Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Physical Activity among Mostly Older, Overweight Black Women Living in the Rural Alabama Black Belt

Whitney N. Neal (), Erica A. Schleicher, Kerri Baron, Robert A. Oster, Nashira I. Brown, Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, Maria Pisu, Monica L. Baskin, Kelsey B. Parrish, William Walker Cole, Mohanraj Thirumalai and Dori W. Pekmezi
Additional contact information
Whitney N. Neal: Department of Health Behavior, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Erica A. Schleicher: Department of Health Behavior, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Kerri Baron: Capstone College of Nursing, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
Robert A. Oster: O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Nashira I. Brown: Department of Health Outcomes and Behavior, Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa, FL 33612, USA
Wendy Demark-Wahnefried: Department of Medicine, Division of Preventive Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Maria Pisu: O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Monica L. Baskin: Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
Kelsey B. Parrish: Department of Health Behavior, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
William Walker Cole: Department of Health Behavior, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Mohanraj Thirumalai: Health Services Administration, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA
Dori W. Pekmezi: Department of Health Behavior, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 24, 1-14

Abstract: Despite well-documented global declines in physical activity (PA) during the COVID-19 pandemic, little is known regarding the specific impact among underserved, rural Alabama counties. This is concerning as this region was already disproportionately burdened by inactivity and related chronic diseases and was among the hardest hit by COVID-19. Thus, the current study examined the effect of COVID-19 on PA in four rural Alabama counties. An ancillary survey was administered between March 2020 and August 2021 to the first cohort (N = 171) of participants enrolled in a larger PA trial. Main outcomes of this survey included the perceived impact of COVID-19 on PA, leisure-time PA, and social cognitive theory (SCT) constructs at 3 months. Almost half of the participants reported being less active during the pandemic (49.7%) and endorsed that COVID-19 made PA more difficult (47.4%), citing concerns such as getting sick from exercising outside of the home (70.4%) and discomfort wearing a face mask while exercising (58%). Perceived COVID-19 impact on PA was significantly associated with education, household dependents, and gender ( p ’s < 0.05). More women, parents, and college graduates reported that the COVID-19 pandemic made PA more difficult. Overall, there were no significant associations between PA, SCT constructs, or perceived COVID-19 impact on PA scores at 3 months. While the pandemic made PA difficult for many participants, these barriers were not associated with leisure-time PA levels or related theoretical mechanisms of action, which bodes well for the success of our ongoing intervention efforts and the resiliency of these communities.

Keywords: coronavirus; exercise; physical activity; health disparities; rural health (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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