Physical activity and psychiatric symptoms in adults with schizophrenia spectrum disorders

People diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs) experience significant health disparity due to cardiovascular disease. One key to cardiovascular health is physical activity (PA). In addition, sedentary behavior is recognized as a health threat, independent of PA levels. The current study sought to identify the relationship of psychiatric symptoms of SSD to measured PA and sedentary behavior. Findings indicated that less than half of the sample obtained the recommended minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) per week. Subjects who were younger and had greater cognitive disorganization engaged in more minutes of MVPA. In contrast, sedentary behavior was only associated with aspects of metacognitive functioning, such that subjects who had greater ability for forming integrated representations of themselves and the related capacity to use knowledge of themselves spent less time in sedentary behaviors. This study expands upon the limited literature available on individuals with SSD and PA levels.