Increasing physical activity with African-American women using Facebook™ and Pedometers

More than 80 percent of African American women struggle with overweight and obesity. We implemented a 5-week physical activity intervention using Facebook (TM) and pedometers with African American women. Twenty-seven African American women participated in a single-group pre/post design intervention to promote walking and physical activity. Participants were given access to a private Facebook (TM) group along with a free Omron Alvita pedometer. The five-week intervention challenged participants to increase weekly daily steps and the number of days they were physically active. At the end of the intervention, participants had significantly increased their weekly steps by 190% as compared to baseline (p = .005). Nearly, 80% of participants reported being active two or more days per week as compared to baseline (35.7%). Technologies such as social media and pedometers can assist in educating individuals and improving physical activity. These findings are relevant to public health nurses when implementing programs to increase physical activity for African American women.