BACKGROUND The belief that adolescents engaged in sports increase their overall physical activity level while simultaneously decreasing physical inactivity has been the foundation of many intervention programs in developing countries. The aim of this study was to analyze the association between regular participation in sports and both active behaviors and TV viewing during leisure time. METHO...

OBJECTIVE To estimate the prevalence of the practice of leisure-time physical activity in older adults and to analyze its association with environment perception. METHODS Cross-sectional population study conducted from September 2009 to June 2010 with 1.656 individuals aged 60 years or older, living in the urban zone of the city of Florianópolis, Southern Brazil. Leisure-time physical activit...

The study aimed to establish the frequency of injuries in primary and secondary schools during leisure time and physical education classes in school as well as in group and individual sports. The sample included 2842 pupils from nine primary schools and 1235 students from five secondary schools in Slovenia. The data were processed with the SPSS statistical software package and the frequencies a...

BACKGROUND Leisure-time physical activity is a term used by physical activity researchers to describe physical activity undertaken during nonwork time. In this study we explore how young people speak about physical activity in relation to leisure. METHODS Eight focus groups and one group interview were conducted with 50 participants aged 16-26 years. Participants included males and females, r...

In the latter years of the twentieth century, the social relevance of the leisure field diminished as consumption and individualism came to dominate leisure and recreation research and praxis across modern democratic nations. A consequence of this focus in leisure studies has been a neglect of community and the common good. Now, at the commencement of the twenty-first century, three interrelate...

BACKGROUND Many youths and adults maintain a sedentary life style and a better understanding of the factors which influence physical activity is needed. This study analyses the association between social factors and low leisure-time physical activity in young adults. METHODS Three hundred and seventeen children aged 6-18 years participated in a health survey in 1979 and again 13 years later. ...

OBJECTIVE We investigated whether television (TV) viewing and low leisure-time physical activity in adolescence predict the metabolic syndrome in mid-adulthood. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS TV viewing habits and participation in leisure-time physical activity at age 16 years were assessed by self-administered questionnaires in a population-based cohort in Northern Sweden. The presence of the m...

Changes in sedentary behaviours and physical activity according to retirement status need to be better defined. Retirement is a critical life period that may influence a number of health behaviours. We assessed past-year sedentary behaviours (television, computer and reading time during leisure, occupational and domestic sitting time, in h/week) and physical activity (leisure, occupational and ...

There has been increasing evidence that psychological stress is a risk factor in the development of heart disease. How an individual copes with stress will determine its impact on his or her health. The literature proposes that the effects of stress can be minimized, reduced, or reversed by factors such as goal-directed activity, physical exercise, relaxation, or emotionally supportive relation...