Evaluation of Young Adults’ Physical Activity Status and Perceived Barriers in the Riyadh Region of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background Physical activity (PA) is any prolonged movement produced by muscular tissues that cause the muscles to exert force. Despite its beneficial effect, it is frequently neglected by individuals. The present study aimed to determine the PA among young adults living in Saudi Arabia. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted among Saudi adults living in the Riyadh region of Saudi Arabia from June to August 2022 through a self-administered online survey. Global Physical Activity Questionnaire was used to assess the PA among participants. The data were analyzed using statistical software SPSS v. 26.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Results Among the surveyed adult males were the predominant 67.8% (n= 240). Most of them were young, aged between 24 to 34 years 62.4% (n=221), and 37.6% (n=133) of them were between 35 and 44 years old. The current findings reported that 63% (n=223) of the adults had PA on weekly basis. Walking 45.2% (n=160) followed by bodybuilding 12.7% (n=45) was the most common type of PA identified among adults. The barriers identified for not practicing PA were lack of time 46.9% (n=166). With regard to a sedentary lifestyle, it was reported that 9.55 (SD= 4.887) hours per day are spent sedentary or in a constant sitting. The adults gender ( p =0.046) employment ( p =0.0001) and educational status ( p =0.0001) was significantly associated with the type of PA engaged. Although being a female were shown more sitting behavior than males ( p <0.047), similarly the nationality of the adults (6.67; SD=1.649) ( p <0.001), education ( p =0.028) and monthly household income ( p =0.024) were significantly associated with the overall mean sitting behavior. Conclusion The findings of this study confirmed that Saudi adults yet posing highly sedentary behavior and physical inactivity, despite knowing the harmful outcomes of inactivity. Thus educating individuals about the importance of PA is warranted.

Factors Associated with Sedentary Behavior and Physical Activity Among People Living in Saudi Arabia – A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Studies also discovered that persons who were not active enough had a death risk that was 20% to 30% higher than those who were. 1,38,39 The aforementioned findings were significantly related to various characteristics of the participants. The differences between the current and prior findings were better explained by lifestyle variables such as employment type, transportation, leisure time activities, and physical activity intensity and duration.…”

“…In recent years, the frequency of physical inactivity and sedentary behavior has increased, causing people to suffer from a variety of chronic metabolic disorders. [1][2][3] Despite the benefits of physical activity, sedentary behavior is becoming more frequent among people, boosting the possibility of numerous lifestyle-related illnesses. [2][3][4][5] Longer periods of sitting have been linked to a higher risk of developing chronic cardio metabolic diseases, including obesity and overweight, stress, difficulty sleeping, anxiety, and depressive disorders.…”

“…[10][11][12][13] The prevalence of sedentary behavior is different among individuals, depending on the population studied. 1,14,15 For instances among working individuals, it was 690 minutes in a day, 14 while among young adults it was 9.5 hours. 1 Similarly, another recent study revealed >4 h in a day as sedentary time was spent by Saudi adults.…”

“…15 Additionally, women were more likely than males to engage in sedentary activity. 1 Previous research in Saudi Arabia showed that a substantial percentage of adults and children there were physically inactive and did not satisfy the WHO's basic recommendations for physical activity. 12 According to the World Health Organization (WHO), individuals should engage in at least 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-to-high intensity physical activity each week, as well as muscle-strengthening activity at least two days per week.…”

Perception of Health Care Undergraduates Towards Public Health Course Within Health College’s Curriculum –An Observational Study From Saudi University, in Riyadh Region, Saudi Arabia

“…Raosoft, a computerized web calculator, was used to calculate the required sample size. We computed the sample size using 95% confidence intervals (CI) at a 5% margin of error and a 50% response distribution, as in many previous [15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22] studies. The required sample size for this study was 169.…”