Five‐minute walking test of aerobic fitness for people with arthritis

To determine if a five‐minute walking field test can be a valid indicator of cardiorespiratory fitness in patients with arthritis, distances walked were examined in relation to directly measured maximum oxygen consumption values. Pre‐ and post‐exercise intervention data were obtained from five arthritis patients taking part in a larger exercise—arthritis research project. Correlations of r =.87 (P = 0.05) for both pre‐ and post‐exercise measures suggest that the 5‐minute walk is a valid field method for assessing relative cardiorespiratory fitness in arthritis patients. Further, compared to the longer traditional field test protocols, a shortened walking time is a safe, more realistic, and appropriate approach for field testing populations with low exercise tolerance such as arthritis patients.