2024 Volume 21 Pages 73-79
Abstract
University physical education contributes to achieving the goals of Health Japan 21, a national health promotion program in Japan, in various ways. Physical education (PE) courses help students maintain, raise awareness about, and foster a lifelong positive attitude toward a physically active lifestyle. This cross-sectional study tackles the hitherto unexplored question of whether a positive memory of university PE classes affects adult physical activity and exercise levels by focusing on meeting Health Japan 21’s step count target. The University of Tokyo Fitness Study consists of three large-scale datasets: 169,447 records of four-item physical fitness tests collected as part of compulsory PE courses from 1961 to 2015; 5,518 responses to a questionnaire-based follow-up survey from September to November 2018; and 1,932 accelerometry observations over seven days. The enjoyment level of university PE classes was retrospectively measured using a seven-item scale (scores ranging from 7 to 35 points) collected during the follow-up survey. The step count goals were ≥9,000 steps/day for men aged 20–64 years, ≥7,000 steps/day for men ≥65 years, ≥8,500 steps/day for women aged 20–64 years, and ≥6,000 steps/day for women ≥65 years. In total, 1,069 adults (953 men and 116 women) were analyzed after merging the datasets. For men, the odds ratios (95% confidence interval [CI]) of achieving the target step counts were 1.14 (0.79, 1.63) for those with 26–30 points on the enjoyment scale and 0.95 (0.66, 1.37) for those with 31–35 points compared with those with <26 points. For women, the corresponding odds ratios (95% CI) were 0.84 (0.31, 2.26) for those with 26–30 points and 1.27 (0.43, 3.77) for those with 31–35 points. The findings revealed no clear association for adult men and women. Further analysis of exercise and sports practices rather than step counts might be necessary.
