Trainer Observation Paper

Physical activity embodies an immensely vital health behavior for people of all ages and backgrounds. Physical activity occurs when body movement is produced by the contraction of skeletal muscles requiring energy to be expended in order for the movement to be sustained. Physical activities are commonly characterized according to type (e.g., aerobic, anaerobic, resistance), intensity (e.g., sedentary, light, moderate, vigorous), and volume (e.g., sets, repetitions). Participation in moderate to vigorous physical activity builds a strong foundation that provides numerous health benefits and is associated with healthy weight along with reduced risk for chronic health conditions. Unfortunately, a major decline has been noted in the past decade

Discussions included definitions of behavioral categories of interest, protocols for use (e.g., pacing of observations), observation techniques (e.g., duration, frequency, and intervals) observer training and recalibration, inter-observer reliability, subject reactivity, activity level validation, and practical issues. The trainers at the gym attempted to develop a relationship with their customers and make their experience as interactive as possible. Interactive features included (a) participants completing a short questionnaire, (b) participants using coding sheets while responding to video segments from training DVDs, and (c) experienced researchers providing their own examples relative to events such as training and maintaining observers, purchase and maintenance of observational equipment, accessibility to locations, human subjects consent, assessing reliabilities, and data summary and

Individuals of youth were seen to spend the greatest proportion of time walking and standing and the smallest proportion of time conducting vigorous fitness activity such as jogging, running, etc. Both “game play” and “fitness activities” were reported to have the highest levels of youth engagement in moderate to vigorous physical activity coming out of consultation or discussions with the trainer. Interestingly enough, very minimal time was devoted to “skill practice” which was observed to be roughly 2-3 minutes throughout the duration of the consultation. However, skill practice is said to be the most significant source of vigorous physical activity as it effectively engages the muscle an individual is working on. Conversely, individuals of youth were mostly walking around during game play and fitness activity when they did not receive a chance to meet with a