Acute Changes in Physical Activity Associated With Home Confinement Due to Covid-19: a Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study in a Collegiate Population in Greece

Abstract

Background: In March 2020 home confinement was imposed to Greek residents as a measure to abate the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to elucidate changes in physical activity (PA) levels that occurred during confinement in a collegiate population in Greece. Methods: 565 collegiate students and staff participated in a retrospective cross-sectional online survey measuring PA related behaviours before and during the confinement period using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-SF). Results: The overall activity (IPAQ-SF MET-min score) decreased in the confinement- compared to the pre-confinement period [Md (Q1:Q3) pre vs. during: 2464 (1160; 5126) vs. 2247 (1074; 3999), p<0.001], driven exclusively by males (p<0.001) and the younger age group (18-31 years; p=0.003). Sitting increased in the total sample, including in each gender and age-group (all p<0.001). Compared to pre-confinement period, during confinement the odds of being in the ‘medium’ or ‘high’ moderate- to- vigorous PA group were 41% higher in females (aOR = 1.41, 95% CI=1.11-1.80, p=0.006) and 33% lower in males (aOR=0.67, 95% CI=0.50-0.88, p=0.005). Conclusion: There is a gendered pattern in observed changes in PA during the Covid-19 home confinement in the collegiate population, with females being those favored in comparison to males. 
 
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Psychological variables, physical activity and physical education

“…In terms of type of PA, walking drastically decreased during COVID-19 and corroborates previous reports (Gallo et al, 2020;Manthou et al, 2020;Rodríguez-Larrad et al, 2021) and assumed to be due to students' limited movement during the enhanced quarantine regulations implemented by the government. However, Öncen and Tanyeri (2020) found a significant increase in walking, which conflicts with the results of this study.…”

Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, and Health States of University Students During the First Wave of COVID-19 Community Quarantine in the Philippines

“…In terms of type of PA, walking drastically decreased during COVID-19 and corroborates previous reports (Gallo et al, 2020;Manthou et al, 2020;Rodríguez-Larrad et al, 2021) and assumed to be due to students' limited movement during the enhanced quarantine regulations implemented by the government. However, Öncen and Tanyeri (2020) found a significant increase in walking, which conflicts with the results of this study.…”

“…For instance, Öncen and Tanyeri (2020) found an increase in walking in men, while other types of PA decreased. Our findings showed a decline in total PA like some studies (Manthou et al, 2020;Rodríguez-Larrad et al, 2021) but contradict the findings of Romero-Blanco et al ( 2020) who found an increase in total PA in men.…”

“…Some previous studies have shown a substantial decrease in total and specific types of PA in males (Manthou et al, 2020;Rodríguez-Larrad et al, 2021), while others demonstrated varied results (Romero-Blanco et al, 2020;Öncen and Tanyeri, 2020). For instance, Öncen and Tanyeri (2020) found an increase in walking in men, while other types of PA decreased.…”