Do you engage in physical activity fewer than three days per week and want to try walking with friends?
An opportunity to help researchers learn more about the health benefits of walking with peers has come to Klamath County.
Participants will get a free Fitbit device in a forthcoming walking group led by the South Suburban Branch Library and Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU).
The group will meet up with the researchers from OHSU in April, with the weekly walking group to start in May. (Date and time for the meeting and walking group are still pending. Email ssublead@ klamathlibrary.org or call 541-273-3679 to sign up for more information.)
The effort aims to improve the health of rural Oregonians and learn more about what makes a community walking program effective for rural communities.
Participants will meet at the South Suburban Branch Library, 3625 Summers Lane in Klamath Falls, once a week and walk as a group for 20 to 40 minutes.
Participants are invited to participate for two years, and each participant will receive a Fitbit and a group T-shirt.
Participants also will be invited to complete surveys and health assessments. (Health assessments will include wearing an accelerometer for more than 10 hours each day for seven days to track physical activity. Those who participate in the health assessments will be compensated: $35 for the first health assessment; another $40 at the six-month mark; $50 at one year and $60 for the full two-year study. The Fitbit is also yours to keep, just for participating.)
Twenty libraries across Oregon have been randomly assigned to implement walking-focused groups, including some with an additional civic engagement portion that teaches individuals how to make walking easier in their communities.
Researchers want to learn which parts of these two programs are the most important when it comes to changing physical activity and engaging with the local community. (The walking group at South Suburban does not include the civil engagement portion of the study.)
Residents are eligible if they are age 18 or older and currently exercise fewer than three days a week.
For more information or to sign up, call the South Suburban Branch Library at 541-273-3679 or email ssublead@ klamathlibrary.org.
