Exploration of activities people participated in to meet the muscle strengthening physical activity guidelines

Background
The UK 2019 Physical Activity Guidelines state that muscle strengthening activities, such as carrying heavy bags, gardening, stair climbing, going to the gym and yoga, should be done at least 2 days per week.

Purpose
The current study aims to identify the activities that people engage in to meet these guidelines.

Methods
Adults aged 18 to 64 years old living in the United Kingdom completed an online survey covering participation in nine different types of muscle strengthening activities. Crosstabulation and Pearson Chi-Square test were used to examine the distribution of muscle strengthening activity types, separately in males and females.

Results
77% of the 620 who completed the survey self-reported meeting the guidelines, with higher participation in males (81%) than females (75%). Of those who self-reported not meeting the guidelines, 96% did actually meet the guidelines when carrying heavy bags and stair climbing were included. Stair climbing (92% males; 95% females) and carrying heavy bags (89% males; 90% females) were also frequently reported in adults who met the guidelines. Notable sex differences were found for other activities with males participating more in weight machines (57% males, 40% females, p=0.002) and resistance exercises (80% males, 70% females, p=0.033), and females participated in more holistic exercise (33% males, 55% females, p<.001).

Conclusion
Many people misreport not meeting the muscle strengthening guidelines unless daily living activities are explicitly stated. Whether these activities (promoted in the guidelines) are sufficient to increase muscle strength and confer associated health benefits remains to be established. Clear differences were also apparent between men and women in the kinds of activities they perform to meet the guidelines.

Practical Implications
This information may be important in developing more personalised interventions to increase participation in muscle strengthening activities.

Funding
NDR is funded by the Government of Malaysia under Majlis Amanah Rakyat.