Effects of an mHealth-based physical exercise program on aerobic capacity, muscle strength, and anthropometric indicators among female university students in Chile: a non-randomized controlled trial
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55040/3p5fe872Keywords:
physical exercise, mHealth, occupational health, physical condition, workersAbstract
mHealth-based exercise interventions have shown positive effects on physical fitness; however, their application in developing countries and among working populations remains limited. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of an mHealth-based exercise program on physical fitness and anthropometric indicators in overweight administrative and academic employees from a Chilean university. An 8-week non-randomized controlled study was conducted. A total of 41 women (mean age 42.05 ± 10.11 years) participated and were assigned to an experimental group (n=22), which performed three weekly exercise sessions via mHealth, and a control group (n=19), which maintained their usual activities. Cardiorespiratory fitness, muscular strength (handgrip, abdominal, and leg strength), anthropometry, and body composition were assessed. The experimental group showed significant improvements in muscular strength (p<0.001), aerobic capacity assessed by the 6-minute walk test (p<0.001), and maximal oxygen consumption (p=0.002). Regarding anthropometric indicators, body mass index remained stable in the experimental group but increased in the control group (p=0.004). No significant changes were observed in heart rate, oxygen saturation, or perceived exertion.
The mHealth-based exercise program was effective in improving aerobic capacity and muscular strength, as well as in preventing increases in body mass index in university employees. These findings support the use of digital interventions as viable strategies for health promotion in workplace settings.
References
Barranco-Ruiz, Y., & Villa-González, E. (2020). Health-Related Physical Fitness Benefits in Sedentary Women Employees after an Exercise Intervention with Zumba Fitness®. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(8), 2632. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17082632
Battalio, S. L., Conroy, D. E., Dempsey, W., Liao, P., Menictas, M., Murphy, S., Nahum-Shani, I., Qian, T., Kumar, S., & Spring, B. (2021). Sense2Stop: A micro-randomized trial using wearable sensors to optimize a just-in-time-adaptive stress management intervention for smoking relapse prevention. Contemporary clinical trials, 109, 106534. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2021.106534
Bohannon, R. W., & Crouch, R. (2019). 1-Minute Sit-to-Stand Test: systematic review of procedures, performance, and clinimetric properties. Journal of cardiopulmonary rehabilitation and prevention, 39(1), 2–8. https://doi.org/10.1097/HCR.0000000000000336
Bohlen, L. C., LaRowe, L. R., Dunsiger, S. I., Dionne, L., Griffin, E., Kim, A. E., Marcus, B. H., Unick, J., Wu, W. C., & Williams, D. M. (2023). Comparing a recommendation for self-paced versus moderate intensity physical activity for midlife adults: Rationale and design. Contemporary clinical trials, 128, 107169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2023.107169
Buchholz, S. W., Wilbur, J., Ingram, D., & Fogg, L. (2013). Physical activity text messaging interventions in adults: a systematic review. Worldviews on evidence-based nursing, 10(3), 163–173. https://doi.org/10.1111/wvn.12002
Cano-Montoya, J., Rojas Vargas, M., Báez Vargas, S., Núñez Vergara, C., Martínez Huenchullán, S., Gallegos, F., Álvarez, C., & Izquierdo, M. (2025). Impact of resistance and high-intensity interval training on body composition, physical function, and temporal dynamics of adaptation in older women with impaired cardiometabolic health: a randomized clinical trial. BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation, 17(1), 78. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13102-025-01119-0
Cárcamo-Regla, R., Carrasco-Marín, F., Ochoa-Rosales, C., Zapata-Lamana, R., Rozas, K., Martorell, M., Nazar, G., Cigarroa, I., Reyes-Molina, D., Stuardo-Álvarez, M., Gacitúa, F., & Ulloa, N. (2023). Cambios metabólicos y de aptitud cardiorrespiratoria en mujeres intervenidas con un programa de ejercicio físico asistido con una aplicación móvil: un estudio controlado no randomizado. Revista medica de Chile, 151(7), 869–879. https://doi.org/10.4067/s0034-98872023000700869
Cárcamo-Regla, R., Zapata-Lamana, R., Ochoa-Rosales, C., Martorell, M., Carrasco-Marín, F., & Molina-Recio, G. (2024). Effectiveness of Resistance Training Program on Body Composition in Adults Following Vegan Diet versus Omnivorous Diet; Developed in Mobile Health Modality. Nutrients, 16(15), 2539. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16152539
Carlos, Celis-Morales, Carlos, Ramírez-Campillo, Rodrigo, Aguilar-Farías, Nicolás, Álvarez, Cristian, & Rodríguez-Rodríguez, Fernando. (2015). ¡No es lo mismo sedentarismo e inactividad física!: Una actualización de conceptos orientados a la prescripción del ejercicio físico para la salud. Revista médica de Chile , 143 (8), 1089-1090. https://dx.doi.org/10.4067/S0034-98872015000800021
Cristi-Montero C, Celis-Morales C, Ramírez-Campillo R, Aguilar-Farías N, Álvarez C, Rodríguez-Rodríguez F. ¡Sedentarismo e inactividad física no son lo mismo!: una actualización de conceptos orientada a la prescripción del ejercicio físico para la salud [Sedentary behaviour and physical inactivity is not the same!: An update of concepts oriented towards the prescription of physical exercise for health]. Rev Med Chil. 2015 Aug;143(8):1089-90. Spanish. doi: https://doi.org/10.4067/S0034-98872015000800021. PMID: 26436943.
Davis, A., Sweigart, R., & Ellis, R. (2020). A systematic review of tailored mHealth interventions for physical activity promotion among adults. Translational behavioral medicine, 10(5), 1221–1232. https://doi.org/10.1093/tbm/ibz190
Díaz-Martínez, Ximena, Petermann, Fanny, Leiva, Ana María, Garrido-Méndez, Alex, Salas-Bravo, Carlos, Martínez, María Adela, Labraña, Ana María, Duran, Eliana, Valdivia-Moral, Pedro, Zagalaz, María Luisa, Poblete-Valderrama, Felipe, Alvarez, Cristian, & Celis-Morales, Carlos. (2018). No cumplir con las recomendaciones de actividad física se asocia a mayores niveles de obesidad, diabetes, hipertensión y síndrome metabólico en población chilena. Revista médica de Chile, 146(5), 585-595. https://dx.doi.org/10.4067/s0034-98872018000500585
Direito, A., Carraça, E., Rawstorn, J., Whittaker, R., & Maddison, R. (2017). mHealth Technologies to Influence Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviors: Behavior Change Techniques, Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, 51(2), 226–239. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-016-9846-0
Dunton G. F. (2017). Ecological Momentary Assessment in Physical Activity Research. Exercise and sport sciences reviews, 45(1), 48–54. https://doi.org/10.1249/JES.0000000000000092
Enriquez-del Castillo, L. A., González-Bustos, J. B., Flores, L. A., Domínguez Esparza, S., Cervantes Hernández, N., & Viera Ponce, A. J. (2022). Estilo de vida activo según nuevas directrices de la OMS: ¿una influencia sobre la aptitud física, composición corporal y calidad de vida en mujeres mayores?. Revista Ciencias De La Actividad Física UCM, 23(Especial), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.29035/rcaf.23.Especial_IHMN.2
Faúndez-Casanova, C. P., Vásquez-Gómez, J. A., Castillo-Retamal, M. E., Souza-de-Carvalho, R., & Castillo-Ratamal, F. (2019). Entrenamiento interválico aeróbico y de fuerza muscular en funcionarios universitarios obesos con ECNT: Un estudio piloto. Nutrición Clínica y Dietética Hospitalaria, 39(1), 179–183. https://doi.org/10.12873/391faundez
Feter, N., Dos Santos, T. S., Caputo, E. L., & da Silva, M. C. (2019). What is the role of smartphones on physical activity promotion? A systematic review and meta-analysis. International journal of public health, 64(5), 679–690. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038-019-01210-7
Flores Aniotz, A., Reyes-Molina, D., Cigarroa, I., García-Merino, S., Rubio Alonso, M., Pérez Ruiz, M. y Zapata-Lamana, R. (2024). Efecto de programas de ejercicio físico basados en salud móvil y evaluación ecológica momentánea sobre la salud física y mental, las funciones cognitivas y el entorno social de adultos en países en desarrollo: una revisión sistemática. Medicina , 60 (4), 578. https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina60040578
Free, C., Phillips, G., Galli, L., Watson, L., Felix, L., Edwards, P., Patel, V., & Haines, A. (2013). The effectiveness of mobile-health technology-based health behaviour change or disease management interventions for health care consumers: A systematic review. PLoS Medicine, 10(1), e1001362. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001362
Hall, K. D., Ayuketah, A., Brychta, R., Cai, H., Cassimatis, T., Chen, K. Y., Chung, S. T., Costa, E., Courville, A., Darcey, V., Fletcher, L. A., Forde, C. G., Gharib, A. M., Guo, J., Howard, R., Joseph, P. V., McGehee, S., Ouwerkerk, R., Raisinger, K., … Zhou, M. (2020). Ultra-processed diets cause excess calorie intake and weight gain: An inpatient randomized controlled trial. Cell Metabolism, 30(1), 67–77.e3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2019.05.008
Holland, A. E., Spruit, M. A., Troosters, T., Puhan, M. A., Pepin, V., Saey, D., McCormack, M. C., Carlin, B. W., Sciurba, F. C., Pitta, F., Wanger, J., MacIntyre, N., Kaminsky, D. A., Culver, B. H., Revill, S. M., Hernandes, N. A., Andrianopoulos, V., Camillo, C. A., Mitchell, K. E., Lee, A. L., … Singh, S. J. (2014). An official European Respiratory Society/American Thoracic Society technical standard: field walking tests in chronic respiratory disease. The European respiratory journal, 44(6), 1428–1446. https://doi.org/10.1183/09031936.00150314
Jakicic, J. M., Davis, K. K., Rogers, R. J., King, W. C., Marcus, M. D., Helsel, D., Rickman, A. D., Wahed, A. S., & Belle, S. H. (2016). Effect of Wearable Technology Combined With a Lifestyle Intervention on Long-term Weight Loss: The IDEA Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA, 316(11), 1161–1171. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2016.12858
Janić, M., Janež, A., El-Tanani, M. y Rizzo, M. (2025). Obesidad: avances recientes y perspectivas futuras. Biomedicines , 13 (2), 368. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13020368
Kim, D., Morikawa, S., Miyawaki, M., Nakagawa, T., Ogawa, S., & Kase, Y. (2025). Sarcopenia prevention in older adults: Effectiveness and limitations of non-pharmacological interventions. Osteoporosis and sarcopenia, 11(2 Suppl), 65–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.afos.2025.05.005
Kim, G., Lee, J. S., & Lee, S. K. (2021). A Technology-Mediated Interventional Approach to the Prevention of Metabolic Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. International journal of environmental research and public health, 18(2), 512. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18020512
Lang, J. J., Prince, S. A., Merucci, K., Cadenas-Sanchez, C., Chaput, J. P., Fraser, B. J., Manyanga, T., McGrath, R., Ortega, F. B., Singh, B., & Tomkinson, G. R. (2024). Cardiorespiratory fitness is a strong and consistent predictor of morbidity and mortality among adults: an overview of meta-analyses representing over 20.9 million observations from 199 unique cohort studies. British journal of sports medicine, 58(10), 556–566. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2023-107849
Lara-Castor, L., Micha, R., Cudhea, F., Miller, V., Shi, P., Zhang, J., Sharib, J. R., Erndt-Marino, J., Cash, S. B., Mozaffarian, D., & Global Dietary Database (2023). Sugar-sweetened beverage intakes among adults between 1990 and 2018 in 185 countries. Nature communications, 14(1), 5957. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-41269-8
Lee, M., Lee, H., Kim, Y., Kim, J., Cho, M., Jang, J., & Jang, H. (2018). Mobile App-Based Health Promotion Programs: A Systematic Review of the Literature. International journal of environmental research and public health, 15(12), 2838. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15122838
López-Martín, E., & Ardura, D. (2023). El tamaño del efecto en la publicación científica. Educación XX1, 26(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.5944/educxx1.36276
Menargues-Ramírez, R., Sospedra, I., Holway, F., Hurtado-Sánchez, J. A., & Martínez-Sanz, J. M. (2022). Evaluation of Body Composition in CrossFit® Athletes and the Relation with Their Results in Official Training. International journal of environmental research and public health, 19(17), 11003. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191711003
Ministerio del Deporte. (2018). Encuesta Nacional de Hábitos de Actividad Física y Deporte 2018 en población de 18 años y más. https://www.mindep.cl/secciones/151
Momma, H., Kawakami, R., Honda, T., & Sawada, S. S. (2022). Muscle-strengthening activities are associated with lower risk and mortality in major non-communicable diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies. British journal of sports medicine, 56(13), 755–763. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2021-105061
Organización Mundial de la Salud. (2020). Guidelines on physical activity and sedentary behaviour : at a glance. https://iris.who.int/bitstream/handle/10665/336657/9789240014886-spa.pdf?sequence=1
Organización Panamericana de la Salud; Organización Mundial de la Salud. (2019). Plan de acción mundial sobre actividad física 2018-2030: Más personas activas para un mundo sano. https://iris.paho.org/bitstream/handle/10665.2/50904/9789275320600_spa.pdf?sequence=6
Osses A, R., Yáñez V, J., Barría P, P., Palacios M, S., Dreyse D, J., Díaz P, O., & Lisboa B, C. (2010). Prueba de caminata en seis minutos en sujetos chilenos sanos de 20 a 80 años. Revista medica de Chile, 138(9), 1124–1130. https://www.revistamedicadechile.cl/index.php/rmedica/article/view/715
Owen, N., Healy, G. N., Matthews, C. E., & Dunstan, D. W. (2010). Too much sitting: The population health science of sedentary behavior. Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, 38(3), 105–113. https://doi.org/10.1097/JES.0b013e3181e373a2
Partridge, S. R., McGeechan, K., Hebden, L., Balestracci, K., Wong, A. T., Denney-Wilson, E., Harris, M. F., Phongsavan, P., Bauman, A., & Allman-Farinelli, M. (2015). Effectiveness of a mHealth Lifestyle Program With Telephone Support (TXT2BFiT) to Prevent Unhealthy Weight Gain in Young Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 3(2), e66. https://doi.org/10.2196/mhealth.4530
Ramos-Favaretto, F. S., Fukushiro, A. P., Scarmagnani, R. H., & Yamashita, R. P.. (2019). Escala de Borg: um novo método para avaliação da hipernasalidade de fala. Codas, 31(6), e20180296. https://doi.org/10.1590/2317-1782/20192018296
Reyes-Molina, D., Nazar, G., Cigarroa, I., Carrasco Marín, F., Cárcamo Regla, R., Rozas Pardo, K., Martorell, M., Ochoa, C., Ulloa, N., & Zapata-Lamana, R. (2023). Motivación, barreras y beneficios para la práctica de ejercicio físico en una intervención mobile health en adultos del Biobío, Chile (Motivation, barriers and benefits for the practice of physical exercise in a mobile health intervention in adults from Biobío, Chile). Retos, 49, 623-631. https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v49.97141
Rosa-Guillamón, A. (2019). Análisis de la relación entre salud, ejercicio físico y condición física en escolares y adolescentes. Revista Ciencias De La Actividad Física UCM, 20(1), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.29035/rcaf.20.1.1
Rothman, K. J. (2008). BMI-related errors in the measurement of obesity. International Journal of Obesity, 32(S3), S56–S59. https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2008.87
Singh, S. J., Puhan, M. A., Andrianopoulos, V., Hernandes, N. A., Mitchell, K. E., Hill, C. J., Lee, A. L., Camillo, C. A., Troosters, T., Spruit, M. A., Carlin, B. W., Wanger, J., Pepin, V., Saey, D., Pitta, F., Kaminsky, D. A., McCormack, M. C., MacIntyre, N., Culver, B. H., Sciurba, F. C., … Holland, A. E. (2014). An official systematic review of the European Respiratory Society/American Thoracic Society: measurement properties of field walking tests in chronic respiratory disease. The European respiratory journal, 44(6), 1447–1478. https://doi.org/10.1183/09031936.00150414
Strandberg, T. E., Strandberg, A. Y., Jyväkorpi, S., Urtamo, A., Nyberg, S. T., Frank, P., Pentti, J., Pitkälä, K. H., & Kivimäki, M. (2025). Weight Loss in Midlife, Chronic Disease Incidence, and All-Cause Mortality During Extended Follow-Up. JAMA network open, 8(5), e2511825. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.11825
Vásquez-Gómez, J., Castillo-Retamal, M., Faundez-Casanova, C., Carvalho, R. S., Ramírez-Campillo, R., & Valdés-Badilla, P. (2018). Ecuación para predecir el consumo máximo de oxígeno a partir de la prueba de caminata de seis minutos en jóvenes sanos. Revista medica de Chile, 146(7), 830–838. https://doi.org/10.4067/s0034-98872018000700830
Wang, J. W., Zhu, Z., Shuling, Z., Fan, J., Jin, Y., Gao, Z. L., Chen, W. D., & Li, X. (2024). Effectiveness of mHealth App-Based Interventions for Increasing Physical Activity and Improving Physical Fitness in Children and Adolescents: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 12, e51478. https://doi.org/10.2196/51478
Wang, Y., Yang, X., Deng, J., Wang, Z., Yang, D., Han, Y., & Wang, H. (2024). Combined high-intensity interval and resistance training improves cardiorespiratory fitness more than high-intensity interval training in young women with overweight/obesity: a randomized controlled trial. Frontiers in endocrinology, 15, 1450944. https://doi.org/10.3389/fendo.2024.1450944
World Medical Association (2013). World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki: ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects. JAMA, 310(20), 2191–2194. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2013.281053
Zapata-Lamana, R., Lalanza, J. F., Losilla, J. M., Parrado, E., & Capdevila, L. (2020). mHealth technology for ecological momentary assessment in physical activity research: a systematic review. PeerJ, 8, e8848. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.8848
Zhao Y. (2020). COVID-19 as a catalyst for educational change. Prospects, 49(1-2), 29–33. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-020-09477-y
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Alejandro Flores Aniotz, Daniel Reyes-Molina, César Faúndez-Casanova, Claudio Soto Espíndola, Margarita Rubio Alonso, Sonia García Merino, Igor Cigarroa, Juan Sebastián Cabezas, Rafael Zapata Lamana (Autor/a)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
The works published in this journal are subject to the following terms:
The author retains the economic rights (copyright) of the published works and grants the journal the right of first publication.
The works are published in the electronic edition of the journal under a Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial–ShareAlike license. They may be copied, used, distributed, transmitted, and publicly displayed, provided that: (i) authorship and the original source of publication (journal, publisher, and URL of the work) are cited; (ii) they are not used for commercial purposes; (iii) the existence and specifications of this license are indicated.
Self-archiving conditions. Authors are permitted and encouraged to disseminate electronically the post-print versions (publisher’s version), as this facilitates earlier circulation and dissemination, potentially increasing citation and reach within the academic community. Authors may also deposit their articles in repositories and other platforms that support the dissemination of information, provided that the version used is the post-print (publisher’s version). RoMEO color: Blue.
