The Relationship between Physical Activity and Mental Health of AJA’s Military Staff

Background and Aim: One of the essential needs of the armed forces, is to have physical fitness and regular physical activity in order to successfully carry out the missions in different conditions and can affect the mental health of them. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the physical activity of AJA employees and its relationship with psychological factors (physical self-concept, mental toughness, anxiety and depression). Methods: 130 AJA military personnel were randomly selected and physical activity, physical self-concept, mental toughness, anxiety and depression questionnaires were distributed among them. Descriptive statistics were used to assess the level of physical activity and psychological characteristics of the employees, while Pearson correlation method was employed to evaluate the relationship between the variables. Results: The physical activity of AJA employees was at moderate level, at the same time, the Pearson correlation coefficient demonstrated that there is a significant relationship between physical activity and psychological characteristics of the employees (P <0.05). Conclusion: Therefore, it can be concluded that to increase the level of physical fitness of AJA employees and also to have mental health, including reducing anxiety and depression and increasing physical self-concept and mental toughness, moderate to severe physical activity should be included in their daily schedule.