Free Time 4 Wellness

Physical inactivity is a significant contributor to risk of chronic diseases and poor health. This relationship is particularly salient for women of low-income in the US, for which >60% do not reach the recommended guidelines of at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week. Prior research has documented that physical activity is difficult for this population due to individual factors (e.g., limited time, insufficient funds for gym memberships or daycare) and community-level factors (e.g., limited access to recreation space). Prior attempts to increase physical activity have generally targeted individuals, with only modest results. To increase physical activity among mothers with low-income, a multilevel intervention that is easily implemented at the community level and appropriate for mothers with little time is urgently needed. The increasing demands on mothers' time makes freely accessible childcare an attractive option. We successfully designed and piloted an innovative intervention to increase physical activity among mothers by combining fitness classes with free childcare and technology to connect and support mothers at the community level. This project will evaluate the effectiveness of our multilevel intervention, the Free Time for Wellness (FT4W) program. The conceptual framework for FT4W is based on social cognitive theory. The intervention includes: 1) free childcare at free fitness classes, and 2) peer support activities including group play dates and group volunteer activities. No prior health intervention has included these components that we hypothesize, in combination, will increase physical activity, based on prior theory and pilot work. We will test the FT4W program as a mixed-method, cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in community-based health centers. Participants will be randomized to one of three arms: a control arm, a childcare only arm, or a childcare + peer support arm. The trial will evaluate: (1) the ability of FT4W to increase physical activity within 12 weeks as confirmed by accelerometers; (2) the potential mechanisms by which the FT4W program facilitates physical activity; and (3) potential differences in the magnitude of effect across demographic categories. The proposed project, in response to NOT-OD-21-087: Developing and Testing Multilevel Physical Activity Interventions to Improve Health and Well-Being, aims to introduce an effective multilevel intervention that is easily implemented in communities and appropriate for mothers with little time. This scalable intervention will help mothers participate in physical activity, preventing future high rates of chronic diseases associated with inactivity.