Backpack Weight Impacts

NCT04249986 | Completed DMC

• 1 other identifier: 2019126
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 20
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Backpacking is an increasingly popular outdoor recreational activity. The base pack weight (BPW) includes gear that is not consumed or worn on the body: shelter, sleep system, weather-proofing layers and personal gear to ensure a degree of comfort and safety. As such, reducing BPW is one of the most important tasks a backpacker manages when preparing for a trip. Available recommendations for ideal BPW are currently inconsistent, lack clear parameters, and rely on anecdotal evidence. The study aims to collect field data on perceived exertion and heart rate (HR) in relation to BPW during a day-long interval of hiking. Such findings can have implications on the cost and safety profiles extending from recreational backpacking to military and wilderness rescue operations.

Conditions

Exertion; Excess

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion During the Total Hike

  Participants will report their perceived exertion towards the end of both hikes. The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion scale ranges from 6 to 20. 6 being the lowest score of no exertion and 20 being the highest of maximal exertion.

  2 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Heart Rate

  2 weeks

• The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion During Incline and Decline Sections of the participant

  2 weeks

Study Arms (2)

The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion between 17 and 19 lb BPW

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants will be randomized to both 17 and 19 pounds for the first hike and the alternate condition for the second hike. A random number generator will create 1 block that includes 10 participants in each block to ensure comparable numbers to subjects starting at different base backpack weight. Participants assignments will then be included in a sealed manila envelopes.

Behavioral: The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion

The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion between 19 and 17 lb BPW

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants will be randomized to both 19 or 17 pounds for the first hike and the alternate condition for the second hike. A random number generator will create 1 block that includes 10 participants in each block to ensure comparable numbers to subjects starting at different base backpack weight. Participants assignments will then be included in a sealed manila envelopes.

Behavioral: The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion

Interventions

The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion BEHAVIORAL

Participants who satisfy the exclusion criteria and health assessment instrument are categorized in the lowest risk group for cardiac events and does not require medical screening for mild to moderate exercise per ACSM guidelines.

The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion between 17 and 19 lb BPW; The Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion between 19 and 17 lb BPW

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 65 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Only adult (age 18-65)
• Have gone on at least two overnight backpacking trips in the past 5 years
• Have hiked at least 8 miles in a day on one of those trips

You may not qualify if:

• Lower extremity injuries or surgeries in the past 6-months
• Daily Smokers
• Chronic medical problems:
• Hypertension
• High cholesterol
• Diabetes
• Heart attack
• Heart surgery, cardiac catheterization, or coronary angioplasty
• Pacemaker/implantable cardiac defibrillator/rhythm disturbance
• Heart valve disease
• Heart failure
• Heart transplantation
• Congenital heart disease
• Kidney disease
• Back pain

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of California, San Francisco: lead

Study Sites (1)

UCSF Fresno

Fresno, California, 93703, United States

Location

Study Officials

• Susanne Spano, MD

  University of California, San Francisco

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: DOUBLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: January 24, 2020
• First Posted: January 31, 2020
• Study Start: February 21, 2020
• Primary Completion: July 1, 2024
• Study Completion: July 1, 2024
• Last Updated: August 5, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-08

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)