Week and Weekend Day Cadence Patterns Long-Term Post-Bariatric Surgery.

Area of Science:

• Bariatric Surgery Outcomes
• Human Movement Analysis
• Obesity Research

Background:

• Obesity negatively impacts walking cadence, reducing daily activity intensity and increasing weight gain risk.
• Understanding post-bariatric surgery walking patterns is crucial for long-term health management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To objectively describe the walking cadence of individuals long-term after bariatric surgery.
• To compare walking cadence between obese and non-obese individuals post-bariatric surgery.

Main Methods:

• Fifty-eight participants (51.2 ± 8.9 years) with a BMI of 34.6 ± 10.1 kg/m² and 10.0 ± 3.1 years post-surgery.
• Wore activPAL accelerometers for 7 days; data analyzed by current obesity status (BMI < or ≥ 30 kg/m²).

Main Results:

• Participants averaged 5124 ± 2549 steps/day on weekdays and 6097 ± 2786 on weekends (p=.003).
• Majority of daily steps (75%) were at a slow cadence (63-68 steps/min), with no significant difference between obese and non-obese groups.
• Participants with obesity had significantly lower cadence on weekends for walking events >30s (p=.002) and >60s (p=.008) compared to weekdays.

Conclusions:

• Long-term post-bariatric surgery, movement is characterized by short bouts at a slow walking cadence.
• Individuals without obesity maintained consistent movement patterns across weekdays and weekends.
• Participants with obesity demonstrated a significant reduction in walking cadence on weekend days.