This review summarised in detail the effects  SD exercise interventions had on sedentary middle-aged individuals alongside the adherence to the prescriptions .
SD exercise was seen to be beneficial for improving metabolic outcomes physical characteristics , cardiorespiratory fitness and functional measures
Many chronic diseases and illnesses are caused by the lifestyle , including the physical activity habits , of an individual .
As such , consistent high levels of exercise should be encouraged across the lifespan , to limit the risk of developing one of these conditions and allowing for healthy aging to occur .
Exercise prescriptions that encourage high completion and adherence rates in an independent manner and improve health related outcomes should be provided to individuals .
To date , no review has identified optimal prescriptions of exercise to achieve this in sedentary middle-aged adults and this is important , given the higher risk of developing illnesses in this population as they age .
This review examines the effects prescriptions of self-directed ( SD ) exercise has on adherence and health related outcomes in sedentary middle-aged individuals in good general health currently and aims to identify the most suitable forms of planned SD exercise that can be carried out independently .
An internet-delivered exercise intervention for workplace health promotion in overweight sedentary employees: a randomized trial.
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of structured vs. non-structured internet-delivered exercise recommendations on aerobic exercise capacity and cardiovascular risk profile in overweight sedentary employees . METHODS 140 employees of an automobile company ( 11 % female , median age 48 years ( range 25 - 60 ) , BMI 29.0 kg/m(2 ) ( 25.0 - 34.8 ) ) were r and omized in a 3:2 ratio to an intervention group receiving structured exercise schedules or a control group choosing workouts individually via an interactive website . The 12-week intervention took place in Munich , Germany , during summer 2008 . Main outcome measure was performance at the lactate anaerobic threshold ( P(AT)/kg ) during ergometry . RESULTS 77 participants completed the study . The intervention group ( n=50 ) improved significantly in P(AT)/kg ( ( mean ( SD ) ) 1.68 ( 0.31 ) vs. 1.81 ( 0.33 ) W/kg ; p=0.002 ) , VO(2)peak ( 3.21 ( 0.63 ) vs. 3.35 ( 0.74 ) L/min ; p=0.04 ) , and waist circumference ( 100.5 ( 7.9 ) vs. 98.0 ( 7.8 ) cm ; p=0.001 ) . The control group ( n=27 ) improved significantly in P(AT)/kg ( 1.59 ( 0.38 ) vs. 1.80 ( 0.49 ) ; p<0.001 ) and waist circumference ( 101.9 ( 8.7 ) vs. 98.3 ( 8.5 ) cm ; p<0.001 ) , but not in VO(2)peak . No significant between group differences in these outcome measures were noted . CONCLUSION Structured , internet-delivered exercise recommendations are not superior to internet-delivered non-structured exercise recommendations in a workplace setting . Both lifestyle intervention strategies are , however , limited by high dropout rates
This review summarised in detail the effects  SD exercise interventions had on sedentary middle-aged individuals alongside the adherence to the prescriptions .
SD exercise was seen to be beneficial for improving metabolic outcomes physical characteristics , cardiorespiratory fitness and functional measures
Many chronic diseases and illnesses are caused by the lifestyle , including the physical activity habits , of an individual .
As such , consistent high levels of exercise should be encouraged across the lifespan , to limit the risk of developing one of these conditions and allowing for healthy aging to occur .
Exercise prescriptions that encourage high completion and adherence rates in an independent manner and improve health related outcomes should be provided to individuals .
To date , no review has identified optimal prescriptions of exercise to achieve this in sedentary middle-aged adults and this is important , given the higher risk of developing illnesses in this population as they age .
This review examines the effects prescriptions of self-directed ( SD ) exercise has on adherence and health related outcomes in sedentary middle-aged individuals in good general health currently and aims to identify the most suitable forms of planned SD exercise that can be carried out independently .