Relating physical activity, pleasure, and daily satisfaction of older adults: a pilot study

Backround: Literature has shown the potential of physical exercise in promoting well-being in the older population. However, the relation between everyday physical activity (PA) and positive emotions is still unknown. Objective: Analyze the relation between physical activity and positive emotions in the daily living of the 65+ population. Methods: • 5 participants (67.4±2.19 yrs) monitored during 29±3 days • Objective measurements: PA assessed with 3D accelerometer counting average IMA/min • Subjective measurements: Positive emotional factors (pleasure and daily satisfaction) assessed on smartphone (Figure 1). Pleasure assessed by experience sampling (ES). Results: • ES-level analysis: negative correlation between pleasure and PA (rsall_sub=-.102*). Correlation within subject ranges from rsmax=.038 to rsmin-0.235*. (Fig. 2). Significant negative correlation between PA and hour of day (rsall_sub=-.215*; rsmax=-0.135; -0.345*) (Fig. 3); • Day-level analysis: average PA is not significantly related to pleasure or daily satisfaction. Conclusion: Daily level of PA is not correlated with the two positive emotional factors chosen in our sample. We suggest analyze of other elements of daily living (e.g. location) as mediators when analyzing relation between PA and positive emotions within individuals. Interventions for promotion of physical activity based on positive emotions must be personalized.