Association between COVID-19 infection experience and physical activity levels in post-recovery college students

This study aimed to assess the level of physical activity in college students after recovery from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

The Physical Activity Rating Scale (PARS-3) and the Wisconsin Upper Respiratory Symptom Survey (WURSS-21) questionnaire were used to conduct a survey on 1,633 college students.

(1) The experience of COVID-19 was negatively correlated with the level of physical activity after recovery (r = -0.230, p < 0.01). However, this effect size is small and statistical significance may be influenced by the large sample size. (2) The intensity and duration of physical activity showed the following canonical variates: U1 = -0.438X₁ (nasal symptoms) + 0.299X₂ (pharyngeal symptoms) + 1.144X₃ (activity/function) and V1 = -1.073Y₁ (intensity of physical activity) + 0.599Y₂ (duration of physical activity). The canonical correlation between U1 and V1 was 0.118 (p < 0.001). (3) Among male college students, the experience of COVID-19 infection was significantly negatively correlated with the overall level of physical activity (r = -0.188, p < 0.01). Specifically, the Spearman correlation coefficients revealed significant negative correlations with the intensity (r = -0.129, p < 0.01), duration (r = -0.080, p < 0.05), and frequency (r = -0.106, p < 0.01) of physical activity. In contrast, for female college students, the infection experience showed a non-significant negative correlation with the level of physical activity (r = -0.045, p > 0.05). The Spearman correlation coefficients for female students indicated a significant negative correlation with the intensity of physical activity (r = -0.081, small effect size, p < 0.05), while the correlations with duration (r = 0.061, p > 0.05) and frequency (r = 0.076, p > 0.05) were not significant. (4) The level of physical activity was lower with increased severity of COVID-19 experience. The overall decrease was 3.20 points for each level of increase in severity, with the individual decreases in male and female students being 5.98 and 2.79 points, respectively. Given the small effect sizes (R ² = 0.015-0.035), these differences, while statistically significant, may have limited practical significance.

The experience of COVID-19 was associated with lower levels of physical activity among Chinese college students in the post-recovery phase, with a stronger negative correlation observed in male students. Notably, the duration and frequency of physical activity were higher among female students after recovery from COVID-19. These results are consistent with the importance of physical activity awareness during a pandemic, though causal inferences are precluded by the cross-sectional design. Additionally, the development of efficient fitness programs may be considered to support participation and address post-pandemic health needs.