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 .
Technology- and Phone-Based Weight Loss Intervention: Pilot RCT in Women at Elevated Breast Cancer Risk.
INTRODUCTION For women with an increased breast cancer risk , reducing excess weight and increasing physical activity are believed to be important approaches for reducing their risk . This study tested a weight loss intervention that combined commercially available technology-based self-monitoring tools with individualized phone calls . DESIGN Women were r and omized to a  weight loss intervention  arm ( n=36 ) or a  usual care arm ( n=18 ) . SETTING / PARTICIPANTS Participants were women with a BMI ≥ 27.5 kg/m2 and elevated breast cancer risk recruited from the mammography clinic at the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California San Diego . INTERVENTION Intervention participants used the MyFitnessPal website and phone app to monitor diet and a Fitbit to monitor physical activity . Participants received 12 st and ardized coaching calls with trained counselors over 6 months . Usual care participants received the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans at baseline and two brief calls over the 6 months . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Weight and accelerometer-measured physical activity were assessed at baseline and 6 months . Data were collected in San Diego , CA , from 2012 to 2014 and analyzed in 2015 . RESULTS Participants ( n=54 ) had a mean age of 59.5 ( SD=5.6 ) years , BMI of 31.9 ( SD=3.5 ) , and a mean Gail Model score of 2.5 ( SD=1.4 ) . At 6 months , intervention participants had lost significantly more weight ( 4.4 kg vs 0.8 kg , p=0.004 ) and a greater percentage of starting weight ( 5.3 % vs 1.0 % , p=0.005 ) than usual care participants . Across arms , greater increases in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity result ed in greater weight loss ( p=0.01 ) . CONCLUSIONS Combining technology-based self-monitoring tools with phone counseling supported weight loss over 6 months in women at increased risk for breast cancer
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 .