Linking Churches With Parks to Increase Physical Activity Among Latinos

Engaging in regular physical activity (PA) contributes to positive health outcomes, including
longevity, better quality of life, and reduced incidence of cardiovascular diseases,
diabetes, depression, certain cancers, and obesity; however, only a minority of U.S. adults
meet the minimum guidelines for moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA), and Latinos are less likely
than whites to report meeting the guidelines. Public parks comprise local infrastructure that
can be leveraged for community PA, but tend to be underutilized, particularly in low-income
communities. Parks in low-income and minority communities tend to have less PA programming,
especially targeting adults, and higher crime and other factors that affect park use. There
is a need for interventions that address community concerns, target the built environment,
and "activate" park use. Churches are credible, stable entities that have significant reach
within Latino communities and a history of social service provision and advocacy related to
health and well-being. The investigators' prior research has found that church-based
interventions can be effective across a wide range of health issues and types of churches.
This study combines approaches from the research team's extensive prior work with churches
and parks to conduct a cluster randomized controlled trial of a multi-level intervention that
links Latino Catholic churches (n=14) with their local parks to increase PA among Latino
parishioners (n=1204) in Los Angeles. The specific aims are to: (1) Examine the impact of a
multi-level church-based intervention that links Catholic parishes to their local parks on
Latino parishioners' PA and health-related outcomes (effects on parishioners' MVPA and
self-reported PA, heart rate/fitness, waist circumference, waist to hip ratio, body fat,
mental health, and perceived social support for PA); (2) Explore differences in the
effectiveness of the intervention by gender; and (3) Evaluate factors associated with
intervention implementation (facilitators, barriers, fidelity, and replication costs) for
future dissemination. The approach targets multiple levels to promote health-enhancing PA
through park-based fitness classes led by kinesiology students, peer leader-led walking
groups, park-based church events, and church-based PA support activities. It integrates
churches' vast social networks, moral authority, and influence with parks' structural and
organizational capacity and kinesiology student interns' professional expertise. The
intervention makes use of innovative partnerships within and across sectors - faith-based,
local parks/city government, and local universities. The inter-sectoral, collaborative
approach makes the intervention scalable and sustainable in real-world settings and
incorporates action at multiple levels (individuals, churches, and neighborhoods). To the
investigators' knowledge, this will be the first study to examine the effectiveness of an
integrated church and park-based intervention on Latinos' PA, and it will provide a
sustainable model of PA programming in low-income communities. If the intervention proves
effective, the increased community capacity through this partnership will lay the groundwork
for scale-up across the largest diocese in the U.S. and, potentially, the nation.

Inclusion Criteria:

- Does not currently meet physical activity guidelines (150 minutes per week)

- Regularly attends study church

- Does not have health condition that would preclude physical activity

Exclusion Criteria:

- Regularly engages in 150 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous physical activity

- Does not regularly attend study church

- Has health condition that would preclude physical activity