Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow E-letters: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when E-letters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Laitakari, J.
Right arrow Articles by Oja, P.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Laitakari, J.
Right arrow Articles by Oja, P.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Health Education Research, Vol. 11, No. 4, 463-477, 1996
© 1996 Oxford University Press

other

Is long-term maintenance of health-related physical activity possible? An analysis of concepts and evidence

Jukka Laitakari, Ilkka Vuori and Pekka Oja

The phenomenon of maintenance of health-related physical activity is explored through an analysis of the underlying concepts and of the existing empirical evidence. The following targets were used for the analysis: (1) the concept of health-related physical activity, (2) the concept of maintenance, (3) common manifestations of maintenance in everyday living, (4) the promotional and behavioral characteristics of health-related physical activity, (5) the known determinants of free-living physical activity, and (6) intervention trials on physical activity in free-living groups. The analyses revealed the inherent resistance to adoption and maintenance of physical activity, particularly that of high-intensity and program-centered activities, the persistence, however, of many simple everyday routines and habits, the multiple determinants discovered for free-living physical activity and a few empirical demonstrations of the successful promotion of the maintenance of physical activity over a year or two. The promotion of the maintenance of health-related physical activity seems thus a distinct possibility provided that (1) the promotional situation is analyzed thoroughly, (2) the activity is chosen carefully with an emphasis on moderation in intensity and integration into the participant's life-style, (3) multiple promotional contacts are used, and (4) support from the participant's social and physical environment is provided. There is a need for more research on the maintenance of health-related physical activity using the stages of change models, behavior modification principles, self-control concepts, the concept of intrinsic motivation and the Relapse model. The method of analysis used here could apply to other health-related behaviors as well.


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Health Educ ResHome page
M. M. van Stralen, L. Lechner, A. N. Mudde, H. de Vries, and C. Bolman
Determinants of awareness, initiation and maintenance of physical activity among the over-fifties: a Delphi study
Health Educ. Res., October 16, 2008; (2008) cyn045v1.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 ptjournalHome page
E. Swardh, G. Biguet, and C. H Opava
Views on Exercise Maintenance: Variations Among Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis
Physical Therapy, September 1, 2008; 88(9): 1049 - 1060.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Br. J. Sports. Med.Home page
J Adams and M White
Are activity promotion interventions based on the transtheoretical model effective? A critical review
Br. J. Sports Med., April 1, 2003; 37(2): 106 - 114.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Health Education JournalHome page
J. Adams and M. White
A systematic approach to the development and evaluation of an intervention promoting stair use
Health Education Journal, January 1, 2002; 61(3): 272 - 286.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 Journal of Planning LiteratureHome page
L. D. Frank and P. O. Engelke
The Built Environment and Human Activity Patterns: Exploring the Impacts of Urban Form on Public Health
Journal of Planning Literature, November 1, 2001; 16(2): 202 - 218.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 Health Educ ResHome page
S. Miilunpalo, R. Nupponen, J. Laitakari, J. Marttila, and O. Paronen
Stages of change in two modes of health-enhancing physical activity: methodological aspects and promotional implications
Health Educ. Res., August 1, 2000; 15(4): 435 - 448.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.