Can a walking program ease chronic pain? new study tests feasibility

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: 1. Male and female outpatients, age 18 years or older 2. Fluent in English 3. Have nonmalignant chronic musculoskeletal pain for more than 3 months 4. Able to perform a 6-minute walk test (6MWT) 5. Owns a smartphone with Bluetooth 4.0 or computer 6. Willingness and ability to participate in one of the 2 programs and to comply with the requirements of the study protocol. 7. Free of concurrent psychotropic medication for at least 2 weeks prior to initiation of treatment, OR stable on current medication for a minimum of 6 weeks and willing to maintain a stable dose 8. Low-level of activity (must meet 2/3 criteria; if difficult to assess, recruiter may ask participant to report their recent step data from their smartphone to better understand their activity level) 1. Sitting for more than 8 hours/day per self-report 2. Exercising for fewer than 3 days/week (30+min of exercise constitutes an "exercise day") per self-report 3. Walking for fewer than 7 days/week (30+min of walking constitutes a "walking day") per self-report Exclusion Criteria: 1. Diagnosed with a medical illness expected to worsen in the next 6 months (e.g., malignancy) 2. Serious mental illness or instability for which hospitalization may be likely in the next 6 months 3. Current active suicidal ideation reported on self-report 4. Untreated and/or unstable schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or other psychotic disorder 5. Current, active substance abuse or dependence, and current alcohol dependence within the past 6 months 6. Practice of yoga, meditation, guided imagery or other mind body techniques that elicit the RR, once per week for \>45 min 3 times/week within the last 3 months or less. 7. Regular use of Fitbit DMD in the last 3 months 8. Unable to walk/in a wheelchair 9. Mild cognitive decline for participants 65+ only (Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire; PMSQ 4 or more errors).