Leisure time physical activity in the Framingham Offspring Study. Description, seasonal variation, and risk factor correlates.

Self-reported leisure time physical activity was analyzed for 1,598 men and 1,762 women aged 20-69 years in the Framingham Offspring Cycle 2 exam in 1979-1983. Walking for pleasure was generally the most common physical activity for both sexes throughout the year. Substantial seasonal variation was noted for the most common activities: gardening, carpentry, lawn mowing, golf, and running for men; and gardening, swimming, health club exercise, dancing, and bicycling for women. Both sexes expended more kilocalories in physical activities in summer than in winter (p less than 0.001). Frequency of participation in activities sufficient to induce perspiration was associated with frequency of participation in at least one hour of conditioning (greater than or equal to 7.5 kilocal/minute) activities per week (p less than 0.001). Based on age-adjusted mean levels, higher high density lipoprotein cholesterol, lower heart rate, lower body mass index and fewer cigarettes smoked per day were consistently observed across four quartiles of increasing physical activity levels (p less than 0.01). Men who participated in at least one hour of conditioning activities per week had significantly different mean levels for these four risk factors than men who reported less than one hour of such activities per week (p less than 0.001). Results substantiate previous reports of an inverse relation between physical activity levels and cardiovascular risk, and suggest seasonal variation in activity levels should be considered in future studies which explore the relation between physical activity and cardiovascular disease.