Meeting Physical Activity Guidelines and its Relationship to Health and Productivity in a University Employee Population
Abstract
Background: Public adherence to physical activity guidelines is low, and workplaces are uniquely situated to promote physical activity in their communities.
Aims: This quality improvement project assessed adherence to national physical activity guidelines for both aerobic exercise and strength training and its relationship to health and work productivity in a university employee population.
Methods: The analysis used data from 7,666 respondents to a 2022 health risk assessment (HRA). Ordinal regression was used to examine the relationship between adherence to physical activity guidelines and health and productivity outcomes.
Results: Meeting both aerobic and strength guidelines was associated with higher self-perceived health (OR = 4.25; 95% CI [3.88, 4.65]), not missing work due to illness (OR = 1.40; 95% CI [1.25, 1.57]), and greater work productivity (OR = 1.53; 95% CI [1.41, 1.67]). Meeting the aerobic guideline and meeting the strength guideline were each independently associated with higher self-perceived health and greater work productivity and meeting the aerobic guideline was independently associated with not missing work due to illness (p < 0.0001 for all).
Conclusions: These findings provide a strong rationale for employers to promote both aerobic exercise and strength training to foster healthy and productive workforces and are especially relevant to nurturing healthier academic communities.
Keywords: physical activity, strength training, employee health, work productivity
How to Cite:
Strickland, E., Tringali, V., Eby, J., Strickland, E., Tringali, V. & Eby, J., (2025) “Meeting Physical Activity Guidelines and its Relationship to Health and Productivity in a University Employee Population”, Building Healthy Academic Communities 9(2), 40-48. doi: https://doi.org/10.18061/bhac.v9i2.10441
Rights: Emma Strickland, Victor Tringali, Jean Eby
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