Ambulatory Physical Activity Patterns of College Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to describe the ambulatory physical activity of a sample of college students. A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted in which students (N = 441; males: n = 204, age = 20.20 ± 1.99, BMI = 25.19 ± 4 kg/m²; females: n = 237, age = 19.92 ± 1.64, BMI = 22.91 ± 3.2 kg/m²) wore an accelerometer, with cycle mode enabled, during all waking hours for 7 consecutive days. The independent variables were day of the week and gender. The dependent variable was steps per day. Two-factor ANOVA, an independent t-test, and chi-squares were calculated. Results indicated that students averaged 11,473.87 ± 2,978.62 steps per day for the week. They were most active on weekdays, and less active on weekends. Mean steps per week, weekday, and weekend did not differ by gender. Further, the majority of the students (67.4%) were exceeding the 10,000 steps per day recommendation. These results can be useful to health educators and researchers seeking a description of ambulatory physical activity in college students.