Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 22, 2026
Home-Based Monitor for Gait and Activity Analysis
Published on: August 8, 2019
An exploratory study of physical activity and perceived barriers to exercise in ambulant people with neuromuscular
Margaret Phillips1, Nicola Flemming, Kostas Tsintzas
1University of Nottingham Division of Rehabilitation Medicine, School of Graduate Entry Medicine and Health, Derby City Hospital, Derby, UK. margaret.phillips@nottingham.ac.uk
Objective:
To determine activity patterns and perceived barriers to exercise in ambulant people with neuromuscular disease compared with ambulatory controls.
Design:
Prospective controlled parallel group design.
Setting:
Outpatient clinic and community.
Subjects:
Thirteen ambulatory people with neuromuscular disease and 18 ambulatory controls.
Main Measures:
Heart rates were recorded during sedentary activity and treadmill walking at various speeds to indicate activity threshold (flex heart rate), followed by ambulatory heart rate monitoring over two weekdays and one weekend day. The EPIC-Norfolk Physical Activity Questionnaire-2 and Barriers to Physical Activity and Disability Survey were completed.
Results:
Participants with neuromuscular disease were less active than controls as estimated by both the EPIC-Norfolk Physical Activity Questionnaire-2, P<0.004, and the flex heart rate method, P<0.05. The number of perceived barriers was greater in the neuromuscular group, a mean of 7 (SD 4.2) barriers, compared with mean 3 (SD 2.1) barriers for controls, P<0.05. Specific barriers differed, with the barriers of 'pain', 'lack of energy' and 'exercise is too difficult' showing the greatest discrepancy and being higher in the neuromuscular disease group.
Conclusion:
Physical activity, as determined by two different methods, was less and barriers to exercise greater in people with neuromuscular disease compared with healthy controls. Specific barriers were different in the two groups. This information could assist in the design of achievable and effective exercise programmes for people with neuromuscular disease.
