Midlife women's adherence to home-based walking during maintenance.
BACKGROUND
Despite the many known benefits of physical activity, some women (27%) report no leisure-time physical activity in the prior month. Of those women who began an exercise program, the dropout rate was as high as 50% in the first 3-6 months. The challenge for researchers and clinicians is to identify those factors that influence not only adoption, but also maintenance, of physical activity.


OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was (a) to describe midlife women's maintenance of walking following the intervention phase of a 24-week, home-based walking program, and (b) to identify the effects of background characteristics, self-efficacy for overcoming barriers to exercise, and adherence to walking during the intervention phase on retention and adherence to walking.


METHODS
There were Black and White women participants (N = 90) aged 40-65 years who completed a 24-week, home-based walking program. Self-efficacy for overcoming barriers to exercise, maximal aerobic fitness, and percentage of body fat were measured at baseline, 24 weeks, and 48 weeks. Adherence was measured with heart-rate monitors and an exercise log.


RESULTS
Retention was 80% during maintenance. On average, the women who reported walking during maintenance adhered to 64% of the expected walks during that phase. Examination of the total number of walks and the number and sequence of weeks without a walk revealed dynamic patterns. The multiple regression model explained 40% of the variance in adherence during the maintenance phase.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that both self-efficacy for overcoming barriers and adherence during the intervention phase play a role in women's walking adherence. The findings reflect dynamic patterns of adopting and maintaining new behavior.
Wilbur
Joellen
J
Department of Public Health, Mental Health and Administrative Nursing, College of Nursing, University of Illinois at Chicago Annemarie Vassalo, MS, USA. JWilbur@uic.edu
Vassalo
Annemarie
A
Chandler
Peggy
P
McDevitt
Judith
J
Miller
Arlene Michaels
AM
D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology; D000368:Aged; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior / Q000208:ethnology; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000208:ethnology; D010352:Patient Dropouts; D013997:Time Factors; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology