Precision and accuracy of an ankle-worn accelerometer-based pedometer in step counting and energy expenditure
Abstract
Background Walking is a widely used approach to increase physical activity levels in obese patients. In this paper, we investigate the precision and accuracy of an ankle-worn dual-axis accelerometer (Stepwatch) and investigate its potential application as a predictor of energy expenditure.Methods Twenty healthy subjects (10 lean, 10 obese) wore spring-levered (Accusplit), piezoelectric (Omron HF-100), and Stepwatch pedometers. Subjects walked on a treadmill at 1, 2, and 3 mph and in a hallway at 1 and 1.85 mph, during which energy expenditure was measured.Results The Stepwatch counted 99.7 +/- 0.67% (mean +/- SEM) of the manual counts. In comparison, the Omron pedometer counted 61 +/- 3.3% and the Accusplit counted 26 +/- 2.8% of the manual counts at 1 mph although all pedometers were accurate (> 98% of counts) at 3 mph. In repeated measures, the Stepwatch produced negligible variance (SD = 0.36) over all speed whereas the other pedometers showed a large amount of variance at all speed (SD = 4-13). Stepwatch counts were predictive of walking energy expenditure corrected by weight (r2 > 0.8).Conclusion The counts from the Stepwatch were virtually identical to the manual counts from a trained investigator and provided a reliable predictor of walking energy expenditure.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The StepWatch 3, worn on the ankle, is the most accurate step counter for walking.
“The most accurate step counter for walking is the StepWatch 3 device, worn on the ankle [23, 24].”
From Step Counting: A Review of Measurement Considerations and Health-Related Applications (2017) · cites this paper as [23]
Cites
Obesity : Preventing and managing the global epidemic
Akram, D. S., Astrup, A. V., Atinmo, T., Boissin, J.-L., Bray, G. A., Carroll, K. N., Chitson, P., Chen, C., Dietz, W. H., Hill, J. O., et al. (2000) · Research at the University of Copenhagen (University of Copenhagen) · Cited by 12,945 · see citing works
Physical Activity and Health: A Report of the Surgeon General
(1995) · PsycEXTRA Dataset · doi:10.1037/e525162010-001 · Cited by 5,488 · see citing works
Obesity and the Environment: Where Do We Go from Here?
Hill, J. O., Wyatt, H. R., Reed, G. W., & Peters, J. C. (2003) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1079857 · Cited by 2,180 · see citing works
Validity of 10 Electronic Pedometers for Measuring Steps, Distance, and Energy Cost
CROUTER, S. E., SCHNEIDER, P. L., KARABULUT, M., & BASSETT, D. R. (2003) · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · doi:10.1249/01.mss.0000078932.61440.a2 · Cited by 899 · see citing works
Interindividual variation in posture allocation: possible role in human obesity
Levine, J. A., Lanningham-Foster, L. M., McCrady, S. K., Krizan, A. C., Olson, L. R., Kane, P. H., Jensen, M. D., & Clark, M. M. (2005) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1106561 · Cited by 705 · see citing works
Self-citationAccuracy of five electronic pedometers for measuring distance walked
BASSETT, D. R., AINSWORTH, B. E., LEGGETT, S. R., MATHIEN, C. A., MAIN, J. A., HUNTER, D. C., & DUNCAN, G. E. (1996) · Medicine &amp Science in Sports &amp Exercise · doi:10.1097/00005768-199608000-00019 · Cited by 552 · see citing works
Commercially available pedometers: considerations for accurate step counting
Melanson, E. L., Knoll, J. R., Bell, M. L., Donahoo, W. T., Hill, J. O., Nysse, L. J., Lanningham‐Foster, L., Peters, J. C., & Levine, J. A. (2004) · Preventive Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.ypmed.2004.01.032 · Cited by 280 · see citing works
Self-citationVariability of some objective measures of physical activity
Gretebeck, R. J., & Montoye, H. J. (1992) · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · doi:10.1249/00005768-199210000-00016 · Cited by 212 · see citing works
Nonexercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT): environment and biology
Levine, J. A. (2004) · American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism · doi:10.1152/ajpendo.00562.2003 · Cited by 212 · see citing works
Self-citationMethods to assess physical activity with special reference to motion sensors and accelerometers
Meijer, G. A. L., Westerterp, K. R., Verhoeven, F. M. H., Koper, H. B. M., & ten Hoor, F. (1991) · IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering · doi:10.1109/10.133202 · Cited by 162 · see citing works
Labor Saved, Calories Lost: The Energetic Impact of Domestic Labor‐saving Devices
Lanningham‐Foster, L., Nysse, L. J., & Levine, J. A. (2003) · Obesity Research · doi:10.1038/oby.2003.162 · Cited by 156 · see citing works
Self-citationPedometer-determined ambulatory activity in individuals with type 2 diabetes
Tudor-Locke, C. E., Bell, R. C., Myers, A. M., Harris, S. B., Lauzon, N., & Rodger, N. W. (2002) · Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice · doi:10.1016/s0168-8227(01)00317-5 · Cited by 108 · see citing works
Validation of the Tracmor triaxial accelerometer system for walking
Levine, J. A., Baukol, P., & Westerterp, K. R. (2001) · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · doi:10.1097/00005768-200109000-00024 · Cited by 102 · see citing works
Self-citationMeasurement of the components of nonexercise activity thermogenesis
Levine, J. A., Melanson, E. L., Westerterp, K. R., & Hill, J. O. (2001) · American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism · doi:10.1152/ajpendo.2001.281.4.e670 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
Self-citationEffects of a Minimal Intervention to Increase Physical Activity in Women
Speck, B. J., & Looney, S. W. (2001) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-200111000-00008 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
A Review of Accelerometry-Based Wearable Motion Detectors for Physical Activity Monitoring
Yang, C.-C., & Hsu, Y.-L. (2010) · Sensors · doi:10.3390/s100807772 · Cited by 1,058 · see citing works
Direct measurement of human movement by accelerometry
Godfrey, A., Conway, R., Meagher, D., & ÓLaighin, G. (2008) · Medical Engineering & Physics · doi:10.1016/j.medengphy.2008.09.005 · Cited by 591 · see citing works
Step Counting: A Review of Measurement Considerations and Health-Related Applications
Bassett, D. R., Toth, L. P., LaMunion, S. R., & Crouter, S. E. (2017) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-016-0663-1 · Cited by 460 · see citing works
Dowd, K. P., Szeklicki, R., Minetto, M. A., Murphy, M. H., Polito, A., Ghigo, E., van der Ploeg, H., Ekelund, U., Maciaszek, J., Stemplewski, R., et al. (2018) · International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity · doi:10.1186/s12966-017-0636-2 · Cited by 385 · see citing works
Accelerometers and pedometers: methodology and clinical application
Corder, K., Brage, S., & Ekelund, U. (2007) · Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care · doi:10.1097/mco.0b013e328285d883 · Cited by 339 · see citing works
How humans walk: Bout duration, steps per bout, and rest duration
Orendurff, M. S. (2008) · The Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development · doi:10.1682/jrrd.2007.11.0197 · Cited by 306 · see citing works
Activity-Monitor Accuracy in Measuring Step Number and Cadence in Community-Dwelling Older Adults
Grant, P. M., Dall, P. M., Mitchell, S. L., & Granat, M. H. (2008) · Journal of Aging and Physical Activity · doi:10.1123/japa.16.2.201 · Cited by 297 · see citing works
Using Cadence to Study Free-Living Ambulatory Behaviour
Tudor-Locke, C., & Rowe, D. A. (2012) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.2165/11599170-000000000-00000 · Cited by 231 · see citing works
Ambulatory activity of older adults hospitalized with acute medical illness
Fisher, S. R., Goodwin, J. S., Protas, E. J., Kuo, Y., Graham, J. E., Ottenbacher, K. J., & Ostir, G. V. (2011) · Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · doi:10.1111/j.1532-5415.2010.03202.x · Cited by 192 · see citing works
Nonexercise activity thermogenesis – liberating the life‐force
Levine, J. A. (2007) · Journal of Internal Medicine · doi:10.1111/j.1365-2796.2007.01842.x · Cited by 205 · see citing works
Self-citationSimultaneous vs Sequential Counseling for Multiple Behavior Change
Hyman, D. J., Pavlik, V. N., Taylor, W. C., Goodrick, G. K., & Moye, L. (2007) · Archives of Internal Medicine · doi:10.1001/archinte.167.11.1152 · Cited by 188 · see citing works
Mudge, S., Stott, N. S., & Walt, S. E. (2007) · Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation · doi:10.1016/j.apmr.2007.07.039 · Cited by 105 · see citing works
Effects of Body Mass Index and Step Rate on Pedometer Error in a Free-Living Environment
TYO, B. M., FITZHUGH, E. C., BASSETT, D. R., JOHN, D., FEITO, Y., & THOMPSON, D. L. (2011) · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · doi:10.1249/mss.0b013e3181e9b133 · Cited by 46 · see citing works
Short, K. R., Pratt, L. V., & Teague, A. M. (2012) · Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism · doi:10.1155/2012/278678 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
Short, K. R., Pratt, L. V., Teague, A. M., Man, C. D., & Cobelli, C. (2013) · Pediatric Diabetes · doi:10.1111/j.1399-5448.2012.00900.x · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Clevenger, K. A., Molesky, M. J., Vusich, J., & Montoye, A. H. K. (2019) · Measurement in Physical Education and Exercise Science · doi:10.1080/1091367x.2019.1577737 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Manohar, C. U., Koepp, G. A., McCrady-Spitzer, S. K., & Levine, J. A. (2012) · ICAN: Infant, Child, & Adolescent Nutrition · doi:10.1177/1941406412450644 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Self-citation
- Authors
- Foster, R. C., Lanningham-Foster, L. M., Manohar, C., McCrady, S. K., Nysse, L. J., Kaufman, K. R., Padgett, D. J., & Levine, J. A.
- Affiliations
- Mayo Clinic (US)
- Corresponding author
- Levine, James A.
- Venue
- Preventive Medicine
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2005-09
- Volume
- 41
- Issue
- 3-4
- Pages
- 778-783
- ISSN
- 0091-7435 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2004003849
- Cited by
- 187
- References
- 15
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 4 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 20 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 17 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 13 · 2012: 17
- FWCI
- 5.22
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Preventive Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Mayo Clinic
- National Institutes of Health
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (R01DK063226, R01DK066270, DK 63226, DK 66270, DK-56650, R01DK056650)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition › Context-Aware Activity Recognition Systems
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Physical Therapy, Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation › Balance, Gait, and Falls Prevention
- Keywords
- pedometers, step counting, energy expenditure, measurement precision, measurement accuracy, walking, obesity, physical activity monitoring
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Ankle, Energy Metabolism, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Minnesota, Monitoring, Physiologic, Body Mass Index, Walking, Equipment Failure Analysis
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
