Is the goal of 12,000 steps per day sufficient for improving body composition and metabolic syndrome? The necessity of combining exercise intensity: a randomized controlled trial

• Published in: BMC public health Vol. 19; no. 1; p. 1215
• Main Authors: Chiang, Tsung-Lin, Chen, Chu, Hsu, Chih-Hsiang, Lin, Yu-Chin, Wu, Huey-June
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 03.09.2019; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: Australia; Body composition; Body Composition - physiology; Body mass index; Cardiovascular disease risk factor; Clinical trials; College students; Daily step goal; Demographic aspects; Exercise Therapy - methods; Fasting; Female; Glucose; Goals; Health aspects; Humans; Male; Medical research; Medical schools; Metabolic Syndrome - physiopathology; Metabolic syndrome X; Moderate intensity; Obesity; Obesity - therapy; Step rate; Treatment Outcome; Triglycerides; Walking; Walking - physiology; Walking - statistics & numerical data; Young Adult; Australia; Taiwan; Step rate; Cardiovascular disease risk factor; Moderate intensity; Walking; Daily step goal
• ISSN: 1471-2458; 1471-2458
• DOI: 10.1186/s12889-019-7554-y

To investigate the differences in body composition and metabolic syndrome (MS) under a daily 12,000-step strategy with or without moderate-intensity walking exercise in college students with obesity. Thirty-two adults with obesity (mean (s.d.) age: 19.72 (0.80) years; height: 165.38 (3.99) cm; wt: 83.31 (4.66) kg; body mass index: 30.38 (0.83) kg m ) were recruited and randomly assigned to the walking step goal group (WSG; achieving 12,000 steps per day), walking exercise group (WEG; achieving 12,000 steps per day, including 3 days per week on which walking at a step rate of over 103 steps min was required), or control group (CG; maintaining a free-living life style). Each participant's accumulated daily steps from daily activities and walking exercises were monitored using a smartwatch for 8 weeks. The variables of body composition and MS were measured before and after intervention. Average daily steps over 8 weeks did not significantly differ between the WSG and WEG (11,677.67 (480.24) vs. 12,131.90 (527.14) steps per day, respectively, P > .05). Although the CG and WSG showed no improvement in body composition, the WEG exhibited significant improvements in terms of hip circumference and visceral fat area (VFA) (∆ - 2.28 (3.27) cm and ∆ - 13.11 (9.83) cm , respectively, P < .05); high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), fasting glucose (FG), and triglycerides (TG) (∆ 16.36 (8.39), ∆ - 2.53 (3.73), and ∆ - 10.52 (36.26) mg dL , respectively, P < .05). The WSG exhibited improvements only in HDL-C (∆ 14.24 (16.13) mg dL , P < .05). The combination of walking exercise program and daily step goal is a more time efficient strategy in improving body composition and MS than simply establishing a daily step goal. Furthermore, this strategy may also include a potential reduction effect on the risk factors of cardiovascular diseases. Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, number ACTR N12618001237279 (Retrospectively registered).