Study intervention and comparator
The intervention was a multimodal exercise programme consisting of 25 sessions over three months. Participants attended two sessions per week, one on-site at a fitness center or in the nearby outdoor areas (lasting 75 min/session) and one online (lasting 45 min/session). The on-site sessions were conducted in two groups of 10 participants each. The online sessions consisted of either physical group training, educational workshop, or individual counselling. All online sessions except the individual counselling were recorded and uploaded on an online platform to allow for a later use in case somebody could not be present at the given time. Each participant received a course book containing organisational information, the worksheets used in the sessions, and a set of strength exercises. In the on-site and online group trainings, exercises were individually adapted to the fitness level of the participants. All sessions were led by three trained students in Sport and Movement Science and medically supervised.Figure The comparator consisted of standard post-bariatric surgery follow-up care alone, involving medical appointments with a bariatric physician and a dietitian at 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 12 months post-operatively.