Hewitt, M (2018) The Effect of University Life and the Impact of Different Modes of Exercise Training on Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour in the Adult Population. Doctoral thesis, Liverpool John Moores University.

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Abstract

Physical activity (PA) is a fundamental component of a healthy lifestyle with relationships between PA and health, specifically risk factors of chronic diseases, well documented. Being highly active throughout the lifespan is vital to achieve and maintain optimal health. There are a number of different factors that can influence PA and its association with health and wellbeing in adulthood. The transition from adolescence into adulthood has been highlighted as an ‘at risk’ period whereby declines in the level of PA are apparent among this population. The relationship between different modalities of training and health, specifically cardiovascular function, may also impact or be related to PA, but is less well studied. Therefore, the aim of this present thesis is to explore the impact of PA and sedentary behaviour (SB) levels in university students and adult gym-users and the associations of a) university and b) different training modalities on markers of health including; body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), wellbeing and vascular function. In study 1, 39 young university students (data presented as mean ± SD), males N=20, aged 20±1 yrs and females N=19, aged 19±1 yrs, wore an accelerometer (Actigraph GT39X) for 24 hours/day over 7 consecutive days. The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (WEMWBS) was used to measure wellbeing. BMI and waist circumference were calculated from the participants’ height and weight. The activity data collected were then analysed using an R software package, GGIR. For males, mean ± SD BMI = 24.1 ± 2.2 kg/m2, waist circumference = 80 ± 6 cm and wellbeing = 51 ± 6 (WEMWBS). For females, mean BMI = 22.1 ± 1.7 kg/m2, waist circumference = 69 ± 6 cm and wellbeing = 49 ± 6 (WEMWBS). Isotemporal substitution was used to establish any associations between the participants PA, SB, BMI, waist circumference and wellbeing. There were no associations between PA and BMI (P >0.05), waist circumference (P >0.05) or wellbeing (P >0.05). On average the participants spent 12 hours per day (males = 704.09±71.51 min/day and females = 713.09±74.85 min/day) sedentary, however 100% of participants met the recommended guidelines of 150 minutes of moderate intensity PA per week (males = 126.53 ± 45.33 min/day and females = 113.26 ± 44.36 min/day). There were no associations between the reallocation of PA components and BMI, waist circumference and well-being. In study 2, 16 adult gym-users either endurance (N = 8 aged 43±6 yr) or resistance (N = 8 aged 34±3 yr) trained wore an accelerometer (Actigraph GT39X) for 24 hours over 7 consecutive days. BMI and waist circumference were calculated from the participants height and weight. For endurance trained participants, mean ±SD BMI = 27.4 ± 6.0 kg/m2 and waist circumference = 88 ± 15 cm. For resistance trained participants, mean BMI = 27.6 ± 6.8 kg/m2 and waist circumference = 81 ± 13 cm. The activity data collected were then analysed using an R software package, GGIR. A MANCOVA was used to compare PA and SB data across the two studies (university students (n=39) and adult gym-users (n = 16). When age was removed as a covariate, the adult gym-users displayed significantly higher VPA (P = 0.010) in comparison to the university students. There were no significant differences between university students and adult gym-users PA components including; SB, moderate-intensity PA (MPA) and moderate-to-vigorous intensity PA (MVPA) when gender, BMI and wear time were controlled for. In study 2, a subgroup of the adult gym-user participants (N=8) also had their vascular function examined (using ultrasound derived flow-mediated dilatation (FMD)) using Terason T3000 and a MANCOVA was used to determine any differences in BMI, waist circumference, FMD, SB and MVPA between endurance and resistance trained individuals. There were no relationships between PA with BMI using a MANCOVA (P = 0.956), waist-circumference (P = 0.230) or markers of vascular function (P = 0.885) in either training group. Vigorous PA was significantly higher in endurance trained participants in comparison to resistance trained participants (13.77  5.77 VPA and 5.47  3.93 VPA, P = 0.005) when PA data was compared. All participants in both the endurance and resistance trained groups met the recommended MVPA guidelines (endurance group = 120.79 ± 34.25 min/day and resistance group = 122.88 ± 41.43 min/day. In conclusion, no associations were evident between PA and BMI, waist circumference and wellbeing in university students. Adult gym-users displayed significantly higher VPA in comparison to the university students. There were also no relationships observed between PA, BMI, waist circumference and markers of vascular function in either endurance or resistance trained adults. The percentage of university students and adult gym-users involved in this research meeting the recommended MVPA guidelines was high. Further work is required to determine the effect of transitioning into university and undertaking different modes of exercise training on PA, SB as well as BMI, waist circumference and wellbeing in a larger number and wider-range of participants.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Physical Activity; Sedentary Behaviour; Exercise Training; Vascular function; University students; Adult gym-users
Subjects:	R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC1200 Sports Medicine
Divisions:	Sport & Exercise Sciences
Date Deposited:	14 Sep 2018 08:32
Last Modified:	08 Nov 2022 14:52
DOI or ID number:	10.24377/researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk.00009215
Supervisors:	Dawson, E, Boddy, L, Knowles, Z and Stewart, C
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/9215

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