Pragmatic Replication Trial of Health Promotion Coaching for Obesity in Serious Mental Illness and Maintenance of Outcomes

Objective:Few studies targeting obesity in serious mental illness have reported clinically significant risk reduction, and none have been replicated in community settings or demonstrated sustained outcomes after intervention withdrawal. The authors sought to replicate positive health outcomes demonstrated in a previous randomized effectiveness study of the In SHAPE program across urban community mental health organizations serving an ethnically diverse population.Method:Persons with serious mental illness and a body mass index (BMI) >25 receiving services in three community mental health organizations were recruited and randomly assigned either to the 12-month In SHAPE program, which included membership in a public fitness club and weekly meetings with a health promotion coach, or to fitness club membership alone. The primary outcome measures were weight and cardiorespiratory fitness (as measured with the 6-minute walk test), assessed at baseline and at 3, 6, 9, 12, and 18 months.Results:Participants (N=2...