Accepted for/Published in: JMIR Research Protocols
Date Submitted: Apr 28, 2022
Open Peer Review Period: Apr 26, 2022 - May 18, 2022
Date Accepted: May 24, 2022
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
Valorization of natural cardio trekking trails through open innovation for promotion of sustainable cross-generational, health-oriented tourism during the Connect2Move project: study design
ABSTRACT
Background:
Hiking is one of the most popular forms of exercise in the alpine region. However, besides all the health benefits, hiking is also the alpine activity with the highest incidence of cardiac events. Most incidents occur due to overexertion and/or underestimation of the physiological strain of hiking.
Objective:
The present project will establish a standardized cardio trekking test trail, to evaluate the exercise capacity of tourists within hiking areas, to deliver a tool for prevention of hiking associated incidence. Further, individual exercise intensity for a hiking tour will be predicted and visualized in digital maps.
Methods:
This cooperation study between Austria and Germany will, firstly validate a 1 km outdoor cardio trekking test trail at two different study sites. Secondly, exercise intensity measures on 8 km hiking trails will be performed during hiking, to estimate overall hiking intensity. Therefore, 144 healthy adults (> 45 years) will perform a treadmill test in the laboratory and a 1 km hiking test outdoors, wearing a portable spirometry device, which measures apart from gas exchange also heart rate, walking speed, ventilation, GPS location and altitude throughout the tests. Estimation models for exercise capacity based on measured parameters will be calculated.
Results:
The project “Connect2Move” was funded in December/2019 by the European Regional Development Fund "INTERREG V-A Programme Austria-Bavaria – 2014-2020 -Project Number AB296. “Connect2Move” started in January 2020 and runs until end of June 2022. By the end of April 2022, 162 participants have been tested in the laboratory and of out those 144 outdoors. The data analysis is currently underway and results will be expected to be published by end of 2022.
Conclusions:
Individual prediction of exercise capacity in healthy individuals with interest in hiking, aims at the prevention of hiking associated cardiovascular events caused by overexertion. Integration of a mathematical equation into existing hiking apps will allow individual hiking route recommendations derived from the individual performance on a standardized cardio trekking test trail. Clinical Trial: ClinicalTrails.gov (NCT05226806)
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