Can User Experience affect buying intention? A case study on the evaluation of exercise equipment.

Treadmills are increasingly loaded with digital technology for assisting the individual during the workout sessions by providing information for tracking relevant training parameters. Also, this technology makes exercise more pleasurable by keeping the user connected to her/his digital ecosystem (e.g. social networking, access to multimedia content). Although there is an increasing interest in digital technologies to be used in fitness, a cursory literature search shows that the interest towards gym equipment is currently limited to the hardware component, thus making biomechanics the focus of the investigation. Other types of contributions are very rare and mostly focused on the design of tools for special populations (e.g. elderly, disabilities) as well as for promoting physical activity monitoring (eHealth). In the present study information on the perceived usability of the interface was collected and analysed along with opinions about buying intention and estimated pricing. Twenty-three individuals were tested after using a treadmill (Technogym S.p.A.) equipped with an interface allowing equipment and training management, activity monitoring and user entertainment. Results indicated a significant influence of perceived usability of the interface on the intention of buying the whole system, thus suggesting the existence of a ROI of Human-Centred Design strategies

Level and correlates of physical activity and sedentary behavior in patients with type 2 diabetes: a cross-sectional analysis of the italian diabetes and exercise study-2

OBJECTIVE: Patients with type 2 diabetes usually show reduced physical activity (PA) and increased sedentary (SED)-time, though to a varying extent, especially for low-intensity PA (LPA), a major determinant of daily energy expenditure that is not accurately captured by questionnaires. This study assessed the level and correlates of PA and SED-time in patients from the Italian Diabetes and Exercise Study_2 (IDES_2). METHODS: Three-hundred physically inactive and sedentary patients with type 2 diabetes were enrolled in the IDES_2 to be randomized to an intervention group, receiving theoretical and practical exercise counseling, and a control group, receiving standard care. At baseline, LPA, moderate-to-vigorous-intensity PA (MVPA), and SED-time were measured by accelerometer. Physical fitness and cardiovascular risk factors and scores were also assessed. RESULTS: LPA was 3.93±1.35 hours∙day-1, MVPA was 12.4±4.6 min∙day-1, and SED-time was 11.6±1.2 hours∙day-1, with a large range of values (0.89-7.11 hours∙day-1, 0.6-21.0 min∙day-1, and 9.14-15.28 hours∙day-1, respectively). At bivariate analysis, LPA and MVPA correlated with better cardiovascular risk profile and fitness parameters, whereas the opposite was observed for SED-time. Likewise, values of LPA, MVPA, and SED-time falling in the best tertile were associated with optimal or acceptable levels of cardiovascular risk factors and scores. At multivariate analysis, age, female gender, HbA1c, BMI or waist circumference, and high-sensitivity C reactive protein (for LPA and SED-time only) were negatively associated with LPA and MPA and positively associated with SED-time in an independent manner. CONCLUSIONS: Physically inactive and sedentary patients with type 2 diabetes from the IDES_2 show a low level of PA, though values of LPA, MVPA, and SED-time vary largely. Furthermore, there is a strong correlation of these measures with glycemic control, adiposity and inflammation, thus suggesting that even small improvements in LPA, MVPA, and SED-time might be associated with significant improvement in cardiovascular risk profile

Exercise: A Powerful Tool to Manage Type 2 Diabetes in the Ageing Population

The aim of this paper is to highlight the evidence on the interrelationships between exercise and Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in the ageing population. The evidence addressed in the specific literature is presented in three domains: aerobic exercise, resistance exercise, and combined aerobic and resistance exercise. The effects of aerobic exercise are well established, but in the ageing population resistance training could be considered a superior intervention to help glycaemic control; the effects of resistance training on insulin sensitivity are attributable to an increase in muscle mass. Thus, although with resistance training body weight does not change much, the main effect of resistance training on body composition of the elderly should be a shift from fat to muscle mass, and the maintenance of a large muscle mass may reduce obesity related risk factors. Fewer studies have investigated the effects of combined resistance and aerobic training, but from the available evidences it would appear that combined exercise training seems to offer additional benefits if compared with aerobic training alone and resistance training alone

The effects of one year of voluntary physical activity and structured exercise on patients with type 2 diabetes and the metabolic syndrome : the Italian diabetes and exercise study

Tesis inédita presentada en la Universidad Europea de Madrid. Facultad de Ciencias de la Actividad Física y el DeporteThe IDES study was a large prospective multicentre Randomized Controlled Trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy of twelve months of intensive lifestyle intervention on modifiable cardiovascular disease risk factors in a large cohort of people (606 subjects) with type2 diabetes and the metabolic syndrome. Primary outcome was HbA1c reduction, secondary outcomes were traditional and non traditional cardiovascular risk factors. This thesis was a sub-projects of the IDES study aimed to evaluate the effects of a structured exercise program on a series of selected metabolic (HbA1c; systolic and diastolic blood pressure; BMI; waist circumference) and physical fitness parameters (maximal oxygen consumption, upper body and lower body strength, flexibility) and the difference between high and low exercise intensities. Study Design: 606 Subjects were randomized into a control group receiving a standard treatment (exercise counselling aimed to increase voluntary physical activity; plus diet, plus drugs) and an exercise group receiving the same standard treatment plus a combined aerobic and resistance exercise program (two sessions a week). Voluntary physical activity was recorded by means of a validated questionnaire (Minnesota Leisure Time Physical Activity), exercise was recorded by means of a dedicated software. Both physical activity and exercise data were transformed into metabolic equivalents (METs.h-1.w-1 ). The exercise group was further randomized into an high intensity group (70% of maximal oxygen consumption and 80% of one repetition maximum) and a low intensity group (55% of maximal oxygen consumption and 60% of one repetition maximum) to see the effects of different exercise intensities on the selected metabolic and physical fitness parameters. Results: both exercise and control group statistically increased their voluntary physical activity. The exercise groups showed a statistical significant improvement in all the metabolic and physical fitness parameters; control group significantly improved only in maximal oxygen consumption and systolic and diastolic blood pressure. When the control group was divided into quintiles of accumulated non supervised physical activity, the more active subjects showed improvements in all the evaluated parameters. When the exercise group was divided into high and low intensity groups and further analyzed, no differences were evaluated between the two exercise group. Conclusion: This study showed that a structured exercise program plus a standard treatment is better than a standard treatment alone in the improvement of the selected metabolic and physical fitness parameters. Only the more active subjects in the control group showed significant improvements in all the evaluated parameters. Moreover, in this class of subjects training at different exercise intensity did not produced significant differences. [Resumen Teseo

Improvement of quality of life with supervised exercise training in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus

In the recent Italian Diabetes and Exercise Study (IDES),1 we showed that a strategy combining a prescribed and supervised mixed training program with structured exercise counseling is more effective than counseling alone in improving physical fitness, hemoglobin A1c level and other modifiable cardiovascular risk factors, and coronary heart disease 10-year risk scores in a large cohort of sedentary subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus. In addition, subjects participating in the supervised sessions performed a higher volume of physical activity (PA) compared with the control group. However, long-term patient compliance with exercise recommendations is largely dependent on changes in quality of life (QoL) associated with training. Unfortunately, although increased PA is expected to improve QoL and most epidemiological studies have demonstrated an association between exercise and QoL in the general population, the very few intervention trials investigating the impact of structured exercise counseling or supervised training on physical and mental health and well-being in diabetic subjects have provided inconclusive results. We report herein data on the effect of supervised mixed exercise training on top of structured exercise counseling compared with counseling alone on QoL-related measures in subjects with type 2 diabetes participating in the IDES

Enjoyment perception during exercise with aerobic machines

This study investigated enjoyment and naturalness of movement perceived during short bouts of exercise with three aerobic machines: treadmill, elliptical crosstrainer, and Vario. The participants were 72 experienced and 60 inexperienced users. Immediately after the exercise with each machine, they filled in a 12-item form of the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) and a Visual Analogue Scales (VAS) about naturalness of movement. Results showed significant within-subjects differences on all scales; exercise with the treadmill and Vario were perceived to be similarly enjoyable and more enjoyable and natural in comparison with the elliptical crosstrainer. Differences in naturalness ratings between experienced and inexperienced users were observed. Exercise was not equally enjoyable when performed with different aerobic machines, and this should be considered by professionals when prescribing aerobic training to enhance motivation and adherence