Department of Environmental Health, Center for Public Health, Medical University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Dec 11;18(24):13073. doi: 10.3390/ijerph182413073.
The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted human lifestyles across the world. Lockdowns and home confinement decreased prior opportunities for everyday physical activity. To retrospectively assess how the Austrian population coped with these aspects of the crisis, we conducted a cross-sectional online survey from March to September 2021 using a structured questionnaire in German. In total, 1214 participants (56.9% females, mean age 37.0 years) living across Austria shared self-reported information on sociodemographic characteristics, indoor and outdoor physical activity, reasons for being outdoors, and life satisfaction before and after the emergence of the virus. As a result, overall indoor physical activity significantly decreased in a before-during COVID-19 crisis comparison, although exercising at home with online instructions increased by about 63%. Exercising outdoors increased overall, specifically in periurban forests and rural areas, both by about 9%. Life satisfaction decreased significantly by 19.7% ( < 0.001). Outdoor public places and natural environments gained importance due to restrictions affecting access to sport facilities. Further research is needed to evaluate benefits and therapeutic values of outdoor nature for physical and mental health in times of a global pandemic to maintain resilient societies, as it might impact future active living and life satisfaction.
COVID-19 大流行极大地改变了世界各地人类的生活方式。封锁和居家隔离减少了日常体育活动的机会。为了回顾性评估奥地利人口如何应对这场危机的这些方面，我们于 2021 年 3 月至 9 月使用德语进行了一项横断面在线调查，采用结构化问卷。共有 1214 名（56.9%为女性，平均年龄 37.0 岁）居住在奥地利各地的参与者分享了有关社会人口特征、室内和室外体育活动、户外活动原因以及病毒出现前后生活满意度的自我报告信息。结果，与 COVID-19 危机前相比，整体室内体育活动明显减少，尽管在家中按照在线指导进行锻炼增加了约 63%。户外体育活动总体上有所增加，特别是在城市周边森林和农村地区，均增加了约 9%。生活满意度显著下降了 19.7%（<0.001）。由于影响体育设施使用的限制，户外公共场所和自然环境变得更加重要。需要进一步研究评估户外自然对身体和心理健康的益处和治疗价值，以维持有弹性的社会，因为它可能会影响未来的积极生活和生活满意度。
