We all know that physical activity is good for us.  And researchers have tested interventions that are effective in getting people to exercise more.  But only 49% of us get the recommended amount of physical activity and 13.5% are completely sedentary. 

So where’s the disconnect?  One factor may be that research interventions are rarely “translated” into practical programs that can be broadly disseminated and implemented at the community-level by non-research personnel. 

Until now. 

A new study in last week’s American Journal of Preventive Medicine describes how two evidence-based (i.e., rigorously tested), behaviorally-focused research interventions were successfully used by community organizations to help older adults get up and get moving.  One program, called Active Choices , came from studies conducted at Stanford University.  The other program, Active Living Every Day, was based on several large clinical trials conducted at The Cooper Institute that tested a lifestyle approach to physical activity adoption.  The programs used similar theories and messages but Active Choices was provided to participants via the telephone whereas Active Living Every Day participants met face-to-face each week.  The participants in these programs were more ethnically and economically diverse and had more health problems than the participants in the original research trials.

This new study found that participants in both programs significantly increased their weekly hours of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity and their total physical activity time.  Also, the participants on average decreased their body mass index.

Bottomline?  This study showed that these two research-based programs could be successfully translated into real-world settings.  The next step is to find out how to get more community organizations to adopt such programs.  Stay tuned, because research is underway on this topic. 

In the meantime, what are your suggestions for getting evidence-based physical activity programs more widely disseminated so that the 51% of the population who are not meeting the physical activity recommendations can join in on the fun (and get the health benefits) of an active lifestyle?