Two Valid Measures of Self-rated Physical Activity and Capacity.
OBJECTIVE
Questionnaires on physical activity (PA) and physical capacity (PC) are valuable tools, as they are cost beneficial, and have high response rates. The validity of short versions of such questionnaires has not been examined satisfactorily. Therefore, we aimed at examining the validity of a set of questions coding for PA and PC.


METHODS
The questions were administered to 217 men and women attending a cardiac rehabilitation program. Participants also gave blood samples, measuring HDL cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), insulin, glucose, and microCRP. The relations between PA and PC and biological markers were examined by linear regression analyses.


RESULTS
Measures for PC and for PA were identified by factor analysis, which proved internally consistent. TG, homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) score, and mCRP were all significantly associated with the measures of PC and PA.


CONCLUSIONS
The measures of PA and PC are valid compared with biological markers, allowing cost-beneficial and time-efficient evaluation of important measures for cardiovascular health.
Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care, Research Group for General Practice, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
Marit Sundal
MS
Holen
Rønnaug
R
Een
Thomas
T
Mildestvedt
Geir Egil
GE
Eide
Eivind
E
Meland
Cardiac rehabilitation; motor activities; outcome assessment; physical fitness; questionnaires.