Background: Recent studies have shown potentially detrimental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity (PA) in emerging adults (ages 18–29 y). However, studies that examined the effects of COVID-19 on PA location choices and maintenance for this age group remain limited. The current study investigated changes in PA location choices across 13 months during the pandemic and their associations with PA maintenance in this population. Methods: Emerging adults (N = 197) living in the United States completed weekly survey on personal smartphones (May 2020–June 2021) regarding PA location choices and maintenance. Mixed-effects models examined the main effects of PA location choice and its interaction with weeks into the pandemic on participants’ PA maintenance. Results: On a given week, participants performing PA on roads/sidewalks or at parks/open spaces were 1½ and 2 times as likely to maintain PA levels, respectively. Moreover, after September 2021, weeks when individuals performed PA on roads/sidewalks had a protective effect on PA maintenance. Conclusions: Performing PA on roads/sidewalks and at parks/open spaces was associated with PA maintenance during the COVID-19 pandemic. PA promotion and intervention efforts for emerging adults during large-scale disruptions to daily life should focus on providing programmed activities in open spaces to maintain their PA levels.
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Examining Whether Physical Activity Location Choices Were Associated With Weekly Physical Activity Maintenance Across 13 Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Emerging Adults
Li Yi, Shirlene D. Wang, Daniel Chu, Aditya Ponnada, Stephen S. Intille, and Genevieve F. Dunton
Real-Time Data Collection to Examine Relations Between Physical Activity and Affect in Adults With Mental Illness
Danielle R. Madden, Chun Nok Lam, Brian Redline, Eldin Dzubur, Harmony Rhoades, Stephen S. Intille, Genevieve F. Dunton, and Benjamin Henwood
Adults with serious mental illness engage in limited physical activity, which contributes to significant health disparities. This study explored the use of both ecological momentary assessments (EMAs) and activity trackers in adults with serious mental illness to examine the bidirectional relationship between activity and affect with multilevel modeling. Affective states were assessed up to seven times per day using EMA across 4 days. The participants (n = 20) were equipped with a waist-worn accelerometer to measure moderate to vigorous physical activity. The participants had a mean EMA compliance rate of 88.3%, and over 90% of completed EMAs were matched with 30-min windows of accelerometer wear. The participants who reported more positive affect than others had a higher probability of engaging in moderate to vigorous physical activity. Engaging in more moderate to vigorous physical activity than one’s usual was associated with more negative affect. This study begins to address the effect of momentary mood on physical activity in a population of adults that is typically difficult to reach.
