Leisure Time Physical Activity and Its Relationship to Coronary Risk Factors in a Population-Based Sample

Energy expenditure in leisure time physical activity was measured using the Minnesota Leisure Time Physical Activity Questionnaire in a probability sample of 25- to 74-year-old residents of the seven-county metropolitan area of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. Geometric mean estimates of leisure time physical energy expenditure were 193 kcal per day for men and 111 kcal per day for women. Only 34% of men and 17% of women expended 2,000 kcal or more per week in leisure time physical activity. Energy expenditure, especially in heavy intensity activities, declined with age, more so for women than men. Significant associations were observed between leisure time physical activity, particularly heavy intensity activity, and other coronary heart disease risk factors. Greater heavy intensity activity was associated with higher education (r = 0.14 to 0.26), greater Type A behavior (r = 0.14 to 0.15), higher serum high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels (r = 0.09 to 0.10), lower serum thiocyanate (r = 0.10 to -0.14), lower body mass index (r = -0.10 to -0.11), lower heart rate (r = -0.07 to -0.10), and lower systolic blood pressure (r = -0.06 to -0.09). Thus, although energy expenditure was generally low in this population, greater leisure time physical activity for the most part was associated with lower coronary risk factors.