Exercise is Medicine® on Campus: Effectiveness of an Employee Circuit Training Class

Abstract

Exercise is Medicine® on Campus (EIM-OC) is a global health initiative lead by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) to integrate physical activity (PA) into university campus culture and establish PA as a vital sign. There is limited research on the EIM-OC, especially studies which include university employees. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an EIM-OC sponsored employee circuit training class at increasing PA and reducing perceived stress in participants. Out of 20 class participants, 12 females volunteered to take part in the study. Data was collected with an online questionnaire that included the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire (LTEQ) and Cohen’s Perceived Stress Scale. Paired-samples t-tests were performed for LTEQ score, PA days, and perceived stress score. Physical activity score significantly increased (p=.05) from pre-to post-training. Moderate days of PA significantly increased from pre-to post-training, but strenuous and light days of PA were not statistically significant. Perceived stress scores improved significantly (p<.001) from pre-to post-training. These results demonstrate that EIM-OC employee exercises classes can be an effective program offering to increase PA and improve perceived stress among university employees.