Weight Inclusive Thinking for Fitness Spaces (WIT FITS): A Three-Month Follow-Up of a Weight Stigma Intervention for Exercise Professionals

Abstract

Among the few interventions that exist to decrease weight stigma in exercise settings, none include a long-term follow-up to assess if changes are sustained. The aim of this study was to assess if a weight stigma intervention that showed success in improving fat attitudes among university recreation center professionals had sustained effects after three months, compared to a control group. Participants were 46 university recreation center professionals who took the Fat Attitudes Assessment Toolkit before completing a two-hour self-paced online intervention or control course, after course completion, and at a three-month follow-up. At follow-up, participants in the intervention group showed significant improvement in total fat attitudes, F(2, 88) = 7.94, p < .001, η²_p = 0.15 and in fat acceptance, F(2, 88) = 4.25, p = .017, η²_p = 0.09. Future studies should further develop interventions and assess results in larger samples and after longer periods of time.