Life Style

Global Positi oning Systems

(GPS) and Physical Acti vity

Oli Blake, Sarah Begg and

Stevie Stockton.
 What is GPS?
GPS is a satellite based location system

24 GPS satellites currently orbit the earth

Developed by the US military since 1978

Accessible to the public since 2000

Position of GPS receiver calculated by triangulation

dGPS uses ground locations to improve the accuracy of
GPS
 Why is it relevant to lifestyle
physical activity?
Accurate measure of speed and distance

No issues with recall

Captures movement throughout the day

Non-invasive and simple to use by
participants
 How does GPS work to measure
Energy Expenditure?

A practical but innacurate measure of Energy Expenditure

(EE) compared to “gold standard” – direct calorimetry

Measures speed, distance and elevation – Speed/Distance

algorithm

When augmented with other measures can produce a

more accurate value
Using GPS to measure EE
• 2303m course of
varying grades at
slow and fast
self-selected
paces (N=13)
• EEGPS compared
against EEACT
McKenzie • EEACT represents
(2007) data from a
Portable
Metabolic unit
• More accurate
(when compared
to EEACT) for fast
paced (dashed
lines) trials
 GPS: validation
GPS validation limited to controlled conditions.

Compares favourably with chronometry to derive an individuals

speed while:
• Walking
• Running
• Cycling
• Schutz and Herren (2000), Le Faucheur et al (2007)

Position of GPS device potentially influential: overestimation if

on lanyard or waistband while walking. Duncan, et al., (2007)
GPS: free-living conditions

GPS generally used to augment accelerometer data.

Provides information on location of activity when

integrated with GIS (Geographic Information Systems).

Identify where people are most active and most

sedentary.
A dog walk in Loughborough
 GPS and LPA in school children

• High school
students (N=79)
• GPS and
Accelerometer
data integrated
with GIS
• Identified
Maddiso
n et al., locations of
(2009) moderate to
vigorous activity
• Results:
weekdays mainly
in school and
neighbourhood,
weekends more
disparate
Weekends
Weekdays
GPS and LPA in school children
Mackett et al., (2007)
• Older primary school children (aged 8-11)
(N=162)
• Investigating movement patterns of children
when accompanied and unaccompanied by
adults
• Collected GPS and accelerometer data and self
report diaries

Findings:
• More likely to visit a friend on the way home if
travelling alone.
• Children walked faster and in a more exploratory
way when not accompanied by an adult.
• Walking on pavements tended to be more
purposeful and energetic than in other open
spaces
GPS and LPA in school children
Dunca • Investigated the feasibility of combining GPS

n et and HR monitoring to measure physical

activity in primary school children (N=39)
• Results showed that GPS could discriminate
al., the velocity of play-related activity and HR
could then be used to quantify EE

(2008)

Fjørto • Investigated how schoolyard environments

influenced activity patterns in 14 year old
ft et children (N=81)
• Results showed low activity levels in both

al., schools investigated but activities in

handball goal area showed the highest
monitored HR (>160 bpm)
(2010)
 The PEACH Project
• Investigated the association
between time spent outdoors
and physical activity in
children (N=1,010)
• Physical activity measured by
Coope accelerometry and GPS
• GPS was also used to record
r et how much time was spent
outdoors
al., • Results
(2010) • GPS-measured time outdoors
was a significant predictor of
children’s physical activity
• Physical activity was more
than 2.5 times higher
outdoors than indoors
GPS and Active Commuting
 GPS and Active Commuting
A number of studies have incorporated GPS to assess travel routes in urban environments

This research has shown that GPS can differentiate travel modes such as riding a bike or
travelling by car (Dill 2009, Van Schaick et al., 2008)

Duncan and Mummery (2007) showed that GPS-measured distance compared well with
GIS-estimated distance

Dill • Investigated cycling behaviour in

166 commuting utility cyclists

(2009 • A disproportionate share of the

cycling occurred on the streets
with cycle lanes, separate paths,
) or cycle boulevards
Limitations of using GPS
Using GPS effectively in studies
requires augmentation with other
devices (accelerometers, HR monitors)

Awkward, bulky and expensive –

prevents scalability

Specialist unit that integrates GPS, heart rate

Use of GPS in phones presented as a monitoring, and accelerometry developed in
solution, however: Japan. M. Makikawa et al. (2004)

• Poor battery life

• Awkward to carry when doing high intensity
physical activities
Limitations of using GPS
Even specialist GPS devices have battery
life of just 11-16 hrs

Requires charging which reduces

compliance

Concerns with privacy – reverse identifying

people’s addresses based on GPS data
Limitations of GPS technology

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Limitations of GPS technology
 Limitations of GPS technology

Indoor measurement is rife with errors

Problems associated with interrupted signal

High rise buildings also cause errors in the signal

Many working days are spent indoors, where GPS does not work

Using GPS therefore questionable in these populations

 Where to from here?
GPS as an intervention tool – feedback, goal setting,
record keeping, fun!

Better integration between GPS and GIS to enable analysis

of group data

Using GPS, potentially combined with accelerometers, to

determine mode of transport

Use GPS to establish exposure to both positive and

negative environmental conditions
A note of caution
 References
• Schutz Y, Herren R. Assessment of speed of human locomotion using a differential satellite global
positioning system. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2000;32:642–646.
• Le Faucheur A, Abraham P, Jaquinandi V, Bouyé P, Saumet JL, Noury-Desvaux B. Study of human
outdoor walking with a low-cost GPS and simple spreadsheet analysis. Medicine and Science in Sports
and Exercise. 2007;39:1570–1578.
• Duncan MJ, Mummery KW, Dascombe BJ. Utility of Global Positioning System to measure active
transport in urban areas. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. 2007;39:1851–1857.
• Maddison R, Exeter D, Hoorn S Vander, Jiang Y, Ni Mhurchu C, Dorey E, Bullen C, Utter J. Describing
Patterns of Physical Activity in Adolescents using Global Positioning Systems and
Accelerometry. Pediatric Exercise Science. 2009.
• Mackett R, Brown B, Gong Y, Kitazawa K, Paskins J. Built Environment. Children's independent movement
in the local environment. 2007;33:458–468.
• Duncan JS, Badland HM, Schofield G. Combining GPS with heart rate monitoring to measure physical
activity in children: A feasibility study. Journal of Science in Medicine and Sport.2008;12:583–585.
• Dill J. Bicycling for transportation and health: The role of infrastructure. Journal of Public Health
Policy. 2009;30:S95–S110. 
• Van Schaick J, Van Der Spek SC. In: Urbanism on Track: Application of Tracking Technologies in
Urbanism. Van Schaick J, Van Der Spek SC, editor. New IOS Press; 2008.
 References
• Fjørtoft, I. Löfman, O. and Thorén, K.H. Schoolyard Physical Activity in 14 years old Adolescents
assessed by Mobile GPS and Heart rate monitoring analysed in GIS Scandinavian Journal of Public
Health. 2010
• A.R. Cooper, A.S. Page, B.W. Wheeler, M. Hillsdon, P. Griew and R. Jago, Patterns of GPS measured
time outdoors after school and objective physical activity in English children: the PEACH project, Int.
J. Behav. Nutr. Phys. Act. 7 2010, p. 31.
• Duncan M, Mummery WK. GIS or GPS? A comparison of two methods for assessing route taken
during active transport. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2007;33:51–53.
• Makikawa M, Isaka T, Iida T, Asajima S, Tsukise K, Shiozawa N, Nishiyama K, Wada S, Nakayama K,
Horiguchi M, Torimoto H. Jogging support system with portable monitoring device and health
manage software. Medinfo. 2004;11:1260–1263.
• McKenzie JM. The Use of GPS to Predict Energy Expenditure for Outdoor Walking. MS Montana
State University. 2007.