CONCLUSIONS Utilizing a consumer-based wearable activity tracker as either the primary component of an intervention or as part of a broader physical activity intervention has the potential to increase physical activity participation .
BACKGROUND The range of benefits associated with regular physical activity participation is irrefutable .
Despite the well-known benefits , physical inactivity remains one of the major contributing factors to ill-health throughout industrialized countries .
Traditional lifestyle interventions such as group education or telephone counseling are effective at increasing physical activity participation ; however , physical activity levels tend to decline over time .
Consumer-based wearable activity trackers that allow users to objective ly monitor activity levels are now widely available and may offer an alternative method for assisting individuals to remain physically active .
OBJECTIVE This review aim ed to determine the effects of interventions utilizing consumer-based wearable activity trackers on physical activity participation and sedentary behavior when compared with interventions that do not utilize activity tracker feedback .
The role and interpretation of pilot studies in clinical research.
Pilot studies represent a fundamental phase of the research process . The purpose of conducting a pilot study is to examine the feasibility of an approach that is intended to be used in a larger scale study . The roles and limitations of pilot studies are described here using a clinical trial as an example . A pilot study can be used to evaluate the feasibility of recruitment , r and omization , retention , assessment procedures , new methods , and implementation of the novel intervention . A pilot study is not a hypothesis testing study . Safety , efficacy and effectiveness are not evaluated in a pilot . Contrary to tradition , a pilot study does not provide a meaningful effect size estimate for planning subsequent studies due to the imprecision inherent in data from small sample s. Feasibility results do not necessarily generalize beyond the inclusion and exclusion criteria of the pilot design . A pilot study is a requisite initial step in exploring a novel intervention or an innovative application of an intervention . Pilot results can inform feasibility and identify modifications needed in the design of a larger , ensuing hypothesis testing study . Investigators should be forthright in stating these objectives of a pilot study . Grant review ers and other stakeholders should expect no more
CONCLUSIONS Utilizing a consumer-based wearable activity tracker as either the primary component of an intervention or as part of a broader physical activity intervention has the potential to increase physical activity participation .
BACKGROUND The range of benefits associated with regular physical activity participation is irrefutable .
Despite the well-known benefits , physical inactivity remains one of the major contributing factors to ill-health throughout industrialized countries .
Traditional lifestyle interventions such as group education or telephone counseling are effective at increasing physical activity participation ; however , physical activity levels tend to decline over time .
Consumer-based wearable activity trackers that allow users to objective ly monitor activity levels are now widely available and may offer an alternative method for assisting individuals to remain physically active .
OBJECTIVE This review aim ed to determine the effects of interventions utilizing consumer-based wearable activity trackers on physical activity participation and sedentary behavior when compared with interventions that do not utilize activity tracker feedback .