Rev. DERC (Online) 2020; 26(4): 217-222

The Potential Role of Participation in a Remote Physical Exercise Program in Maintaining Body Weight During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Christina Grüne de Souza e

Silva

, Claudia Lucia Barros de

Castro

DOI: 10.29327/22487.26.4-2

Abstract

Introduction:

The implementation of physical distancing in early 2020 made the maintenance of an adequate lifestyle a challenge. As physical exercise has a number of positive health benefits, we speculated that individuals who remained physically active during the COVID-19 pandemic did not show a significant gain in body weight.

Methods:

Participants from a physical exercise program under remote guidance by a multiprofessional team led by physicians between march and august/2020 and who presented body weight measurements in the initial and final months were selected. Participants were stratified according to sex, body mass index (BMI) and variation or not in body weight ≥3%. For comparison between variables, unpaired and paired Student’s t-test and chi-squared test were used. The level of significance was set at 5%.

Results:

A total of 70 participants were included (74±10 years, 75% men), and reductions up to 10.8% in body weight and increases up to 7.2% were observed. Most participants (64%) did not show significant weight variation, and only 6% showed weight gain ≥3%. The percentage of participants who showed variations in body weight was similar between men and women (p=0.44) and between BMI categories (p=0.91).

Conclusion:

Participants from a physical exercise program under remote guidance between March and August/2020 did not present, in their majority, a clinically significant increase in body weight, highlighting the potential benefit of physical exercise in keeping good health during the COVID-19 pandemic.