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Physical Activity Levels at Work and Leisure Among Kindergarten Workers

Received: 1 February 2016     Accepted: 1 April 2016     Published: 25 April 2016
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Abstract

Background: The low percentage of adults fulfilling the health recommendations standard of physical activity in Norway and in countries all over the world, is a major concern. The study examine how physical activity during work hours contributes to physical activity among kindergarten workers, and how these workers estimate their physical activity level. Methods: Accelerometers were used for seven days to derive percentages of time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among forty-six randomly selected kindergarten workers in Norway. A questionnaire was used to measure the subjects’ estimation of their own activity. Results: The study found that kindergarten workers achieved 57% of their MVPA during work on work days and 44% of their weekly MVPA through their work. Furthermore, the subjects underestimated their own MVPA during work, but not during leisure. Conclusion and recommendations: The results suggest that physically active work may be a major arena for daily physical activity, and that workers in physically active professions may be unaware of the positive outcomes regarding the contribution of work time to the daily MVPA level. The results point to the importance of making people aware of the positive outcome of physically demanding professions in relaton to fulfill the physical activity reccomendation.

Published in Science Journal of Public Health (Volume 4, Issue 3)
DOI 10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12
Page(s) 147-154
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2016. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity, Work Time, Health Recommendation, Estimation

References
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[9] Clemes, S. A., O’Connell, S. E., & Edwardson, C. L. (2014). Office workers’ objectively measured sedentary behavior and physical activity during and outside working hours. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 56, 298–303.
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  • APA Style

    Pål Lagestad, Karin Kippe. (2016). Physical Activity Levels at Work and Leisure Among Kindergarten Workers. Science Journal of Public Health, 4(3), 147-154. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12

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    ACS Style

    Pål Lagestad; Karin Kippe. Physical Activity Levels at Work and Leisure Among Kindergarten Workers. Sci. J. Public Health 2016, 4(3), 147-154. doi: 10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12

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    AMA Style

    Pål Lagestad, Karin Kippe. Physical Activity Levels at Work and Leisure Among Kindergarten Workers. Sci J Public Health. 2016;4(3):147-154. doi: 10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12

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  • @article{10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12,
      author = {Pål Lagestad and Karin Kippe},
      title = {Physical Activity Levels at Work and Leisure Among Kindergarten Workers},
      journal = {Science Journal of Public Health},
      volume = {4},
      number = {3},
      pages = {147-154},
      doi = {10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.sjph.20160403.12},
      abstract = {Background: The low percentage of adults fulfilling the health recommendations standard of physical activity in Norway and in countries all over the world, is a major concern. The study examine how physical activity during work hours contributes to physical activity among kindergarten workers, and how these workers estimate their physical activity level. Methods: Accelerometers were used for seven days to derive percentages of time spent in  moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among forty-six randomly selected kindergarten workers in Norway. A questionnaire was used to measure the subjects’ estimation of their own activity. Results: The study found that kindergarten workers achieved 57% of their MVPA during work on work days and 44% of their weekly MVPA through their work. Furthermore, the subjects underestimated their own MVPA during work, but not during leisure. Conclusion and recommendations: The results suggest that physically active work may be a major arena for daily physical activity, and that workers in physically active professions may be unaware of the positive outcomes regarding the contribution of work time to the daily MVPA level. The results point to the importance of making people aware of the positive outcome of physically demanding professions in relaton to fulfill the physical activity reccomendation.},
     year = {2016}
    }
    

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  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Physical Activity Levels at Work and Leisure Among Kindergarten Workers
    AU  - Pål Lagestad
    AU  - Karin Kippe
    Y1  - 2016/04/25
    PY  - 2016
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12
    DO  - 10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12
    T2  - Science Journal of Public Health
    JF  - Science Journal of Public Health
    JO  - Science Journal of Public Health
    SP  - 147
    EP  - 154
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2328-7950
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20160403.12
    AB  - Background: The low percentage of adults fulfilling the health recommendations standard of physical activity in Norway and in countries all over the world, is a major concern. The study examine how physical activity during work hours contributes to physical activity among kindergarten workers, and how these workers estimate their physical activity level. Methods: Accelerometers were used for seven days to derive percentages of time spent in  moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among forty-six randomly selected kindergarten workers in Norway. A questionnaire was used to measure the subjects’ estimation of their own activity. Results: The study found that kindergarten workers achieved 57% of their MVPA during work on work days and 44% of their weekly MVPA through their work. Furthermore, the subjects underestimated their own MVPA during work, but not during leisure. Conclusion and recommendations: The results suggest that physically active work may be a major arena for daily physical activity, and that workers in physically active professions may be unaware of the positive outcomes regarding the contribution of work time to the daily MVPA level. The results point to the importance of making people aware of the positive outcome of physically demanding professions in relaton to fulfill the physical activity reccomendation.
    VL  - 4
    IS  - 3
    ER  - 

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Author Information
  • Department of Sport and Physical Education, North University, Levanger, Norway

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