Adherence and Health Effects of Video Dance in Postmenopausal Women

Phase 2 Trial of Video Dance Versus Walking in Postmenopausal Sedentary Overweight Women

This is a 6 month randomized clinical trial comparing video dance, brisk walking and delayed entry controls. The interventions have two phases; a 12 week initiation phase with substantial structure and supervision, followed by a 12 week transition phase, with reduced structure and supervision. Participants are 168 overweight or obese, sedentary postmenopausal women aged 50 to 65; 60 in each exercise arm and 48 in the wait list control group.

The following research questions will be assessed:

1. Is exercise adherence at 6 months better with video dance games compared to brisk walking?
2. Does video dance game exercise compared to wait list controls, induce beneficial changes in physical and mental health?
3. Does video dance game exercise compared to brisk walking better promote balance, attention and visual spatial skills, without loss of benefit to cardiovascular fitness?
4. Is video dance preferred to brisk walking for exercise among postmenopausal women? If so, who and why?

Inclusion Criteria:

• Participants must be female
• age 50-65
• not currently exercising at least 20 minutes
• three times per week
• a BMI of 25 or higher

Exclusion Criteria:

• Exclusions are largely related to medical safety and include history of osteoporosis, osteoporotic fractures, active cardiovascular disease, uncontrolled hypertension, weight bearing pain that would limit exercise, seizure disorder or any medical condition or medication that would limit the safety of the study.