Utility of field-based techniques to assess Indigenous Australians' functional fitness and sedentary time

Objective: To examine the utility of field-based techniques to assess functional exercise capacity and sedentary time in Indigenous and non-Indigenous regional Australian adults. 

Study design: Observational, analytic cohort study. 

Methods: Ninety six adults residing in regional and remote Australian communities participated in this study (Indigenous n = 61 and non-Indigenous Australians n = 35). Participants undertook a field-based test of functional exercise capacity (6 min walk test; 6 MWT) and wore an accelerometer during waking hours for seven days, provided self-report data on physical activity and sedentary time and rated experiences in regard to the ease of complying with study protocols. 

Results: There were high levels of compliance in this study (Indigenous: 91% and non-Indigenous: 97%). Functional exercise capacity was lower in Indigenous Australians (P < 0.001), and independently associated with advancing age, higher BMI, and indigeneity, with 45% of variability in the 6 MWT distance explained by these factors. The relationship between accelerometer and self-report measures of sedentary behaviour was significant (P < 0.001) but only explained 17% of the total variation. 

Conclusions: This study demonstrated very good compliance for the methods utilised and is the first to report reduced functional exercise capacity in Indigenous people. 

Implications: The field-based techniques from this study demonstrate good utility for larger scale implementation in regional Indigenous populations. Copyright © 2015 The Royal Society for Public Health. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.