Understanding Outdoor Gyms in Public Open Spaces: A Systematic Review and Integrative Synthesis of Qualitative and Quantitative Evidence

Abstract

(1) Background: An outdoor gym (OG) is environmental infrastructure built in a public open space to promote structured physical activity. The provision of OGs is increasingly seen as an important strategy to realize public health agendas promoting habitual physical activity. A systematic review was conducted to synthesize characteristics of OG and OG users’ experiences and perceptions in different cultural contexts; (2) Methods: Online searches of multidisciplinary databases were conducted in health, sport and recreation, and urban planning disciplines. Characteristics of OGs were synthesized by integrating evidence from quantitative, qualitative, and mix-methods studies. The experiences and perceptions of OG users from both qualitative data and survey responses were synthesized through framework analysis; (3) Results: Nine studies met the inclusion criteria (three quantitative studies, four mixed-methods studies, and two pure qualitative studies). None were excluded on the basis of quality. OGs mainly serve adult and older adult population groups. Their size, design, and instructional support vary across studies. The inclusion of functional types of equipment did not have a unified standard. Regarding experiences and perceptions of OGs, five major themes emerged: “health”, “social connectedness”, “affordable”, “support”, and “design and promotion”; (4) Conclusions: The OG characteristics synthesis guides the direction in further studies regarding exploration of design parameters. The qualitative and quantitative synthesis revealed that health was a central theme of users’ experiences. OGs are also spaces where community-dwellers can find social connectedness while participating in structured physical activity at no cost. Findings from this review create knowledge support for OG as environmental infrastructure for further research and facilitate the understanding of users’ experiences and perceptions of OGs in different cultural contexts.

Effect of training on street simulators with variable load on the strength women and men in powerlifting

“…In many studies, the authors prove that training on street fitness equipment is a key factor not only in recreational and corrective conditions (Allen-Collinson & Leledaki, 2015;Lee et al, 2018), but also in the physical development of athletes of various qualifications (Kharisov et al, 2017). The study enriched the process of implementing physical culture and sports activities at the place of residence (Ries et al, 2009).…”

How to Achieve a Healthier and More Sustainable Europe by 2040 According to the Public? Results of a Five-Country Questionnaire Survey

“…Outdoor gyms seem to be acceptable even for older adults according to an Australian study which showed that forty-two percent of park users above 50 years old had used an outdoor gym [ 44 ]. Outdoor gyms seem not only to be positively evaluated by users as pursuing health [ 45 ], but also to be used on a regular basis and thus raise the level of moderate to vigorous physical activity in parks [ 46 ]. Based on a natural experiment in urban public parks, building fitness zones seems to be cost-effective (10.5 cents/MET increase) and most effective in parks in densely populated areas with few other facilities [ 46 ].…”

A systematic review about the characteristics and patterns of use of outdoor gyms

“…To guide public health practice, ecological social models have been recommended. These describe the interactions between people and their social and physical environment (Golden & Earp, 2012;Lee, Lo & Ho, 2018). That's why the use of safe outdoor public spaces is one of the ways to improve practice of PA (McCormack, Rock, Toohey & Hignell, 2010).…”

“…So, a popular strategy is the outdoor gym (OG) installation (Copeland et al, 2017;Del Campo, Bermúdez, Peluffo & Del Campo, 2016). An OG is defined as fixed exercise equipment placed in an outdoor area that is freely accessible to the public, to promote structured PA through strength, aerobic and stretching devices (Cohen, Marsh, Williamson, Golinelli & McKenzie,2012;Cranney, Shaw & Phongsavan, 2018;Lee et al 2018).…”

“…Some reviews have been made about OGs. The review by Lee et al (2018) synthesizes the design, the main user group and the terminology used for the OG of nine studies. It gives an overview of how users and neighbourhood residents from different cultural backgrounds perceive this type of environmental The search terms used were based on one concept.…”