Steps Ahead, Adapting Physical Activity Guidelines for the Lower Mississippi Delta Population

"This group will receive dietary counseling to reduce their overall dietary food intake by 100 kcal/day, as prescribed by the dietary guidelines for the prevention of weight gain, and to follow an adapted eating pattern (to be determined from formative research in Phase I research).~The education sessions will be organized into two phases: an initial adoption phase and a subsequent adherence phase. During the adoption phase, participants will meet for one session per week for the first four weeks. During this session their interim weight will be recorded before they receive their session. During the adherence phase, participants will be contacted by telephone biweekly by a trained interventionist."

The physical activity education sessions will be organized into two phases: an initial adoption phase and a subsequent adherence phase. The adoption phase will be for 1 hour and 45 minutes for the first 4 weeks with classes occurring once per week in conjunction with the DG education classes. During the adoption phase, participants monitor their own walking using pedometers and attend weekly group meetings to review the previous week's walking behaviors, discuss preferred strategies for success, and set personally relevant and incremental steps/day goals. During the adherence phase (the remaining 8 weeks), participants will continue with their self-monitoring and goal-setting (using their pedometers), with reduced contact with the study interventionists over the telephone (biweekly).