Be. Ainsworth et al., Moderate physical activity patterns of minority women: The cross-cultural activity participation study, J WOMEN H G, 8(6), 1999, pp. 805-813
Citations number
16
Categorie Soggetti
Public Health & Health Care Science","General & Internal Medicine
Using data from 12 days of detailed physical activity records (PA records),
we analyzed the physical activity patterns of 141 African American and Nat
ive American women, ages 40 and older, enrolled in the Cross-Cultural Activ
ity Participation Study. PA records were completed every other month for th
ree consecutive 4-day periods. The proportion of women who met the 1993 Cen
ters for Disease Control and Prevention and the American College of Sports
Medicine recommendation to accumulate at least 30 minutes of moderate inten
sity activity during most days of the week (at least 3 days of the 4-day pe
riods) ranged from 63% to 70%. Nearly one third of women met the recommenda
tion for more than one 4-day period. On days when subjects accumulated at l
east 30 minutes of moderate activity, time spent in moderate activity was 1
12 minutes/day. Most women performed household chores (95%, median = 24 min
utes/day), walking for exercise (87%, median = 30 minutes/day), occupationa
l (65%, median = 37 minutes/day), child care (53%, median = 32 minutes/day)
, and lawn and garden activities (51%, median = 43 minutes/day). Fewer than
25% reported conditioning and sports activities. In general, more Native A
mericans than African Americans were active in moderate activities. In conc
lusion, definitions used to characterize regular physical activity should b
e consistent among studies, and physical activity surveys among women shoul
d include occupation-related and home-related activities.