Feasibility of an incentivised exercise program to improve the health of physically inactive Australian hospital employees – the Fitbites pilot study

TL;DR

A 10-week exercise program with healthy meal incentives improved health and physical activity among inactive hospital employees in Australia.

Contribution

Demonstrated the feasibility of incentivized workplace exercise programs with healthy meal rewards in a hospital setting.

Findings

80% of participants completed the program, with high attendance and meal voucher redemption rates.

Improvements in body composition and functional capacity were observed, including reduced BMI and increased walking capacity.

The program increased women's participation in resistance training and highlighted the need for flexible workplace health initiatives.

Abstract

To investigate the feasibility of a 10-week incentivised exercise program (Fitbites) to improve the health of hospital employees.

We recruited 20 employees who were deemed physically inactive from a busy, outer-metropolitan Australian hospital. They were invited to attend in-hours exercise sessions and redeem a healthy meal upon completing exercise as part of the Fitbites program, conducted between October and December of 2022. Feasibility and safety were assessed by evaluating attendance, meal redemption and completion of program. Pre- and post-program comparisons were made for body composition, functional capacity and blood parameters.

Among the 20 participants included in the study, 16 (80%) completed the program and were included in the analysis (2 were lost to follow-up, 2 withdrew). On average, employees attended 2.5 sessions per week. Most of the meal vouchers were redeemed (94.5%). All workdays and exercise sessions were well attended. There were decreases in body mass index (mean difference: −0.6 kg/m2) and fat mass index (−1.3 kg/m2), and increases in skeletal mass index (0.8 kg/m2) and 6-Minute Walk Test (45.9 m).

The Fitbites program showed acceptable uptake and led to improvements in body composition and functional capacity. These findings inform future randomised trials in occupational settings.

•A dedicated exercise break for hospital employees improves physical activity.•A healthy meal is a highly acceptable incentive for exercise participation.•Our program increased women's involvement in resistance training exercise.•Highly flexible health promotion programs are needed for hospital settings.

A dedicated exercise break for hospital employees improves physical activity.

A healthy meal is a highly acceptable incentive for exercise participation.

Our program increased women's involvement in resistance training exercise.

Highly flexible health promotion programs are needed for hospital settings.

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