Level of and Perceived Barriers to Physical Activity in a Sample of
College Sophomores
Anatalia Endozo-Larce, Regina Adriano-Baligad and Elizabeth Manalo Acampado
Department of Physical Education , Angeles University Foundation , Mc Arthur Highway, Angeles City, Philippines
Keywords: Physical activity, barriers for exercise, PE participation.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to identify the level of participation and the barriers in engaging in physical
activities among college sophomores. A total of 235 respondents (n=235) participated in this study and
answered the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) to identify the level of participation and
the Questionnaire for Physical Activity Barriers to assess the internal and external barriers to physical
activity participation. Findings revealed that participants who do physical activity for 3 days and
accumulating at least 1500 MET-minutes per week or 7 or more days of any combination of walking,
moderate or vigorous intensity activities accumulating at least 3000 MET- minutes /week were classified as
highly active. Other participants were categorized as moderately active and low active/inactive. Overall
findings of the present study identified that lack of time was the most significant barriers for not
participating in physical activity among the samples.
1 INTRODUCTION
Involving oneself in physical activities is
indispensable to be healthy and away from illness.
Yet, students are spending time being sedentary due
to rapid technological advancement of the present
times. This is evident through the playing of
computer games, social media and the likes rather
than taking part in physical activities. Participation
in regular physical activity remains an important
behaviour for promoting health. (Daskapan et al.,
2006). There are many factors or barriers that affect
participation in physical activity. These included the
demographic variables, knowledge, attitudes and
beliefs about physical activity (Dishman, 1994). The
period of adolescence represents the transition from
childhood to adulthood and lifetime habits such as
regular exercise are normally begun at this time
(Andersen et.al, 1993). But unfortunately research
indicated that physical activity rates decline
consistently during the adolescent years (Kann et al.,
2000).
According to the U.S. Center for Disease,
Control and Prevention, Control and Prevention,
regular physical activity at least sixty minutes daily
builds healthy bones and reduces muscles, improves
muscle strength and endurance, reduces the risk of
developing chronic diseases, improves self-esteem,
and reduces stress and anxiety among children and
adolescents. Middle income countries including the
Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand also
face the double burden of obesity according to a
joint report by the United Nations International
Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), World
Health Organizations (WHO), and Association of
Southeast Asean Nations (ASEAN). In an article by
the Stanford Wockets Activity Project emphasized
that changes in transportation, communication,
workplace, domestic and entertainment technologies
have been associated with significantly reduced
demands for physical activity thus leading to
sedentary behaviour.
In the Philippines, physical inactivity is the
major factor in the prevalence of obesity. The
National Nutrition Survey of the Food and Nutrition
Research Institute (FNRI) noted that the number of
obese Filipino adults increased by 14.5 percentage
points, from 16.6 percent in 1993 to 31.1 percent in
2013. This means that three (3) out of ten (10)
Filipino adults are obese. This is very alarming as
over nutrition is not only a problem among the rich,
but also among the poor. Among 10 to 19 years old,
the prevalence increased by 2.5 points, from 5.8
Endozo-Larce, A., Adriano-Baligad, R. and Acampado, E.
Level of and Perceived Barriers to Physical Activity in a Sample of College Sophomores.
In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Sports Science, Health and Physical Education (ICSSHPE 2017) - Volume 1, pages 375-379
ISBN: 978-989-758-317-9
Copyright © 2018 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda. All rights reserved
375

percent in 2003 to 8.3 percent in 2013. In a survey,
93 percent of Filipinos do not engage in leisure-
related physical activity and about three-fourth of
adults do not engage in non-work physical
activity(75.4 percent) and work-related physical
activity (76.3 percent). There were studies which
were completed that assessed the participation and
barriers to physical activity among young people
(Brown et al., 2005). However, there is limited data
about the physical activity participation and barriers
to physical activity participation on college students
in the locality. This study analyzed the level of and
perceived barriers to physical activity in a samples
of college sophomores at private university in
Angeles City, Philippines.
2 METHODS
The study was a descriptive research where
structured questionnaires were employed to gather
data. The values were expressed as mean + standard
error (SE). Statistical significance was determined
using the Kruskal- Wallis test. All statistical analysis
were performed using the Stata 13. A convenience
sample of 235 college sophomore students attending
physical education classes agreed to participate in
this descriptive and correlation study. There were
111 females (47%) and 124 males (53 %) in this
study. The samples included many more males than
females. Written informed consents were obtained
from all the respondents before answering the survey
questionnaires. Adopting the International Physical
Activity Questionnaire (Sallis and Patrick, 1994),
the level of physical activity participation of the
respondents was assessed. It is a survey with 7 item
questionnaires in which the subject personally
answered the questions. To identify the barriers to
physical activity participation among the
respondents, another set of survey questionnaire by
(Daskapan et al., 2006) was used. A 12 test items
were rated based on the adopted and modified 4-
point Likert-type scale (Kotechi, J.E., et al., 2007).
3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The study included 235 respondents. A total of 133
or 56.60% of the respondents were identified to be
low active or inactive. It appeared to be no physical
activity or some activity were reported but not
enough to meet categories 2 or 3. Though, a good
number of 78 respondents or 33.19% were doing 3
more days of vigorous activity of at least 20 minutes
per day or 5 or more days of moderate-intensity
activity and/or walking of at least 30 minutes per
day or 5 or more days of any combination of
walking, moderate-intensity or vigorous intensity
activities achieving a minimum of at least 600 MET-
minutes/week and were identified as moderately
active.
In general, there were 24 or 10.21% of the
respondents were classified as highly active doing
vigorous-intensity activity on at least 3 days and
accumulating at least 1500 MET-minutes/week or 7
or more days of any combination of walking,
moderate- or vigorous-intensity activities
accumulating at least 3000 MET-minutes/week. In
the survey, the rate of physical activity participation
of males was higher than males. According to World
Health Organization (WHO) in 2008, physical
inactivity is the fourth leading risk factor for global
mortality, causing 6 percent of all death worldwide
(high blood pressure, tobacco use, and high blood
sugar are the top three risk factors). This 6 percent
translates to approximately 3.2 million people deaths
annually and 60 percent of the world’s population
does not meet the recommended amount of physical
activity. The United States Department of Health
and Human Services stated the three main types of
physical activity: aerobic, muscle-strengthening and
bone-strengthening activities. According to World
Health Organization (WHO), it is important to be
scientifically informed about the recommendations
outlined by the FITT (frequency, intensity, type and
time) principle as these recommendations are
necessary to produce health benefits. Furthermore,
the WHO also endorsed the Global
Recommendations on Physical Activity for Health
which addresses three age-groups 15-17 y/o, 18-
64y/o and 65y/o and above. The age groups are
classified according to the nature and availability of
scientific evidence related to the prevention of non-
communicable diseases through physical activity.
In order to improve health related fitness, the
WHO stated that children and youth should
participate in at least 60 minutes of moderate of
vigorous physical activity daily in accumulation for
the entire day while adults should participate in at
least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic
physical activity throughout the week or at least 75
minutes throughout the week or an equal
combination of both. The reasons for participation
can, however, differ subtly among individuals
(Allender et al., 2006).
ICSSHPE 2017 - 2nd International Conference on Sports Science, Health and Physical Education
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Figure 1: Demographic characteristics of the participants.
Table 1 showed the perceived barriers to
physical activity participation. It can be gleaned on
the table that there were differences in the mean
levels of perceived barriers considering the gender.
Female respondents have higher rates on almost all
questions compare to male respondents. The total
score of the external barriers was significantly
higher than the score of the internal barriers. It was
identified that lack of time was one of the most
important external barrier to physical activity
participation with the mean of 5.19 while lack of
motivation with the mean of 4.54 was the most
important internal barrier that somewhat affect the
participation of the respondents in doing physical
activity.
In a survey conducted by the National Health
Surveillance in Singapore, the percentage of
Singaporeans who exercise increased from 20 per
cent in 2001 to 22.4 per cent in 2007. The study
strongly supported the findings that lack of time and
lack of motivation to exercise affected the
respondents’ participation to physical activities. Not
having enough time was the most important barrier
for not participating in physical activity among the
respondents. This means that respondents find
exercises difficult and too tiring, also by some
means they prefer other recreational activities with
their friends as they find it more entertaining than
exercise. Likewise, they have not fully realized that
exercises have positive effects on their health.
Subsequently, they are worried about how they look
when they exercise as they lack self-confidence
about their ability to exercise. Equally, respondents
were also affected by external physical activity
barriers like lack of resources, lack of support and
lack of time in particular. Some external barriers
includes lack of fitness centers or no exercise
equipment at home, also they are encourage by
friends and family to exercise as parents give
academic success priority over exercise. Lastly and
most evidently no leisure time for exercise because
of the busy lesson schedule, social and family
responsibilities.
Although most people recognized that there were
health benefits associated with the physical activity,
this was not the main reason for participation. Other
factors such as weight management, enjoyment ,
social interaction and support were more common
reasons for people being physically active (Allender
, 2006).
Table 2 presents the respondents profile to
barrier to physical activity participation. Data shows
that the sum of physical activity internal barriers was
not significantly different among male and female
respondents while the physical activity external
barriers of male is less with female respondents. The
total mean score of the barriers of males were less
than those of the females. The result implied that
male respondents find more resources for fitness like
fitness center or gym to do physical activity. In
addition, male respondents are more inclined to go
to fitness center/gym with friends or family
member/s and put their time and energy to such
activities over academic and other responsibilities.
Research showed that one woman in six has
exercised regularly since childhood, compared to
more than one in three men. Meanwhile three out of
five women said they have never taken regular
exercise – double the rate of men. Fun, enjoyment
and social support were reported more often as
predictors of participation and non-participation than
perceived health benefits
Table 3 shows the respondents profile to physical
activity. The data indicates that male respondents are
more physically active than female respondents.
Data showed than female’s physical activity was
lower than those of the males. It was supported with
the fact that going to fitness center is more appealing
to male and they are more aware of the benefits of
exercises like strengthening of the body and mind,
enhancement of self-confidence and self-expression.
Also, male are more indulge into vigorous activities.
Contradictory, dance is more appealing to girls than
boys (O'Neill, 2011).
In a study (Azevedo, 2007) regardless of the
guideline used, males were more active than women.
Because men and women have different levels of
physical activity, and the variables associated with
activity levels are not consistent across the genders,
interventions promoting physical activity should
take these differences into account .Aerobic physical
Level of and Perceived Barriers to Physical Activity in a Sample of College Sophomores
377

activity classes are attended primarily by females
(Crawford and Eklund, 1994).Therefore, it was also
expected that females would prefer exercising in
structured settings (for both aerobic activity and
weight training), more so than males. Finally, based
on the discussion relating to Sports and Physical
Activity (Crawford and Eklund et.al., 1994) it is
expected that females would prefer to exercise
alone.
Table 1: Description of perceived barriers items.
Items Means
All Males Females
1. I’ve been thinking about exercise is difficult and too tiring
2.24 2.23 2.26
2. I have no energy as much as to be able to do exercise.
2.10 2.12 2.09
Lack of energy Score
4.35 4.35 4.35
3. I’ve been thinking about other recreational activities with my
friends are more entertaining than exercise.
2.85 2.79 2.91
4. I have not been thinking about exercise has positive effects on
my health. 1.70 1.75 1.64
Lack of motivation Score
4.54 4.54 4.55
5. I’ve been worried about my looks when I exercise.
1.93 1.93 1.94
6. I have not been thinking about my ability to exercise.
2.08 2.14 2.02
Lack of Self-confidence Score
4.01 4.06 3.95
Sum of Perceived Internal Barriers Score
12.91 12.95 12.86
7. There is no fitness center that I could get into.
2.06 2.03 2.08
8. I have no exercise equipment at home that I use.
2.51 2.34 2.69
Lack of Resource Score
4.56 4.37 4.77
9. My family or friends do not encourage me to exercise.
1.73 1.74 1.72
10. My parents give academic success priority over exercise.
2.35 2.25 2.47
Lack of Support
4.09 3.99 4.19
11. I have no leisure time for exercise because of my busy lesson
schedule. 2.84 2.74 2.95
12. I have no leisure time for exercise because of my social and
family responsibilities.
2.35 2.23 2.49
Lack of Time
5.20 4.98 5.44
Sum of Perceived External Barriers Score
13.84 13.34 14.41
Sum of Barriers Score
26.75 26.29 27.26
Table 2: Respondent’s profile and barriers.
Group Obs Mean
Std. Err. Std. Dev. [95% Conf. Interval]
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Male 124 26.29 .46
5.08 25.39 27.19
Female 111 27.26 .47
4.90 26.33 28.19
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Combined 235 26.75
.33 5.04 26.10 27.39
Diff -.9709387 .6566831 -2.264734 .3228568
Diff = mean(1) - mean(2) t = -1.4785
Ho: diff = 0 degrees of freedom = 233
Ha: diff < 0 Ha: diff != 0 Ha: diff > 0
Pr(T < t) = 0.0703 Pr(|T| > |t|) = 0.1406 Pr(T >
t) = 0.9297
*One-tailed test Significant at 10% level of significance
Table 3: Respondent’s profile and physical activity.
Low Moderate High
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Gender 1 2 3 Total
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Male 67 45 12 124
Female 66 33 12 111
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Total 133 78 24 235
Kendall's tau-b = -0.0414 ASE = 0.063
Table 4 shows the Relationship of Barriers and
Physical Activity. There is a significant relationship
between barrier scores of the respondents in
different physical activity categories. Respondents’
level of participation varies considering the
preferences, choices, capabilities, abilities and such
factors. The responses of the students on the barriers
to physical activity significantly differed based on
how the respondents coped up and dealt with all the
barriers to participate to physical activity.
The results of the present study offered insight
into conditions beneficial to the development of
effective physical activity interventions.
Understanding individual preferences is important;
physical activity preferences are linked to both
adherence behaviors and various psychological
responses related to physical activity (Thompson
and Wankel, 1980). It has been suggested that
physical activity interventions are most beneficial
when they are tailored to individual preferences and
that a better understanding of these preferences
could lead to increased adherence to exercise
programs (Moore and Ruland, 2003).
Thus, it is beneficial to gain an understanding of
some of the personal factors that might influence
these individual preferences. One personal factor
ICSSHPE 2017 - 2nd International Conference on Sports Science, Health and Physical Education
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that is examined in the present study is gender.
Reports of physical activity behaviour provide
support for a suggestion that males and females have
different preferences for physical activity contexts.
Table 4: Relationship of barriers and physical activity.
Category Obs Rank Sum
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Low /Inactive 133 16745.00
Moderately Active 78 7925.50
Highly Active 24 3059.50
4 CONCLUSIONS
Findings revealed majority of the participants have
low level of participation in physical activity.
Furthermore, data indicated that male respondents
are more physically active than female respondents.
Data showed than female’s physical activity was
lower than those of the males.
Second, it was identified that lack of time was
one of the most important external barrier to
physical activity participation while lack of
motivation was the most important internal barrier
that somewhat affect the participation of the
respondents in doing physical activity.
Lastly, there is a significant relationship between
barrier scores of the respondents in different
physical activity categories. The respondents’ level
of participation varies considering the preferences,
choices, capabilities, abilities and such factors.
Choosing to live healthy requires constant effort by
assessing ones current behaviours, be well-informed
of the consequences, commit and plan the necessary
changes and employ sound techniques to modify
these behaviour.
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