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. 2021 May 28;18(11):5811.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18115811.

Physical Activity as a Predictor of the Level of Stress and Quality of Sleep during COVID-19 Lockdown

Anna Lipert  1 , Remigiusz Kozłowski  2 , Dariusz Timler  3 , Michał Marczak  4 , Kamila Musiał  1 , Paweł Rasmus  5 , Karolina Kamecka  4 , Anna Jegier  1
Affiliations

Physical Activity as a Predictor of the Level of Stress and Quality of Sleep during COVID-19 Lockdown

Anna Lipert et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus pandemic and the government restrictions significantly disturbed the daily functioning of people, thereby influencing healthy behaviors, such as physical activity-the core indicator of well-being. This study evaluates the associations between physical activity (PA), the level of stress and quality of sleep during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.

Methods: An online survey was distributed during the governmental lockdown in April 2020 and included measures for assessing physical activity, stress and sleep. The surveyed participants included all adults aged 18 years and over. The final data were collected from the 1959 respondents using: International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI).

Findings: Almost half of the respondents indicated a low level of PA, performing only 60 min of PA daily. Most of the participants reported a moderate or high level of stress (57% and 29%, respectively) and 64% of them reported poor quality of sleep. People with low levels of stress performed on average 85.1 min/day of walking (WPA), 40.9 min/day of moderate PA (MPA) or 52.6 min/day of vigorous PA (VPA). People with good quality of sleep performed 82.9 min/day of WPA, 43.6 min/day MPA and 40.5 min/day VPA.

Interpretation: The results from the study indicate that the volume of daily PA may be a predictor of the level of stress and sleep quality in adults during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. To retain a low level of stress and good quality of sleep, a lifestyle that allows to achieve a moderate level of physical activity should be maintained. The optimal daily dose of PA is at least 70 min per day, involving different intensities.

Keywords: pandemic; physical activity; quality of sleep; stress in COVID.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The relationship between the time of PA per day performed by the study participants (n = 1956), the level of stress and the quality of sleep.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Number and the percentage of participants (n = 1956) with a specific level of stress depending on the level of PA. * p-value LOW vs. HIGH across different level of PA groups, # p-value MODERATE vs. LOW and HIGH across different level of PA groups.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Level of stress and quality of sleep depending on the level of PA.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Number and the percentage of participants (n = 1956) with a specific quality of sleep depending on the level of PA.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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