Effects of Exercise Snacks on Clinical and Health Outcomes
Trial statusNot yet recruiting
Trial phaseNot applicable
Trial typeInterventional
Biological sexAll
Age18-65
SponsorChimei Medical Center
About this trial
Physical inactivity and prolonged sedentary behavior are major health concerns, especially for individuals with chronic conditions such as diabetes and prediabetes. Many patients have difficulty following traditional exercise recommendations due to time constraints, limited physical capacity, comorbidities, or lack of access to exercise facilities. Therefore, new and more practical exercise strategies are needed.
"Exercise Snacks" is a novel physical activity approach that involves short bouts of exercise performed multiple times throughout the day. Each session is brief and easy to integrate into daily life, such as performing short periods of resistance exercises, brisk walking, stair climbing, or other simple activities. This approach may improve exercise adherence and provide health benefits without requiring long exercise sessions.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of an Exercise Snacks intervention in sedentary adults with diabetes or prediabetes and to explore its potential effects on cardiovascular and metabolic health, physical function, and body composition.
In this study, sedentary adults aged 18-65 years with diabetes or prediabetes will participate in a 12-week study and will be randomly assigned to either an Exercise Snacks group or a control group. Participants in the Exercise Snacks group will perform short exercise sessions lasting approximately 3-5 minutes, including simple resistance exercises and short aerobic activities. These exercise sessions will be performed several times per day and integrated into daily routines. The control group will maintain their usual lifestyle without additional exercise intervention.
Participants may use wearable devices or mobile applications to receive reminders and record exercise activity. Assessments will be conducted before and after the intervention to evaluate physical activity adherence, physical function, body composition, blood pressure, blood glucose, and other cardiovascular and metabolic health indicators.
This study aims to determine whether short, frequent exercise sessions are a practical and effective alternative to traditional exercise recommendations for sedentary individuals with diabetes or prediabetes. The results of this study may help develop more feasible lifestyle intervention strategies to improve long-term exercise adherence and overall health in individuals with chronic diseases.
Eligibility criteria
This trial does not accept healthy volunteersQualifiers
Age 18 to 65 years.
Diagnosed with diabetes mellitus (HbA1c ≥ 6.5%) or prediabetes (HbA1c ≥ 5.7%).
Engaging in less than 1 hour of physical activity per week in the past 3 months, assessed by the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ).
Sedentary behavior defined as sitting for ≥ 6 hours per day or walking fewer than 5,000 steps per day on average.
Disqualifiers
History of heart disease, kidney disease, pregnancy, cancer, lower limb joint disease, or psychiatric disorders.
Musculoskeletal or neurological disorders that limit independent physical activity or exercise.
Acute or terminal illness that may affect participation in the study, such as ongoing cancer treatment, acute myocardial infarction, acute stroke, or receiving palliative care.
Unstable or uncontrolled cardiovascular, metabolic, or respiratory diseases, such as unstable angina, uncontrolled hypertension (systolic blood pressure ≥ 180 mmHg), heart failure, severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or acute exacerbation of respiratory disease.
Trial design
Design model
Parallel
Treatments tested in this trial
Exercise Snacks
BehavioralThe Exercise Snacks intervention consists of short bouts of physical activity performed multiple times throughout the day. Each exercise session lasts approximately 3 to 5 minutes and includes simple resistance exercises and short aerobic activities. Resistance exercises may include squats, split squats, resistance band exercises, and curl-ups, while aerobic activities may include brisk walking, stair climbing, running in place, or jumping jacks. Participants will be encouraged to perform at least 3 to 4 exercise sessions per day and integrate these short exercise sessions into their daily routines. Exercise intensity and exercise type will be adjusted according to individual physical capacity and safety considerations. The intervention will be conducted over a 12-week period. Wearable devices or mobile applications may be used to provide exercise reminders, monitor adherence, and record physical activity.
Treatment groups
58 Participants
are divided into 2 treatment groupsGroup A: Exercise Snacks GroupExperimental treatment 1 intervention
Group B: Control GroupNo intervention 0 interventions
Trial outcomes
Primary outcomes
1
Feasibility and acceptability of the Exercise Snacks intervention
Feasibility and acceptability will be evaluated based on participant adherence, completion of the intervention, and participant-reported questionnaires assessing convenience, satisfaction, and willingness to continue the intervention. Additionally, adherence and satisfaction will be quantified using standardized indicators, with higher scores indicating better adherence and greater satisfaction and acceptability. The questionnaire will be assessed using a 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree), e.g., assessed using the Exercise Adherence Rating Scale, EARS with items 2, 3, 4, and 6 being reverse-scored.
Time frame
Baseline to 12 weeksSecondary outcomes
1
Change in physical function assessed by the 3-Minute Step Test
Physical function and cardiopulmonary endurance will be assessed using the 3-Minute Step Test, which evaluates participants' exercise capacity and functional fitness. Participants will perform a stepping exercise on a standardized step for 3 minutes at a fixed stepping rate. Heart rate will be measured immediately after exercise to assess cardiopulmonary endurance and recovery capacity. Lower post-exercise heart rates indicate better cardiovascular fitness. The Step Test Index will be calculated using the following formula: Step Test Index = Exercise duration (seconds) × 100 ÷ \[2 × (sum of the three pulse counts)\]. The calculated index will be classified into five fitness levels, with higher scores indicating better cardiopulmonary endurance and cardiovascular fitness.
Time frame
Baseline to 12 weeks2
Change in body weight (kg)
Body weight (kg) will be assessed at baseline and after the 12-week intervention to evaluate changes in body weight associated with the exercise snacks intervention. Comparisons of pre- and post-intervention measurements will be used to determine the potential effects of short-duration intermittent physical activity on body weight and overall body composition status.
Time frame
Baseline to 12 weeks3
Change in body mass index (BMI)
Body Mass Index (BMI) is calculated by dividing body weight in kilograms by height in meters squared. Body mass index (BMI, kg/m²) will be assessed at baseline and after the 12-week intervention to evaluate changes in body composition associated with the exercise snacks intervention. Comparisons between pre- and post-intervention measurements will be used to determine the effects of short-duration intermittent physical activity on overall weight status.
Time frame
Baseline to 12 weeks4
Change in body fat percentage (%)
Body fat percentage (%) will be measured before and after the intervention to evaluate changes in adiposity following the exercise snacks intervention. Pre- and post-intervention comparisons will be conducted to assess the potential effects of intermittent physical activity on body fat reduction and body composition improvement.
Time frame
Baseline to 12 weeksSponsors and contacts
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Source ClinicalTrials.gov
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