The Impact of a 6 Week Walking Intervention on an Obese Population in Relation to Walking Distance, Waist to Height Ratio and Body Mass Index

Introduction: Obesity is a health condition, often resulting from an imbalance between physical activity and calorie intake and while invasive and intense interventions may be necessary for some obese individuals (OI), changes in activity and lifestyle over long periods of time are arguably the safest, most sustainable solution. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) has been widely observed to increase rapid fat oxidation in obese populations (OPs), it conversely increases health risks for OIs who often have limited cardiovascular fitness, increased joint loading and high blood pressure. However, submaximal aerobic exercise, such as walking, can be used as an initial intervention for OI who lead sedentary lifestyles, to reduce weight and increase aerobic capacity in an arguably safer way. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect that a submaximal walking intervention has on anthropometric measures in an OP. Methods: The experiment had a within-group, longitudinal design with repeated measures on n = 6 participants aged 34-54 (M=50.3, SD=8.02, 66.7% female) who walked 30 minutes daily over a 6-week period. All participants were classified as obese at week one of the intervention period, and as such were required to have a body mass index (BMI) >30 and a waist to height ratio (WHR) of >0.58 or >0.54 for men and women, respectively. Anthropometric measurements recorded at weekly intervals throughout the intervention included BMI, WHR, Waist Circumference (WC) and body mass (BM). Results: A non-parametric Friedman Test was carried out using SPSS and a statistically significant difference in BM, BMI, WHR, WC was observed before and after the intervention (P<0.001). Post Hoc analyses using a Paired Samples t-Test confirmed the statistically significant effect of 30 minutes of daily walking on all measures over the 6-week period (p