BE.Fit Study | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Institutional Review Board, Approved Protocol #1644
Study Description:
This federally funded study aims to examine the effects of exercise and memory and will be held at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. We are looking for adults between the ages of 35 and 64 who do not regularly exercise to participate in this 13-month study. This study will involve training and exercise. The training has two parts: one that takes place on the UIUC campus and the other part will take place at home.
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two training groups:
1) One group that completes thinking games at the start of the exercise program (we’ll refer to this as the “Games group”); OR
2) One group that watches educational videos at the start of the exercise program (we’ll refer to this as the “Videos group”).
Time Commitment:
- A 2-week baseline testing period including (2) 2-hour cognitive testing appointments, in addition to a functional fitness assessment and an orientation (lasting approximately 1.5 hours). Our full battery of assessment (questionnaires, cognitive testing, and functional assessments) will be re-administered at Month 1, Month 6 and at the end of the 12-month program.
- Training will take place during the first four weeks following the baseline testing period.
- Exercise will last for 12 months.
- Exercise will be conducted concurrently with the initial 4-week training.
- Exercise prescriptions in our study will have two parts: supervised exercise and exercise that you’ll complete on your own.
- Supervised exercise sessions will only take place during the first 3 months of the study, at which point, you’ll be asked to continue visiting the fitness facility on your own most days of the week (we will start you off with a 3-day per week schedule and will encourage you to maintain your own schedule of 4 or more days per week).
How to Enroll
For more information, please complete the following brief 5-minute survey. Once you have completed the survey, we will aim to respond to you by phone within 72 hours. All participants must be screened to determine study eligibility. Our telephone screenings typically last about 45 minutes. Note that for official enrollment in the BE.Fit Study, you will need to sign and submit a consent form (agreeing to your role in the study) and a medical authorization form (allowing us to contact your physician to request their consent for your participation).
We Appreciate Your Patience
Please understand that we anticipate a high call volume in response to our recent advertisements. We appreciate your patience during the screening process which will begin now until our target sample size is reached for our fifth wave of this study (a waiting list will be generated for anyone with continued interest). The BE.Fit Study (wave 7) will begin May 2020 and your enrollment will be based on a first-come, first-serve basis. We appreciate your flexibility in the times you indicate for your preferred availability. Please note that timely completion of follow-up paperwork may be facilitated by you, if you call or meet with your medical provider.