| 英文摘要 |
Physical activity is beneficial for health. But it must followed by the principles of exercise prescription which are exercise frequency, intensity, time and type. And the exercise intensity is the most critical factor in health promotion. Among the variety of physical activity, walking is not only economical and simple, but also easy for the general public to execute regularly. However, the effect of exercise intensity of walking which improve health still needs further clarification. The exercise intensity must be controlled in moderate to vigorous physical activity level to ensure the health promotion effect. Nevertheless, equipments or instruments are usually required in monitoring intensity which insufficient of convenience and difficult to use for ordinary people. Hence, it seems necessary to develop a simple and easy ways to monitoring exercise intensity. The present study reviewed articles about the numbers of steps per minute (step rate) in walking. The purpose was to explore the relationship between step rate and metabolic equivalents (METs), and to provide the indicator of walking exercise intensity. Previous evidences indicated that step rate is a idea predictor of METs (R2= .71 to R2= .85). Accordingly, step rate might be an effective indicator of exercise intensity. In 21 to 32 years adults, the average step rates were corresponded to moderate and vigorous physical activity (3 and 6 METs). Males’ step rates were 99 and 124 steps/min, and females’ were 108 and 134 steps/min. However, the accuracy of prediction was also influenced by body type, genders and exercise settings. Especially height and leg length should be taken into account in future applications or researches. |
