Computerized Calls Get Sedentary Moving

Couch Potatoes Who Get Friendly Reminders Exercise More…

Stanford Researchers report that computer-generated telephone calls may indeed be an effective way to remind people to exercise.

Led by the study’s senior investigator Dr. Abby King, it was discovered that people who received telephonic reminders to exercise were much more likely to be physically active during the week.

According to a press-release issued on their website, the overall goal of the study was to get participants out walking at a brisk pace for 30 minutes most days of the week, or engaging in some other form of medium-intensity physical activity, for about 150 minutes a week, as recommended by the U.S. Surgeon General.

Study participants were divided into three groups: a control group that didn’t get calls, a group called by trained health educators and a group called by a computer delivering an interactive, individualized program similar to that delivered by the health educators. Exercise levels were measured with an accelerometer, which provides an estimate of physical activity amount as well as intensity.

After a year, participants who received computer calls averaged 157 minutes per week of exercise compared with 178 minutes for the group that received human voice calls and 118 minutes for the control group, which was not called.

With American’s exercise habits at an all-time low, this study may provide a possible low-cost, low-labor intensive way to help people become more physically active.

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