Table 7.
Details of treatment studies.
| Study | Focus | Design | Population | Physical Activity Intervention | Comparison(s)/Control(s) | Outcomes and follow up | Results | PA Data (including adherence) | Additional findings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abrantes et al. (2017) USA | Alcohol | Pre-Post | Inactive women with depressive symptoms who were current patients in an alcohol and drug partial hospitalisation programme (N = 20). Age, mean (SD); 39.5 (10.6) | An hour-long consultation session with a PA counsellor who provided short and long-term benefits of increasing PA, utilising PA as a way to manage difficult emotions and alcohol cravings, discussed local opportunities for PA and ways to build it into daily life. They were then oriented with a Fitbit activity tracker, offered tips for monitoring step counts, duration and frequency of PA goals and an initial goal of 4500 steps per week (increasing 500 steps each week). Subsequent weekly/biweekly phone calls from PA counsellor to review progress, problem solve, encourage PA for managing cravings, and discuss maintaining increased PA. | N/A | TLFB (previous 90 days), alcohol use days, % days abstinent, drinks per drinking day | Significant reductions in alcohol use days, % days abstinent, but not for drinks per drinking day (changes remained significant under ITT to assumptions (baseline carried forward)). | Participants significantly increased self-reported minutes of all activity from baseline to follow up, but not MVPA. Average steps per day increased from 5290 at baseline to 9174 at follow up. | Measures of negative affect (PANAS) predicted session attendance. |
| Female (100%) | End of intervention (12 weeks) (n = 15) | No statistically significant differences were observed for cardiorespiratory or body composition measures from baseline to follow up. | |||||||
| Participants wore the FitBit for 73% of days and completed 4.7 of 6 scheduled phone PA counselling sessions | |||||||||
| Brown et al. (2014) USA | Alcohol | Preliminary RCT | Sedentary alcohol dependent adults (N = 49) | Group Aerobic Exercise (AE) (n = 26): Consisting of 1) moderate intensity aerobic exercise, 2) group behavioural treatment, and 3) an incentive system. Weekly exercise group sizes ranged from 2 to 5 and were led by an exercise physiologist who provide information on the benefits of PA. Sessions began at 20 min increasing to 40 min (treadmill, elliptical machine, or recumbent bicycle) by week 12, and were also “prescribed” to engage in moderate PA on 2–3 other occasions each week. Group behavioural treatment consisted of weekly (20 min) session based on cognitive and behavioural techniques for increasing motivation and maintaining PA. $5 was given for each session attended, and for returning a completed weekly PA monitoring form. | Brief advice to exercise (BA-E) (n = 23): 20-min discussion of the psychological and physical benefits of PA and provided a written summary of this information. Participants were reimbursed to monetary value similar to the AE group, but it was not contingent on attendance or completion of self-monitoring. | TLFB (previous 90 weeks) number of drinking days, and number of heavy drinking days. End of intervention (12 weeks), 24 weeks | AE reported significantly fewer drinking days and heavy drinking days relative to BA-E, but this difference was not sustained during the follow up period. | Participants attended an average of 8.44 (SD = 4.12) out of 12 sessions. 62% met criteria for adherence of attending 8 or more sessions. AE participants reported higher levels of PA during treatment and follow up compared to BA-E, but was not statistically significant. Adherent participants reported significantly greater levels of PA than BA-E during intervention, but not follow up. | Those who showed high adherence to PA in the AE group demonstrated significantly lower drinking days than those who had low adherence and those in the BA-E group but had significantly higher heavy drinking days than the BA-E group. |
| Age, mean (SD); 44.37 (10.75) | |||||||||
| Male (55%) | |||||||||
| Brown et al. (2010) USA | Other drugs | Pre-Post | Sedentary drug dependent adults engaged in outpatient substance abuse treatment (N = 16) | 3 components: 1) moderate intensity group exercise, 2) group behavioural treatment and 3) an incentive system. Weekly exercise sessions were led by an exercise physiologist. Sessions began at 20 min increasing to 40 min (treadmill, elliptical machine, or recumbent bicycle) by week 12, and were also “prescribed” to engage in moderate PA on 2–3 other occasions each week. Group behavioural treatment consisted of weekly (20 min) session based on cognitive and behavioural techniques for increasing motivation and maintaining PA. $5 was given for each session attended, and for returning a completed weekly PA monitoring form. | N/A | TLFB (previous 90 days) to collect alcohol and drug use outcomes (Percent days abstinent). End of intervention (12 weeks), 24 weeks | Two thirds of the sample remained abstinent throughout the intervention. Percent days abstinent significantly increased during the intervention period compared to the pre-treatment period and a trend for increased percent days abstinent at 3-month post intervention. | Participants attended an average of 8.6 (SD = 3.9) weekly exercise sessions out of 12; averaged 3.9 (SD = 1.1) days of exercise per week during the intervention; and engaged in 209 (SD = 180) minutes of PA and 147 (SD = 100) minutes of MVPA. | Low-attenders (less than 75% of session) were significantly more likely to relapse than high attenders (80% vs 20% respectively). |
| Age, mean (SD); 38.3 (10.1) | Cardiorespiratory measure significantly improved from baseline to 3 month follow up. | ||||||||
| Male (69%) | |||||||||
| Buchowski et al. (2011b) USA | Other drugs | Pre-Post | Sedentary non-treatment seeking cannabis dependent adults (N = 12). | 10 supervised 30-min treadmill exercise sessions (60–70% heart rate reserve) over 2 weeks | N/A | TLFB (previous 2 weeks) amount of cannabis used. End of intervention (2 weeks), 4 weeks | Daily cannabis use reduced significantly during the intervention and for follow up compared to the baseline. | The goal of 10 planned exercise sessions was met by all participants, with an average intensity of each exercise session in the moderate range (65–75% of age-predicted heart rate). | Significant pre-post exercise reductions in cannabis craving (averaged over 10 sessions, no cumulative effect) |
| Age, mean (SD); 25 (3) | |||||||||
| Female (66.7%) | |||||||||
| Burling et al. (1992) USA | Alcohol and other drugs | Non-RCT (3 arm) | Veterans of a residential program for homelessness and substance abuse (N = 34). | Voluntary participation (alongside the residential treatment program) in a softball team playing league games once a week over 6 months, with twice weekly practices, and a weekly team meeting to discuss individual and team issues such as attitudes and behaviours. | Comparison A: 102 veterans admitted to the same treatment program who chose not to participate in the softball team and remained in treatment for at least 30 days. | Length of stay, participation in outpatient treatment, dur/alcohol use. During residential treatment, and 3 months post-discharge | Softball team members (67.6% followed up) reported significantly higher abstinence rates at 3 months post discharge (91.3% compared to 55.74% in comparison B, not data for comparison group A). Even when assuming those lost to follow up as relapsed, softball team members still showed significantly higher abstinence rates at 3 months (61.76% vs 41.46%) | No data. | Softball team members stayed in treatment significantly longer than both comparison groups. They were also significantly more likely to complete a 13-week outpatient program after discharge. |
| Age, mean (SD); 38.85 (6.87) | Comparison B: 82 veterans admitted to the same treatment programme one year earlier and remained in treatment for at least 30 days | ||||||||
| Male (97.1%) | |||||||||
| Colledge et al. (2017) Switzerland | Alcohol and other drugs | Pilot RCT | People attending a heroin assisted treatment clinic (N = 24). | Exercise group (EX): 12 weeks offering two parallel exercise groups offered on two evenings a week following dispensing of diacetylmorphine. One group offered moderate to vigorous varied activities (including climbing, badminton, strength training and dance), the other group included walking with occasional coordination games for those less physically able for with a dislike of sports. Participation, not fitness, was the aim. (n = 13) | Comparison group: Scheduled at the same time as the EX group with the same frequency. Activities included board games, painting, cooking, museum visits, and billiard games. (n = 11) | TLFB (previous 30 days) total numbers of days consuming any alcohol or substances (including unprescribed medication). 6 weeks, 12 weeks | No differences were found for any substances between groups, across time, or group X time. | Number of vigorous PA minutes per day significantly increased in the EX condition compared to the comparison group. | Comparison group showed higher levels on ‘non-compliance’. |
| Age, mean (SD), EX: 42.7 (6.5); Comparison: 45.8 (4.2), | |||||||||
| Male, EX (69.2%), comparison (62.5%) | Neither group received advice to change their exercise or substance consumption habits. | 38.5% of participants attended at least 18 of 23 sessions, 53.8% attended between 5 and 17 sessions, 7.7% attended fewer than 5 sessions. | |||||||
| Cutter et al. (2014) USA | Other drugs | Pilot RCT | People attending a non-profit community-based organisation specializing in opioid dependence treatment receiving methadone maintenance therapy (N = 29). | Active video game play: Participants completed 5 active video games on the Wii Fit Plus (two aerobic, one strength, one balance, and one yoga) taking between 20 and 25 min 5 days per week for 8 weeks. (n = 15) | Sedentary game play: Participants played inactive video games for a atched amount of time and frequency to the active video game play group. (n = 14) | The Weekly Substance Use Inventory collected weekly detailed daily drug and alcohol use. Weekly urine toxicology screens tested for morphine, oxycodone, and cocaine. Baseline and weekly for 8 weeks | Significant reductions in self -reported levels of illicit opioid and cocaine use over time, but the reduction did not differ by group, nor was there a significant interaction with group by time. | Those in active video gameplay self-reported significantly higher levels overall of MVPA outside of the Wii Fit Plus sessions than those in the sedentary game play group. | There was no significant difference between groups for days retained in treatment. |
| Age, mean (SD) 43.4 (8.5) | |||||||||
| Female (59%) | Participants in both arms attended over 65% of scheduled sessions. | ||||||||
| De La Garza et al. (2016) USA | Other drugs | RCT (3 arm) | Treatment seeking people with concurrent cocaine and tobacco use disorder with no contraindications for vigorous PA. (N = 24). | Running: Three 30-min sessions per week for 4 weeks. Treadmill running at 75% of maximum heart rate. During each visit individuals also completed computerised CBT modules specifically designed for cocaine addiction. Contingency management: Up to $700 was reimbursed to participants if they attended all session. All participants were given a new pair of running shoes, socks, running shorts, and t-shirt at the beginning which they could keep upon completion of the study (n = 10) | Walking: Three 30-min sessions per week for 4 weeks. Treadmill walking at 25% of maximum heart rate. Plus other components of running group. (n = 7) | Daily measure of urine benzoylecgonine (to indicate cocaine use); once daily self-reported (yes/no) cocaine use in past 24 h. Three times weekly for 4 weeks | Non-significant increase in negative cocaine urines and self-report cocaine use in favour of exercising groups, with walking showing slightly larger improvements. When walking and running combined into one group, significant difference in number of self-reported abstinence in favour of exercise. No difference in pre-post craving. | All participants achieved their calculated target heart rate during sessions. | Non significant reductions in pre-post exercise self-reported cravings (VAS 0–100). |
| Age, mean (SD); Running 43.4 (7.4); walking 45.6 (1.6); sitting 45.7 (5.2); Male; Running (90%), walking (71.4%), sitting (71.4%) | Sitting/Control: Sitting passively for a matched duration and frequency without access to reading materials, mobile phone, or internet. Plus other components of running group. (n = 7) | ||||||||
| Over 90% retention in the exercise program. | |||||||||
| Donaghy (1997) Scotland | Alcohol | RCT | Problem drinkers attending an abstinence rehabilitation programme at 4 sites (2 inpatient and 2 outpatient) (N = 165). Original power analysis aimed for n = 120. | Trained physiotherapists led 30 min supervised group exercise sessions twice a week for three weeks. Participants maintained aerobic activity at 70–75% of maximum heart rate for at least 20 min at each session. Participants were encouraged to engage in walking, sports (such as badminton or football) and encouraged to use the gym facilities at the physiotherapy department. After 3 weeks, participants were given a 12 week home based exercise programme consisting of a booklet comprising illustrations of exercises, instructions, tables for setting goals and monitoring heart rate, designed to enable the problem drinker to continue to exercise independently at home following discharge from the rehabilitation programme. A 30-min tape with rhythmical music and voice over with the exercise instructions | Participants were instructed in a 30-min programme twice a week for 3 weeks that included some gentle stretching exercises of trunk and limbs, and breathing exercises. After 3 weeks, participants were given a tape with soft relaxation music and voice over with instructions for trunk and limb stretching and breathing exercises. | Blood samples to test for alcohol use, and self-reported alcohol use. Baseline, 1, 2, and 5 months | Blood samples and self-report showed no improvement in abstinence in the exercise group from 1 month to 2 months, and from 2 months to 5 months compared to control. Chi squared tests at each time point comparing the proportion of participants in each group reporting abstinence/controlled drinking vs uncontrolled drinking showed no differences at any time point. | The intervention group showed improved physiological fitness at 1,2 amd 5 months compared to control. The intervention group reported higher physical activity levels at 2 months than control, but not at 1 or 5 months. | |
| Age, mean (SD); females, 41 (7.77), males, 41 (8.67) | |||||||||
| Male (76.4 | |||||||||
| Giesen et al. (2016) Germany | Alcohol | Non-RCT (3 arm) | Currently abstinent patients with severe alcohol dependence in a long term residential facility (N = 44) | Usual care plus VIVA-Active Program: (1) aerobic exercise (indoor and aqua cycling) Participants were encouraged to exercise at moderate to vigorous intensity. Each session lasted 60 min; (2) functional training (strengthening, coordination, and flexibility exercises; (3) experience orientated group events (e.g. bicycle tours, canoeing, or other day trips). Participant were encouraged to attend twice a week, with two group events per year. 12 months intervention period. (n = 22) | Usual care control: (1) medical including basic care and specialist care; (2) resource-orientated social treatment = , including counselling and milieu therapy; and (3) occupational therapy, suburb or outside of the facility in sheltered workshops. (n = 22) | Relapse to drinking at least once during the 12 months. Collected via data from the residential facility. | During the 12 months among the active and adherent participants (n = 14) no one relapsed to drinking alcohol, whereas four patients in the control group (n = 18) and three of the dropout candidates (n = 8) had a relapse to drinking alcohol. | 14 out of 22 residents attended over the 12-month observation period. | Programme contributed to enhanced quality of life. |
| Age, mean (SD), EX: 52.14 (8.08); Comparison: 54.63 (9.41), | Healthy matched control group with no history of alcohol dependence (n = 24) | ||||||||
| Male, EX (78.6%), comparison (73.7%) | “The majority of participants attended twice a week”. | ||||||||
| Data collected objectively via a sensory armband showed a significant increase in PA levels (steps and kcal expenditure) per week from baseline to follow up for the intervention group, whereas both control remained the same. | |||||||||
| Hallgren et al. (2014) Sweden | Alcohol | Pilot RCT | Alcohol dependent adults attending an outpatient alcohol treatment clinic (N = 18). | Treatment as usual plus 10-week yoga intervention (1.5 h group sessions once per week led by an experienced yoga teacher). Participants were also given instructions on how to continue yoga practice at home and encouraged to complete it once per day. | Treatment as usual: individual counselling sessions with a CBT focus (1 h per week with a medical doctor or psychologist) and the prescription of medication for alcohol dependence as required. | TLFB (time period not reported): drinks per drinking day and weekly consumption (in number of standard drinks equivalent to 12 g of pure ethanol). Baseline and 6 months | Both groups decreased number of drinks per drinking day and drinks per week with greater reductions in the yoga group, but the differences were not statistically significant. | None reported. | |
| Linke et al. (2019) USA | Alcohol and other drugs | PrePost | Veterans seeking SUD treatment through an outpatient drug and alcohol programme at the VA San Diego Healthcare System (n = 15). | The ‘Go-Var!’ programme, grounded in the Socio-Ecological Model. A 12 week intervention consisting of (1) Weekly 90 min psychoeducation classes led by a licensed psychologist focussed on how exercise can aid recovery, motivation and goal setting for exercise, barriers to exercise, and exercise maintenance, (2) YMCA memberships and weekly group exercise sessions, and (3) provision of a FitBit Charge HR for self-monitoring. | N/A | TLFB (previous 30 days prior to most recent decision to stop using at baseline; and previous 90 days at 12 week follow up). Baseline and end of intervention (12 weeks). | Significant reductions from baseline to follow up for days of alcohol use per month, number of drinks per day, and days of drug use per month. | Significant increases in number of steps as measured by FitBit and in two measures of physical fitness (push ups and sit ups) at follow up compared to baseline. | |
| Age, mean (SD): 45 (9.67); Male (87%) | Of 15 participants, 11 completed follow up, attending an average of 6.8 of 12 weekly psychoeducation groups. No data on gym use. | ||||||||
| Mamen et al. (2011) Norway | Alcohol and other drugs | Pre-Post | Substance dependent individuals all polyusers (including alcohol) admitted to an outpatient unit of a hospital psychiatry department. (N = 33). Age, mean (SD): 31.2 (9.9) | An intervention (mean length of training 7.5 months, range 2–15 months) with training conducted on an almost daily basis. Each participant had a training partner assigned to them who had completed a course in applied physiology and psychiatry and helped with planning and monitoring. Training focussed on improving aerobic capacity/power and endurance strength and included jogging, cycling, cross-country skiing, and swimming; and group activities such as aerobics, mountain hiking, and ball games. | N/A | The Short Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (SMAST): a 13 item “yes/no” response inventory where three or more “yes” responses indicate alcoholism. | No changes in mean scores for either measure from baseline to follow up. | Participants performed an average of 301 (±16) hours of physical training. 74% (±3%) was low intensity training below the lactate threshold. Participants showed improvements in VO2 max relative to body weight. No change in BMI was observed. | |
| Male (78.8%) | The Drug Abuse Screening Test-20 (DAST); a 20-item self-administered screening inventory with “yes/no” responses where 11 or more “yes responses indicate a substantial level of use. Collected at baseline, and upon discharge from treatment | ||||||||
| Rawson et al. (2015) USA | Other drugs | RCT | Methamphetamine dependent individuals newly entered into residential treatment (N = 135). | Exercise intervention: Structured exercise programme 3 time a week for 8 weeks. Sessions consisted of 5 min warm up, 30 min of treadmill exercise to maintain heart rate at 60–85% of maximum, followed by 15 min of incremental weight training, finished with a 5-min cool down. (n = 69) | Health education control: 55-min health education sessions 3 times a week for 8 weeks delivered by a trained health educator covering topics including stress reduction, health screening, healthy relationships, and sexually transmitted diseases. Consisted of facilitator discussion, handouts and media. (n = 66) | MA urine drug screen, self-reported MA use (substance use inventory). 1, 3, and 6 months post residential care | Exercise group showed moderately lower MA use rates at all follow ups reported by both urine drug screens and self-report, however these differences were not significantly different. | Participants attended an average of 17.4 (SD = 7.3 sessions. Participants who attended 16 or more sessions were significantly less likely to self-report MA use and 1, 3, and 6 months. Urine drug screens also showed high attenders more likely to be abstinent at all time points. There was no relationship between attendance at control sessions and MA use. | Lower severity MA use (<18 days in past 30 at baseline) group in exercise intervention showed significantly better outcomes in abstinence rates at all follow ups compared to lower use groups in health education control. |
| Age, mean (SD): 31.7 (6.9) | Those who were abstinent 1 month post discharge report significantly more PA than those who were not. Those with lower MA dependence more frequently engaged in PA. | ||||||||
| Male (80%) | |||||||||
| Roessler et al. (2017) Denmark | Alcohol | RCT (3 arm) | Individuals with harmful of dependent alcohol drinking levels attending outpatient treatment centres. (N = 175). Age, mean (SD): 45 (11.3) | Treatment as usual plus individual exercise: participants received a written training programme with running instructions encouraging twice weekly exercise during an individual session prior to start. This was followed up once or twice during the intervention period if requested. Participants requested to record exercise activity use wrist worn heart rate monitors. (n = 60) | Treatment as usual plus supervised group exercise: provided with running instruction depending on level of experience and 24 weeks of group exercise twice a week supervised by running instructors with backgrounds in sport science and psychology. Participants requested to record exercise activity use wrist worn heart rate monitors. (n = 62) | TLFB (previous 30 days), % alcohol free days, number of drinks per day, number of heavy drinking days. Baseline, 6 months, 12 months | At six months all groups showed marked reduction in excessive drinking with no differences between groups. The OR for reduced drinks per drinking day for individual exercise group (0.39 [0.15; 1.01] approached significance (p = 0.059) | No adherence data. A dose response effect was observed – alcohol consumption reduced by 4% for each increased exercising day in the intervention groups. | All participants (across groups) who reported completing moderate PA had significantly lower OR (0.12 [0.05; 0.31], p < 0.001) for excessive drinking than those reporting low levels of PA. Dose response: amount of alcohol consumption in the intervention groups decreased by 4% [95% CI: 0.03–6.8%], p < 0.0015, for each increased exercising day. |
| Male (68.6%) | Control group: participants were asked not to change their PA levels. (n = 53) | ||||||||
| Shaffer et al. (1997) USA | Other drugs | RCT | Individuals enrolled in an outpatient methadone maintenance programme (N = 59). | Usual care plus yoga intervention: 75-min instructor led hatha yoga sessions over 22 weeks. Frequency not reported. | Usual care: (1) methadone maintenance for 5 months; (2) Individual psychotherapy, and (3) Group Psychotherapy | Weekly report cards from the clinic detailing illicit drug use. Up to 5 months post baseline. | Remaining in treatment longer was positively correlated with reduced drug use (r = .12, p < 001) regardless of group. There were no differences on outcomes by group. | Participants attended an average of 8.18 intervention sessions compared to 10.42 usual care sessions. | |
| Age, years: 35.92; range 23–46. | |||||||||
| Male, n = 25, female n = 24 | |||||||||
| (Sinyor et al. (1982) Canada | Alcohol | Non-RCT (3 arm) | Individuals resident an inpatient rehabilitation centre for alcoholics (N = 58). | All participants took part in usual care consisting of several hours of daily intensive group therapy and counselling and urged to become members of alcoholics anonymous following release from the programme. Fitness classes took place early each weekday morning for 6 weeks, consisting of 20 min stretching and warm up, progressing to light calisthenics, followed by a 12-min walk/run (with residents encouraged to cover greater distances in shorter time spans) followed by 20 min of muscle strengthening exercises such as sit ups and push ups. | Cohort of patients who attended the same centre prior to the introduction of the fitness programme. (N = 19) | Participants were contacted by a researcher 3 months after discharge to confirm abstinence. Abstinence was corroborated by work colleagues or family members. 3 months. | 69.3% were still abstinent at 3 months who took part in the fitness programme, compared to 38% of those who were there before the fitness programme, and 36.9% of people who attended other treatment centres. | Intervention participants significantly reduced body fat %, increased VO2 max, and decreased basal heart rate. | |
| Age, mean: 42. | Cohort of patients attending other treatment centres without a fitness programme in Quebec at the same time as the intervention group (N = 80) | ||||||||
| Male (79.3%) | |||||||||
| Trivedi et al. (2017) USA | Other drugs | RCT | Adult stimulant users in residential stimulant abuse treatment (average stay just under 3 weeks) across 9 residential treatment addiction centres (N = 302). | Exercise intervention: Supervised treadmill exercise sessions 3 times a week for 12 weeks during the acute phase (at a dose of 12 kilocalories*kilogram of body weight*week). The maximum intensity for most participants was equivalent to walking at a moderate speed and incline for approximately 150 min per week. Extra sessions were scheduled for participants who needed extra sessions to achieve this dose. | Health education intervention: Matching the exercise intervention for contact time and frequency. One to one session in which informatin on health related topics (e.g. cancer, heart disease, mental health) was distributed via didactics, websites, audio, video, and written materials (exercise was not a topic). | TLFB for self reported drug use, and urine drug screens; % of stimulant abstinent days during weeks 4–12 (after leaving residential treatment). Collected 3 times a week at all study visits | No difference in any outcome between groups in any planned analysis, including with ITT (imputing missing data as positive for stimulant use) | Participants in the intervention group attended 64.0% (SD = 30.4%) of expected intervention sessions. Participants completed 69.2% of the prescribed exercise dose (i.e. approximately 79 min per week). | Post hoc analysis, adjusting for percent of sessions attended (exercise group attended 64.0% (SD 30.4%) and health education control attended 74.7% (SD28.7%), the adjusted proportion of abstinent days was 78.7% (SE = 0.02%) for the exercise group, and 73.9% (SE = 0.02%) for the health education group, a modest significant difference in favour of the exercise group (p = 0.03). Number needed to treat: 7.2. |
| Age, mean (SD): 39.0 (11) | |||||||||
| Male (60%) | |||||||||
| Weinstock et al. (2008) USA | Alcohol and other drugs | Retrospective controlled study | New admissions to intensive outpatient treatment for substance use disorders (including alcohol) (N = 187). Age, mean (SD): Exercisers, 36 (6.2); Non-exercisers, 35.4 (7.2). | Exercisers: identified retrospectively from a study involving contingency management for remaining abstinent and for completing 3 goal related activities a week over a 12-week intervention. Goals were coded as “exercise-related” or not, and those who completed at least one exercise related goal (objectively verified) were classed as exercisers. (n = 45) | Non-exercisers: sampled from the same study but were individuals who did not complete any exercise-related goals as part of the contingency management intervention. (n = 142) | Participants submitted breath and urine samples to confirm abstinence from alcohol, cocaine, and opioids to earn reinforcement for drug abstinence. Collected every 1–3 days during study period. | After controlling for all other variables, those who completed at least one exercise related activity achieved a longer duration of abstinence (6.04 (SD = 0.43) weeks) compared to those who did complete any exercise activity (4.75 (SD = 0.34) weeks) (p < 0.01) during the 12 week study period. | No data. | |
| Male: Exercisers (53.3%), non-exercisers (38.7) |