Variations in area-level disadvantage of Australian registered fitness trainers usual training locations

BACKGROUND: Leisure-time physical activity and strength training participation levels are low and socioeconomically distributed. Fitness trainers (e.g. gym/group instructors) may have a role in increasing these participation levels. However, it is not known whether the training location and characteristics of Australian fitness trainers vary between areas that differ in socioeconomic status.

METHODS: In 2014, a sample of 1,189 Australian trainers completed an online survey with questions about personal and fitness industry-related characteristics (e.g. qualifications, setting, and experience) and postcode of their usual training location. The Australian Bureau of Statistics 'Index of Relative Socioeconomic Disadvantage' (IRSD) was matched to training location and used to assess where fitness professionals trained and whether their experience, qualification level and delivery methods differed by area-level disadvantage. Linear regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between IRSD score and selected characteristics adjusting for covariates (e.g. sex, age).

RESULTS: Overall, 47 % of respondents worked in areas within the three least-disadvantaged deciles. In contrast, only 14.8 % worked in the three most-disadvantaged deciles. In adjusted regression models, fitness industry qualification was positively associated with a higher IRSD score (i.e. working in the least-disadvantaged areas) (Cert III: ref; Cert IV β:13.44 [95 % CI 3.86-23.02]; Diploma β:15.77 [95 % CI: 2.17-29.37]; Undergraduate β:23.14 [95 % CI: 9.41-36.86]).

CONCLUSIONS: Fewer Australian fitness trainers work in areas with high levels of socioeconomic disadvantaged areas than in areas with low levels of disadvantage. A higher level of fitness industry qualifications was associated with working in areas with lower levels of disadvantage. Future research should explore the effectiveness of providing incentives that encourage more fitness trainers and those with higher qualifications to work in more socioeconomically disadvantaged areas.

Gender, age, and educational-attainment differences in Australian adults' participation in vigorous sporting and fitness activities

Background: Participation in regular vigorous physical activity could confer health benefits additional to those derived from moderate-intensity physical activities that are currently the focus of public health strategies.
Methods: Sociodemographic differences in reported participation in vigorous sporting and fitness activities over the past 2 weeks were examined using cross-sectional data from an Australian urban population sample.
Results: Participation at least once in any form of vigorous physical activity and regular participation (six or more sessions) both decreased across successive age groups and from high to low levels of education. The most frequently reported types of vigorous physical activity were cycling (13.3%), jogging (10.1%), swimming (8.4%) for men; and, swimming (8.9%), cycling (8.8%) and aerobics (8.6%) for women.
Conclusion: Rates of regular participation in vigorous activities were low. Interventions might focus on ways to encourage younger adults to engage more regularly in these activities and to maintain participation through the lifespan.

A longitudinal study of body change strategies of fitness center attendees

This study evaluated predictors of strategies to change weight and muscles among men and women who attend fitness centers. A questionnaire was completed by 107 men (mean age = 39.17, SD = 13.14), and 151 women (mean age = 35.31, SD = 11.38) who regularly attended fitness centers at two points in time, one year apart. The only unique predictor of body change strategies over time for men was body dissatisfaction predicting drive for thinness; for women, body dissatisfaction predicted strategies to lose weight, drive for thinness, use of food supplements to lose weight and levels of bulimia. Media messages also predicted drive for thinness and bulimia among women. These findings would suggest that attendance body dissatisfaction is an important factor predicting other normative and health risk behaviors among fitness center attendees, particularly women at a fitness center over a 12 month period was not generally associated with adverse health risk behaviors.

Effects of aerobic training on pyruvate dehydrogenase and pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase in human skeletal muscle

This study examined the effects of short- and long-term aerobic training on the stable up-regulation of pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) and PDH kinase (PDK) in human skeletal muscle. We hypothesized that 8 weeks, but not 1 week, of aerobic training would increase total PDH (PDHt) and PDK activities compared to pretraining, and this would be detectable at the level of gene transcription (mRNA) and/or gene translation (protein). Resting muscle biopsies were taken before and after 1 and 8 weeks of aerobic cycle exercise training. PDHt and PDK activities, and their respective protein and mRNA expression, did not differ after 1 week of aerobic training. PDHt activity increased 31% after 8 weeks and this may be partially due to a 1.3-fold increase in PDH-E₁α protein expression. PDK activity approximately doubled after 8 weeks of aerobic training and this was attributed to a 1.3-fold increase in PDK2 isoform protein expression. Similar to 1 week, no changes were observed at the mRNA level after 8 weeks of training. These findings  suggest that aerobically trained human skeletal muscle has an increased maximal capacity to utilize carbohydrates, evident by increased PDHt, but increased metabolic control sensitivity to pyruvate through increased contribution of PDK2 to total PDK activity.

Overweight and obesity from childhood to adulthood: a follow-up of participants in the 1985 Australian Schools Health and Fitness Survey

Objective: To examine overweight and obesity in Australian children followed through to adulthood.

Design and participants: A cohort study of 8498 children aged 7–15 years who participated in the 1985 Australian Schools Health and Fitness Survey; of these, 2208 men and 2363 women completed a follow-up questionnaire at age 24–34 years in 2001–2005.

Main outcome measures: Height and weight were measured in 1985, and self-reported at follow-up. The accuracy of self-reported data was checked in 1185 participants. Overweight and obesity in childhood were defined according to international standard definitions for body mass index (BMI), and, in adulthood, as a BMI of 25–29.9 and ≥ 30 kg/m2, respectively, after correcting for self-report error.

Results: In those with baseline and follow-up data, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in childhood was 8.3% and 1.5% in boys and 9.7% and 1.4% in girls, respectively. At follow-up, the prevalence was 40.1% and 13.0% in men and 19.7% and 11.7% in women. The relative risk (RR) of becoming an obese adult was significantly greater for those who had been obese as children compared with those who had been a healthy weight (RR = 4.7; 95% CI, 3.0–7.2 for boys and RR = 9.2; 95% CI, 6.9–12.3 for girls). The proportion of adult obesity attributable to childhood obesity was 6.4% in males and 12.6% in females.

Conclusion: Obesity in childhood was strongly predictive of obesity in early adulthood, but most obese young adults were a healthy weight as children.

The Ethics of Australian Fitness Professionals

The Australian fitness profession has grown rapidly in the past three decades, but there has been unequal growth in the ethical practices of its workers. The purpose of this book is to examine the ethical beliefs and behaviours of Australian fitness professionals. Several questions are of particular interest: 1) How ethical are the beliefs and behaviours of Australian fitness professionals? 2) How do the ethical beliefs and behaviours of Australian university trained fitness professionals compare with TAFE (community) college trained fitness professionals? This book explores the ethical knowledge and practices of Australian fitness professionals and compares their beliefs and behavious with practitioners from other helping professions such as psychology. Issues examined in this book include: 1) the ethics education of fitness professionals; 2) the regulation of questionable behaviours by practicing members of the fitness profession; 3) and the professional boundaries of Australian fitness workers.

Perceived sports competence mediates the relationship between childhood motor skill proficiency and adolescent physical activity and fitness : a longitudinal assessment

Background: The purpose of this paper was to investigate whether perceived sports competence mediates the relationship between childhood motor skill proficiency and subsequent adolescent physical activity and fitness.

Methods: In 2000, children's motor skill proficiency was assessed as part of a school-based physical activity intervention. In 2006/07, participants were followed up as part of the Physical Activity and Skills Study and completed assessments for perceived sports competence (Physical Self-Perception Profile), physical activity (Adolescent Physical Activity Recall Questionnaire) and cardiorespiratory fitness (Multistage Fitness Test). Structural equation modelling techniques were used to determine whether perceived sports competence mediated between childhood object control skill proficiency (composite score of kick, catch and overhand throw), and subsequent adolescent self-reported time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and cardiorespiratory fitness.

Results: Of 928 original intervention participants, 481 were located in 28 schools and 276 (57%) were assessed with at least one follow-up measure. Slightly more than half were female (52.4%) with a mean age of 16.4 years (range 14.2 to 18.3 yrs). Relevant assessments were completed by 250 (90.6%) students for the Physical Activity Model and 227 (82.3%) for the Fitness Model. Both hypothesised mediation models had a good fit to the observed data, with the Physical Activity Model accounting for 18% (R2 = 0.18) of physical activity variance and the Fitness Model accounting for 30% (R2 = 0.30) of fitness variance. Sex did not act as a moderator in either model.

Conclusion: Developing a high perceived sports competence through object control skill development in childhood is important for both boys and girls in determining adolescent physical activity participation and fitness. Our findings highlight the need for interventions to target and improve the perceived sports competence of youth.

Does childhood motor skill proficiency predict adolescent fitness?

Purpose: To determine whether childhood fundamental motor skill proficiency predicts subsequent adolescent cardiorespiratory fitness.

Methods: In 2000, children's proficiency in a battery of skills was assessed as part of an elementary school-based intervention. Participants were followed up during 2006/2007 as part of the Physical Activity and Skills Study, and cardiorespiratory fitness was measured using the Multistage Fitness Test. Linear regression was used to examine the relationship between childhood fundamental motor skill proficiency and adolescent cardiorespiratory fitness controlling for gender. Composite object control (kick, catch, throw) and locomotor skill (hop, side gallop, vertical jump) were constructed for analysis. A separate linear regression examined the ability of the sprint run to predict cardiorespiratory fitness.

Results: Of the 928 original intervention participants, 481 were in 28 schools, 276 (57%) of whom were assessed. Two hundred and forty-four students (88.4%) completed the fitness test. One hundred and twenty-seven were females (52.1%), 60.1% of whom were in grade 10 and 39.0% were in grade 11. As children, almost all 244 completed each motor assessments, except for the sprint run (n = 154, 55.8%). The mean composite skill score in 2000 was 17.7 (SD 5.1). In 2006/2007, the mean number of laps on the Multistage Fitness Test was 50.5 (SD 24.4). Object control proficiency in childhood, adjusting for gender (P = 0.000), was associated with adolescent cardiorespiratory fitness (P = 0.012), accounting for 26% of fitness variation.

Conclusion: Children with good object control skills are more likely to become fit adolescents. Fundamental motor skill development in childhood may be an important component of interventions aiming to promote long-term fitness.

The provision of compulsory school physical activity : associations with physical activity, fitness and overweight in childhood and twenty years later

Background
To determine whether the provision of higher levels of compulsory school physical activity is associated with higher physical activity and fitness levels and less overweight in childhood and 20 years later.

Methods
As part of the 1985 Australian Schools Health and Fitness Survey, 109 schools reported how much compulsory physical education (PE) and school sport they provided and were classified as low (<110 and <150 minutes/week for primary and secondary schools, respectively), medium (110–149 and 150–189 minutes/week for primary and secondary schools, respectively) or high (≥150 and ≥190 minutes/week for primary and secondary schools, respectively) compulsory physical activity schools by tertile cutpoints. 6,412 children reported frequency and duration of school (PE and sport) and non-school (commuting and non-organised exercise) physical activity and had height and weight measured; overweight was defined using body mass index (BMI) (m/kg²) cutpoints. 9, 12 and 15 year-olds (n = 2,595) completed a cycle ergometer fitness test (physical working capacity at heart rate 170, PWC₁₇₀). At follow-up in 2004–5, 2,346 participants kept a pedometer record, completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire and/or a PWC₁₇₀ fitness test; and had height and weight measured (overweight = BMI≥25 m/kg²).

Results
At baseline and follow-up, median total physical activity, fitness and BMI were similar in participants who attended low, medium and high physical activity schools, and those attending high physical activity schools reported only modestly higher school physical activity. There was no difference in the prevalence of high total physical activity and fitness levels in childhood or adulthood across compulsory school physical activity categories. The prevalence of overweight in childhood and adulthood was similar across low, medium and high compulsory physical activity schools.

Conclusion
The amount of compulsory physical activity reported by schools was not associated with total physical activity, fitness or overweight in childhood or in adulthood. Policies promoting amounts of compulsory school physical activity in this range may not be sufficient to increase physical activity and fitness or reduce the prevalence of obesity in children.

A comparison of subjective and objective measures of physical activity and fitness in identifying associations with cardiometabolic risk factors

Purpose
To compare the ability of alternative measures of physical activity and fitness to quantify associations with health outcomes.

Methods
Associations between a range of subjective and objective physical activity and fitness measures and cardiometabolic risk factors were examined using data from 1,631 Australians aged 26–36 years. Anthropometry, fitness, blood pressure, and fasting blood glucose, insulin, and lipids were measured at study clinics. Participants completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) and 7-day pedometer diaries; they also reported sedentary behavior (sitting, television viewing).

Results
In men and women, associations were strongest for fitness, with those in the highest (vs. lowest) fitness quarter having a 75% to 80% lower prevalence of two or more primary risk factors (waist circumference, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and insulin resistance). In men, a 60% to 70% reduced prevalence of two or more risk factors was observed across extreme quarters of IPAQ leisure, IPAQ vigorous, sitting duration, and pedometer measures. Similar reductions in prevalence were observed only across extreme quarters of pedometer activity and television viewing in women.

Conclusions
Associations between alternative measures and cardiometabolic risk were relatively independent, suggesting that a range of physical activity and fitness measures may be needed to most accurately quantify associations between physical activity and health.

The effect of acute fenitrotion exposure on a variety of physiological indices, including avian aerobic metabolism during exercise and cold exposure

The effect of fenitrothion exposure on birds was examined by measuring aerobic metabolism, blood hemoglobin content, plasma cholinesterases, and body weight for up to 21 d postdose. Peak metabolic rate was measured in a flight chamber in three-dose groups of house sparrows (Passer domesticus; 100 mg/kg = high, 60 mg/kg = medium, 30 mg/kg = low) and one-dose groups of zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata; 3 mg/kg) and king quails (Coturnix chinensis; 26 mg/kg). Aerobic metabolism was measured during 1 h of exposure to subfreezing thermal conditions in low-dose house sparrows and king quails (26 mg/kg). Fenitrothion had no effect on metabolic rate during cold exposure or on blood hemoglobin at any time. By contrast, aerobic performance during exercise in sparrows was reduced by 58% (high), 18% (medium), and 20% (low), respectively, 2 d postdose. House sparrows (high) had the longest recovery period for peak metabolic rate (21 d) and plasma cholinesterase activity (14 d). House sparrows (high) and treated king quails had significantly lower myoglobin at 48 h postdose, whereas myoglobin was invariant in zebra finches and house sparrows (medium and low). Cholinesterase was maximally inhibited at 6 h postdose, and had recovered within 24 h, in house sparrows (low), king quails, and zebra finches. Exercise peak metabolic rate in zebra finches and king quails was reduced by 23% at 2 d and 3 d, respectively, despite these birds being asymptomatic in both behavior and plasma cholinesterase activities.

Fenitrothion, an organophosphate, affects running endurance but not aerobic capacity in fat-tailed dunnarts (Sminthopsis crassicaudata)

We measured aerobic metabolism during cold exposure and exercise performance (run duration and oxygen consumption while running at 1 m s⁻¹) in the fat-tailed dunnart Sminthopsis crassicaudata, a dasyurid marsupial, before and after ingestion of 30 mg kg⁻¹ of fenitrothion, an organophosphate (OP) pesticide. Running endurance of OP-exposed animals was less than half that of control animals over the first 3 days after dosing and 55% of control animal endurance on day 5 post-dose. Despite these declines, peak metabolic rate at this running speed (9.3 times basal metabolic rate; BMR) was unaffected by OP exposure. Peak metabolic rate (PMR) and cumulative oxygen consumption during a 1-h exposure to conditions equivalent to −20 °C did not differ between OP-treated and control dunnarts, with PMR averaging 11 times BMR. We conclude that fenitrothion-induced exercise fatigue is not due to limitations in oxygen or substrate delivery to muscle or in their uptake per se, but more likely relates to decreased ability to sustain high-frequency neuromuscular function. The persistence of locomotor impairment following OP exposure in otherwise asymptomatic animals emphasizes the importance of using performance-based measures when characterising sublethal effects of pesticide exposure in an ecological context.

Testosterone effects on avian basal metabolic rate and aerobic performance : facts and artefacts

We examined the effects of cage size and testosterone (T) levels on basal and peak metabolic rates (BMR and PMR, respectively) and on pectoral and leg muscle masses of male house sparrows (Passer domesticus). Birds were housed either in small birdcages or in flight aviaries for at least 2 weeks prior to the initial metabolic evaluations. They were then implanted with either empty or T-filled silastic capsules and remeasured 5–6 weeks later. Birds treated with single T implants achieved breeding levels (4–6 ng/mL) and one group given double implants reached 10 ng/mL. There was no effect of T on BMR or PMR in any group studied, but there was an effect of caging. Caged birds showed significant reductions in PMR over the course of captivity, whereas PMR in aviary-housed birds were indistinguishable from their free-living counterparts. Testosterone treatment significantly increased leg muscle mass in caged birds, but had no effect on muscle mass in aviary-housed sparrows. We conclude that testosterone has no direct effect on sparrow metabolic rate or muscle mass, but may interact with cage conditions to produce indirect changes to these variables.

Strategies to change body shape among men and women who attend fitness centre

The current study examined the association between exercise behaviors, disordered eating, and other behaviors to change body shape among fitness center attendees. The participants were 520 adults (245 men, 275 women) who attended fitness centers. Data were gathered using an anonymous questionnaire. Women who attended fitness centers were generally trying to lose weight and improve fitness; men were generally trying to increase their muscles and improve their fitness level. Reasons for exercise predicted the nature of the body change strategies adopted by respondents. Regression analyses demonstrated that exercises performed by people who attend fitness centers are a reflection of whether or not they want to lose weight, increase muscle or improve fitness. All groups were equally likely to engage in health risk behaviors, but the specific nature of these behaviors varied by group. The implications of these findings for health-related messages among people who attend fitness centers are discussed.