Physical Activity Changes during the Spring 2020 COVID-19 Shutdown in the United States

Introduction/Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine how and why physical activity (PA) changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, from early March to June 2020 in the United States. Methods: A survey was distributed on social media. US adult residents were asked about their PA habits before and during the spring shutdown, such as average days of exercise, minutes per session and session intensity, and likelihood of maintaining pandemic PA habits for 1 yr. Results: A total of 873 individuals completed the survey. The sample was 85.3% female (n = 745) with an average age of 38.7 ± 12.9 yr. More than half (89.3%) of the participants were non-Hispanic White, 89.9% reported an income greater than $45,000, and 87.6% earned a bachelor’s degree or higher. The proportion of participants who reported meeting or exceeding the guidelines of 150 min of moderate-to-vigorous PA per week was 52.7%. The proportion of participants not meeting the PA guidelines decreased by 7.8% during the shutdown. The proportion of participants exceeding the PA guidelines increased by 11.3%. PA days per week significantly increased during the shutdown (3.75 ± 1.9 to 4.27 ± 2.1 d, P < 0.001), whereas minutes per session remained consistent (1.87 ± 0.95 to 1.93 ± 0.98 min, P = 0.10; 1, 1–30 min; 2, 31–60 min). Average intensity of exercise sessions significantly decreased (2.81 ± 1.16 to 2.62 ± 1.14, P = 0.001). Participants reported decreased fitness center access and more outdoor walking. Overall, 73.4% of the participants indicated they were likely to maintain shutdown PA habits for 1 yr. Almost all (93.8%) of those who increased their PA during the shutdown reported they were likely to maintain their habit for 1 yr. Participants who did not change were more likely to report they would maintain PA levels for 1 yr compared with those who decreased PA levels during the shutdown. Conclusions: Generally, US adults increased PA during the COVID-19 shutdown. This study provides insight into how routine disruption may affect PA habits.