Transforming waiting pauses into opportunity for physical activity: the 'Activate your Wait' project
| Autor: | A Bizzarro, D Rossi, L Faetani, D Ghizzoni, R Martini, L Veronesi, C Costantino, C Pasquarella |
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| Rok vydání: | 2020 |
| Předmět: | |
| Zdroj: | European Journal of Public Health. 30 |
| ISSN: | 1464-360X 1101-1262 |
| DOI: | 10.1093/eurpub/ckaa166.394 |
| Popis: | Physical activity is recognised as a major health determinant, with positive effects on health, environmental sustainability and economy. However, worldwide, 1 in 4 adults, and 3 in 4 adolescents do not currently meet the recommendations for physical activity set by the World Health Organization. Notably, the prevalence of inactivity varies considerably within and between countries, and can be as high as 80% in some adult subpopulations. From the urgent need to implement strategies to fight sedentary behaviour, and considering that physical activity is defined as any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that require energy expenditure, the project “Activate your Wait” was born. The project aim is to transform the waiting pauses during everyday life into opportunities to perform simple stretching and active mobilization exercises. The pilot study was carried out in September 2019 at the Terme S. Egidio, Suio Terme Castelforte (Italy). It was divided in three phases: in the pre-intervention phase a questionnaire evaluated the interest in the project (96 responders); during the intervention phase, lasting three days, examples of simple exercises that people can do by themselves were illustrated and undertaken by about 120 participants; in the post-intervention an evaluation questionnaire was administered (71 responders). The intervention aroused great participation and high approval (97%), and resulted in an increase both in willingness to perform exercises during daily waiting breaks (68% vs 94%) and belief in positive results of physical activity on health (74% vs 96%). In a context where the opportunities for physical activity are decreasing and a sedentary lifestyle has reached a high level, this project represents a contribution to the increase in the awareness of the importance of physical activity and the promotion of the culture of movement in the entire population, with an opportunity of easy accessibility in different contexts of life, at all ages. Key messages Physical activity is a major determinant of health, therefore it is fundamental to take all possible opportunities to be active. Waiting pauses are the perfect chance to exercise. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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