Joy, Jobs, and Sweat: Older Adults' Physical Activity During COVID-19 Lockdowns in New Zealand

This qualitative narrative correspondence study investigates older adults' experiences of physical activity (PA) during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns in Aotearoa, New Zealand. This paper presents a reflexive thematic analysis of 501 letters received from 568 participants that discussed PA. Participants described PA as bringing joy and rhythm to daily life under stay-athome measures. The most frequently discussed forms of PA included exercising, gardening, and housework. Four interconnected conceptual themes identified were as follows: (a) renegotiating environmental relationships, (b) social connection, (c) pleasure and PA, and (d) navigating active aging discourses. This paper emphasizes the important environmental and social motivations for becoming and remaining physically active despite restrictions on movement. Older adults' understandings and performance of PA were heavily shaped by active aging discourses. As such, we suggest that initiatives seeking to promote PA should foreground older adults' feelings of connection, productivity, and pleasure and recognize their diversity. This is contrary to current recommendations focused on duration or intensity of older adults' PA.

Automated summary

This study examines the experiences of older adults in New Zealand during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and their engagement in physical activity. Through a thematic analysis of 501 letters received from 568 participants, the study finds that physical activity brought joy and rhythm to their daily lives, with exercising, gardening, and housework being the most frequently discussed forms. The study emphasizes the importance of environmental and social motivations for older adults to stay physically active, suggesting that initiatives promoting physical activity should focus on connection, productivity, and pleasure, rather than duration or intensity.