The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the role of physical activity in the lives of three Indian women living in Canada, specifically in the Lower Mainland, and to examine some of the more prominent issues they are facing in today's physical activity context by giving voice to their experiences and stories. This is a vital area to investigate because of the tendency to universalize and stereotype Indo-Canadian women without properly understanding their cultural backgrounds and the content and context of their physical activity experiences. I wish to understand what has motivated Indo-Canadian women to get involved with and continue with physical activity pursuits; and to what degree have social support structures (family, school, community, peers) influenced their decisions. Women in this particular age bracket (25-35) will hopefully be able to articulate not only their sporting experiences, but also their opportunities, constraints, dissatisfactions and accomplishments as they relate to physical activity. Social support structures such as family, community and school, physicality and the body, leadership and mentoring and self-promotion and marketing are some of the more prominent themes. The methodology chosen to extract the data is that of life story interviews. A series of in-depth interviews conducted with each of the individual participants reveals their own unique, complex and selective life and physical activity experiences. Each woman seemed to view, and construct the issue of participation in physical activity as a personal responsibility for community development. For example, one woman struggled to create and find support for an all-Indian dragon boat team and define a space for Indian women, while another desired to promote alternatives and encourage women to dance and maintain culture at a community level. The third participant's goals included increasing the participation rates of younger Indian women, by providing positive leadership. The participants are teaching Indian women and girls to un-learn an exclusion of self. Solutions proposed and implemented by them included: female-only environments, minimal or no-cost sessions, training and employing South Asians, daycare, accommodation of religious calendar, transportation, education in community and family, choice of attire, use of ethnic language, and redefinition of common images. / Education, Faculty of / Kinesiology, School of / Graduate

The purpose of this study was to explore how families would respond to a health-related, home-centered family fitness program designed to improve lifestyle exercise and eating behaviors. This program involved five families (eleven subjects) recruited from Park Road High School in Rural Virginia. The program was based on family systems theory, and social learning principles. The program consisted of a one-week baseline period and five two-week intervention periods. A changing criterion design was utilized; and incentives ($15 toward active sports equipment) were offered during the final two phases if all family members met their food goals for both weeks of the given phase. The entire group was tested regarding personal health measures (flexibility, resting heart rate, resting blood pressure, height, weight, and body composition); strength (bent knee sit-ups, modified pull-ups); knowledge (written test); and cardiovascular endurance (one mile or 1/2 mile run/walk) at baseline at the six week point (interim) of the intervention, and at the ten week point (final). / Master of Science

Purpose: The first phase of this study aimed to investigate the health and fitness status of young adult females in the local community. The second phase of this study investigated the impact of an eight week progressive Pilates intervention on selected health and fitness parameters in this cohort. Methods: Healthy young adult females aged 18-26 years (n=96), from the local community, partook in once-off tests including anthropometric measures (stature, body mass, Body Mass Index and waist circumference) as well as fitness parameters including balance, flexibility, muscular strength and endurance, and lastly lumbo-pelvic stability. Health measures investigated included blood pressure and spirometry. Where possible, results were compared to those of similar populations from national surveys or published normative data. Sedentary volunteers from this cohort were then randomised into a Pilates Exercise (PEx, n=12) or an inactive Control (Con, n=11) group, with their results from Phase 1 serving as baseline measures. Pilates classes were held twice weekly (60 minutes per session). All the measures from phase 1 were repeated at weeks 4 and 8. An additional intervention test included Transversus abdominis recruitment. Participants maintained habitual dietary intake and energy expenditure throughout. Nine PEx group and eight Con group participants completed the intervention. Results: The current sample (phase 1) was found to be healthier than comparative populations from national surveys, and significant differences (p<0.05) were found for all comparisons except Forced Expiratory Volume (FEV1), (p=0.64). Physical activity levels (230 min.week-1) exceeded that of the recommend weekly threshold (150 min.week-1). BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure and spirometry measures were all found to be within suggested healthy normal ranges. Pilates significantly improved lumbo-pelvic stability in the PEx group at weeks 4 (p<0.005) and 8 (p<0.002). Similarly, abdominal (p=0.00, d=1.1), upper limb (p=0.037, d=0.9) and lower limb endurance (p=0.02, d=1.0, between group d=0.73 for PEx) also improved with no changes in the Con group. PEx energy expenditure significantly increased from baseline to weeks 4 (p=0.007, d=10.7) and 8 (p=0.027, d=0.64), however body mass was maintained throughout. Conversely, Minute Ventilation decreased in the PEx cohort (p=0.010, d=0.95) from weeks 4 to 8. The Con group showed significant increases in body mass (p=0.018), leg strength (within-group Cohen’s d=-1.08 between weeks 0-8; d=-2 between weeks 4-8) and dynamic balance (p=0.01, d=-0.5). While no within-group changes were observed, Protein intake was significantly greater (p=0.036, d>0.8 at baseline and week 8) in the PEx group throughout the intervention. Medium between-group effect sizes (d>0.5) were noted for PEx BMI and waist circumference measures at all time points. Further, although not significant, the large within-group effect size (d=-0.84) between baseline and week 8 for PEx systolic blood pressure, suggested the 9 mm Hg was meaningful. The same time period also indicated a large within-group effect size (d=-0.8) for PEx dynamic balance, and a medium Cohen’s d for (d=0.57) PEx static balance. Conclusion: The local population of young adult females was found to be significantly healthier than those of comparable national samples. Further, Pilates participation significantly improved lumbo-pelvic stability and muscular endurance with meaningful changes in systolic blood pressure, and balance in previously sedentary young, adult females. Body mass was also maintained.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Rates of chronic disease and physical inactivity are disproportionately high among African American women. Despite the known benefits of physical activity and an increasing number of programs designed to increase activity, attendance rates to many exercise programs remain low. There is much to learn about program types, such as healthy lifestyle programs (HLP); individual factors, such as self-efficacy; and mediating variables that may influence exercise program attendance. An observational study design was used to compare exercise self-efficacy and attendance in a community-based exercise program in African American women who were enrolled in a HLP (N = 53) to women who were not (N = 27). Exercise program attendance was gathered across six months; demographics, self-efficacy and physical activity behaviors were assessed through surveys; and physiological variables (resting heart rate and blood pressure, height, and weight) and physical fitness (muscular strength and endurance and cardiovascular endurance) were measured at baseline. Descriptive statistics were used to describe participants and groups were compared using T-tests, chi-square and non-parametric statistics. Finally, mediation analyses were conducted using multiple regression models to assess self-efficacy as a potential mediator to exercise program attendance. Women who enrolled in this study were of low income (61% having an annual income less than $20,000), obese with a mean (standard deviation) body mass index (BMI) of 37.7 (7.6), pre-hypertensive with a mean (standard deviation) systolic blood pressure of 125.9 (14.4), and scored poorly and marginally on two fitness tests. On average, women reported being Moderately Confident in their ability to exercise regularly, yet had low attendance in the exercise program with a median number .5 days over six months and there were no significant differences in exercise self-efficacy (p = .23) or attendance in the exercise program between groups (p = .79). Additionally, exercise self-efficacy was not a mediating variable to program attendance. Women in this study had little discretionary income and several chronic disease risk factors, yet exercise program attendance was low even in those enrolled in a HLP. Identifying factors that increase exercise self-efficacy and factors that influence attendance beyond self-efficacy may help future program design and attendance.

This phenomenological study examined the experiences of women in midlife. The primary purpose of the study was to develop and describe a model of health promotion that will facilitate self-care of women in midlife to support them in the attainment of wholeness. A theory-generative, qualitative, explorative, descriptive and contextual design was utilized to achieve the objectives of the study, namely to explore and describe women's experience of midlife transition; classify concepts of the model; describe the structure and process of a model for support of women during midlife transition, and develop guidelines for operationalization of the model. The study was undertaken in one of the northwest states of the United States of America. Purposive sampling of eight women included women between the ages of 40 and 55 years of age. Women who had undergone surgical menopause were excluded as the influence of prolonged hormone replacement therapy was seen as a bias. Data was collected by using an unstructured interview technique. Data was analyzed according to Tesch's protocol (in Cresswell, 1994:155). Guba's model (in Krefting 1991:215) was utilized to ensure the trustworthiness of the study. Ethical issues were considered throughout and these are reflected in chapter one of the thesis. The study identified two themes: (1) how the women experienced midlife and (2) how they managed it. The experiences of midlife were expressed in physical, psychosocial and spiritual changes while the management of the process was accomplished in two ways, namely self-care and the services of healthcare professionals. The researcher identified that health promotion was essential to facilitate the self-care practices of women in midlife. Essential and related attributes of health promotion were identified, analyzed and synthesized to define health promotion. The process of health promotion was then defined with a description of the structure and process of the model. Concepts identified were classified, defined and placed into relationship statements after which the model was described and evaluated. Guidelines to operationalize the model were then formulated to assist health professionals to support women in self-care for the attainment of wholeness. / Health Studies / D.Litt et Phil (Health Studies)

This phenomenological study examined the experiences of women in midlife. The primary purpose of the study was to develop and describe a model of health promotion that will facilitate self-care of women in midlife to support them in the attainment of wholeness. A theory-generative, qualitative, explorative, descriptive and contextual design was utilized to achieve the objectives of the study, namely to explore and describe women's experience of midlife transition; classify concepts of the model; describe the structure and process of a model for support of women during midlife transition, and develop guidelines for operationalization of the model. The study was undertaken in one of the northwest states of the United States of America. Purposive sampling of eight women included women between the ages of 40 and 55 years of age. Women who had undergone surgical menopause were excluded as the influence of prolonged hormone replacement therapy was seen as a bias. Data was collected by using an unstructured interview technique. Data was analyzed according to Tesch's protocol (in Cresswell, 1994:155). Guba's model (in Krefting 1991:215) was utilized to ensure the trustworthiness of the study. Ethical issues were considered throughout and these are reflected in chapter one of the thesis. The study identified two themes: (1) how the women experienced midlife and (2) how they managed it. The experiences of midlife were expressed in physical, psychosocial and spiritual changes while the management of the process was accomplished in two ways, namely self-care and the services of healthcare professionals. The researcher identified that health promotion was essential to facilitate the self-care practices of women in midlife. Essential and related attributes of health promotion were identified, analyzed and synthesized to define health promotion. The process of health promotion was then defined with a description of the structure and process of the model. Concepts identified were classified, defined and placed into relationship statements after which the model was described and evaluated. Guidelines to operationalize the model were then formulated to assist health professionals to support women in self-care for the attainment of wholeness. / Health Studies / D.Litt et Phil (Health Studies)