How can UK public health initiatives support each other to improve the maintenance of physical activity? Evidence from a cross-sectional survey of runners who move from Couch-to-5k to parkrun
Relph, Nicola Owen, Michael Moinuddin, Mohammed Noonan, Rob Dey, Paola Bullas, Alice Quirk, Helen Haake, Steve
Relph, Nicola
Owen, Michael
Moinuddin, Mohammed
Noonan, Rob
Dey, Paola
Bullas, Alice
Quirk, Helen
Haake, Steve
Advisors
Editors
Other Contributors
EPub Date
Publication Date
2023-10-04
Submitted Date
Collections
Other Titles
Abstract
Physical activity improves physical and mental well-being and reduces mortality risk. However, only a quarter of adults globally meet recommended physical activity levels for health. Two common initiatives in the UK are Couch-to-5k (an app-assisted 9-week walk/run programme) and parkrun (a free, weekly, timed 5-km walk/run). It is not known how these initiatives are linked, how Couch-to-5k parkrunners compare to parkrunners, and the extent to which this influences their parkrun performance. The aims were to compare the characteristics and motives and to compare physical activity levels, parkrun performance and the impact of parkrun between Couch-to-5k parkrunners and parkrunners. Three thousand two hundred and ninety six Couch-to-5k parkrunners were compared to 55,923 parkrunners to explore age, sex, ethnicity, employment status, neighbourhood deprivation, motives, physical activity levels, parkrun performance and the impact of parkrun. Couch-to-5k parkrunners were slightly older, more likely to be female and work part-time, but similar in ethnicity, and neighbourhood deprivation compared with other parkrunners. Couch-to-5k parkrunners had different motives for participation and reported high levels of physical activity at registration, which remained to the point of survey completion. This group had slower parkrun times but, when registered for a year, completed a similar number of runs (11) per year. Larger proportions of Couch-to-5k parkrunners perceived positive impacts compared with other parkrunners and 65% of Couch-to-5k parkrunners reported improvements to their lifestyle. parkrun appears to be an effective pathway for those on the Couch-to-5k programme, and the promising positive association between the two initiatives may be effective in assisting previously inactive participants to take part in weekly physical activity.
Citation
Relph, N., Owen, M., Moinuddin, M., Noonan, R., Dey, P., Bullas, A., Quirk, H., & Haake, S. (2023). How can UK public health initiatives support each other to improve the maintenance of physical activity? Evidence from a cross-sectional survey of runners who move from Couch-to-5k to parkrun. Health Promotion International, 38(5), article-number daad108. https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daad108
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Journal
Health Promotion International
Research Unit
DOI
10.1093/heapro/daad108
PubMed ID
PubMed Central ID
Type
Article
Language
en
Description
© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press.
Series/Report no.
ISSN
0957-4824
EISSN
1460-2245
ISBN
ISMN
Gov't Doc
Test Link
Sponsors
The Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC) at Sheffield Hallam University were commissioned by parkrun to do the Health and Wellbeing Survey 2018. H.Q. is funded by an NIHR School for Public Health Research (SPHR) post-doctoral Launching Fellowship.