title: Feasibility and acceptance of exercise recommendations (10,000 steps a day) within routine German health check (Check-Up 35/GOÄ29)-study protocol.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Benefits of exercise to prevent non-communicable diseases are well-documented. Limited data exists to promote physical activity in healthy but sedentary and/or overweight people. Brief interventions within routine German health checks may be an effective way to reach these patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  The quasi-experimental, multi-center prospective feasibility study is designed for general practices in Cologne (intervention group) and Düsseldorf (control group), up to 20 per region. Eight to 10 inactive and/or overweight patients per practice will be recruited for a total of 300. General practitioners and at least one of their nurses for the intervention group will be trained in motivational interviewing and familiarized with low-threshold recommendations for exercise (activities of daily life (ADL), target of 10,000 steps/day) and additional tools (pedometers, activity diaries). Participants in the control group will only receive general advice (150 min of exercise/week). The primary aims are to evaluate the feasibility of this intervention and to determine whether it is possible to reach a mean increase of 1000 steps/day in the target group within 6 months. Secondary objectives focus on the number of patients who reach a target of 10,000 steps/day and their improvements in quality of life and decrease in body mass index, waist circumference, and blood pressure.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study will assess whether it is feasible to run brief interventions within the GP setting can promote an active lifestyle in overweight and/or inactive patients.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Graf
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schlepper
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Carina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bauer
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Nina
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ferrari
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Frank
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Lena
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gartner
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Svenja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gehring
authors.affiliation: Northrhine Medical Association, 40474 Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Rudolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Henke
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Statistics, Informatics and Epidemiology, University of Cologne, 50924 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lehmacher
authors.affiliation: Clinic for Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University Hospital of Cologne, 50937 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Hans-Michael
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Steffen
authors.affiliation: Northrhine Medical Association, 40474 Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schindler-Marlow
authors.affiliation: Institute of Movement and Neuroscience, German Sport University, Am Sportpark Müngersdorf 6, 50933 Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Katharina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sternal
keywords: Brief intervention; Feasibility; General practitioners; Motivational interviewing; Overweight; Pedometers