Returning to work increases the practice of physical exercise

Going back to work is something we all dread after spending idyllic days lounging on the beach or in the countryside. However, the presence of the pandemic has led to teleworking at home and losing the habit of going to the office. This negatively affected the practice of physical exercise and active lifestyle.

From Run Repeat they want to understand how the exercise habits of people who are forced to work remotely during the pandemic were affected by returning to the office full time. To do this, we surveyed 2,494 people who teleworked during the pandemic about their exercise habits before and after returning to work.

Certainly, after the worst of the pandemic, many workers return to work in the office full-time. This indicates a return to normalcy, with a structure, routine and lifestyle familiar to many.

The return to work has generated the boom of the exercise

Returning to work has created a boom in exercise for those who did the least. Those who exercised up to twice a week increased their exercise frequency by 125.93% , from 0.98 times a week to 2.22 times a week.

The moderate frequency group (up to three times a week) increased their exercise frequency by 38.57%, from 1.86 times to 2.58 times a week. However, those who maintained a high frequency (more than four times a week) of exercise while working remotely during the pandemic were the only ones negatively affected by returning to work. They experienced a decrease of 14.16%, going from exercising 5.23 times to 4.49 times a week since they returned to the office full time.

Of those surveyed who were not actively exercising while working from home, 59.52% said they are now actively exercising. This group of respondents who have started exercising since returning to work in the office full time now exercise 2.64 times per week on average. While 3.91% of those who were exercising before returning to work have already stopped exercising altogether.

mujer haciendo deporte despues de la vuelta al trabajo

Changes in runners’ exercise habits

Running has been a major trend in physical activity during the pandemic. This is because it was one of the easiest ways to be active when other options, such as gyms or sports centers, were not feasible during the pandemic.

When looking at the exercise frequency of runners, it is observed that they follow many of the same trends. Runners who normally did not run too much saw an increase in exercise frequency of 150.88%, while those in the moderate frequency group increased by 40.74%.

However, the only group that experienced a decrease in exercise was the high frequency group (more than four times a week), falling 8.71% since returning to the office full time.