Comparison of the college alumnus questionnaire physical activity index with objective monitoring

Purpose Two methods of measuring physical activity (PA) were compared over a consecutive 7-day period among 25 adults (12 men and 13 women). Methods Each day estimates of energy expended in light, moderate, vigorous, and total PA were derived from the simultaneous heart-rate motion sensor (HR+M) technique. At the end of the 7-day period participants completed the College Alumnus Questionnaire Physical Activity Index (CAQ-PAI) and results were compared with HR+M technique estimates. Results Correlations between the two methods in the four activity categories ranged from r = 0.20 to r = 0.47, with vigorous and total PA showing higher associations than light and moderate PA. Mean levels of PA (MET-min·wk−1) obtained using the two methods were similar in the moderate and vigorous categories, but individual differences were large. Energy expended in light PA was significantly underestimated on the CAQ-PAI, resulting in lower total activity scores on this questionnaire as compared with the HR+M. Conclusions The CAQ-PAI accurately reflected mean moderate and vigorous activity in comparison with the HR+M technique. The results are consistent with other studies which have shown that physical activity questionnaires are better at assessing vigorous PA than ubiquitous light-moderate activities.