Predicting physical distancing on recreational trails during COVID-19.

The emergence of Coronavirus 19 led to societal and behavioral changes, including intensified use of many public parks and trails for mental respite and leisure time physical activity. As visitors sought stress-relief in the great outdoors, they also encountered stressful situations as they navigated risk exposure. Recommendations to physically distance between parties was a key component to reduce risk, but compliance is unknown in the outdoor arena. This observational study of more than 10 000 trail user encounters documented distancing and enabled predictive analysis that revealed wider trails, smaller groups and signage led to greater distancing compliance. Managers and planners can integrate these findings immediately and in consideration of future trail designs to minimize risk exposure. Management implications: Select site features increase odds of distancing compliance and can inform management decisions and designs immediately and in addressing future use surges: wider trails, unpaved surfaces, and COVID-19 signage.As distancing compliance waned with time but signage increased compliance, innovative and dynamic signs may sustain compliance and multi-media communications should be considered.Both activity size and group type influence distancing so considering group size recommendations and activity separation are in order.

One Agency's Contribution to Creating a Culture of Health in a Latinx Community.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundations' Culture of Health represents a national call to ensure everyone living in the United States can have a healthy life. This article discusses how organizations outside of the health care sector can participate in creating a Culture of Health by using a nonprofit organization (Little Village Environmental Justice Organization) as an example. The organization's role in policy creation concerning cross-sector partnerships and governance to create equitable communities was of primary importance to this article. The example presented has important public health implications, particularly as it relates to promoting healthy outcomes among urban Latinx community members.

Crime, physical activity and outdoor recreation among Latino adolescents in Chicago.

PURPOSE: The purpose was to examine how fear of crime, crime victimization, and perceived level of community incivilities are related to physical activity participation and outdoor recreation among Latino adolescents. METHOD: The study utilized a mixed methods approach that included 25 qualitative interviews and 390 school-based surveys collected from youth across three schools in Little Village, Chicago, Illinois. RESULTS: Results showed that Latino adolescents who expressed greater fear of crime also engaged in less physical activity and outdoor recreation. There was no association between crime victimization and physical activity and outdoor recreation. Those who perceived greater levels of community incivilities also engaged in less outdoor recreation, but perception of incivilities had no significant association with physical activity levels. Interview data revealed most of the children believed crime was a serious problem in their neighborhood and it impacted their ability to be physically active and play outside. CONCLUSIONS: Fear of crime was related to lower physical activity and outdoor recreation. It is imperative that communities provide safe environments for children to be active. Increasing police and adult presence in parks and school grounds is recommended. Moreover, efforts must be made to reduce the gang problems in Latino communities.

Perceived health benefits from yoga among breast cancer survivors.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to describe the health benefits reported by breast cancer survivors following an 8-week yoga intervention. DESIGN: This phenomenological study employed three focus groups with six breast cancer survivors each (n = 18) following the yoga intervention. SETTING: The focus groups and yoga classes were conducted in a large hospital in a midsized town in the Midwest. SUBJECTS: Eighteen female breast cancer survivors who were at least 9 months posttreatment participated in the focus groups following the 8-week yoga intervention. INTERVENTION: An 8-week yoga intervention designed specifically for this population was led by a yoga therapist. MEASURES: A semistructured interview guide was utilized to guide each focus group. ANALYSIS: Interpretative phenomenological analysis methods were employed to explore breast cancer survivors' experiences after participating in an 8-week yoga intervention. RESULTS: The findings revealed that the women in the study found health promoting benefits in the areas of physical health and healing, mental health and healing, and social health and healing. CONCLUSIONS: Yoga may be an important tool in the healing process for breast cancer survivors.

Influence of Hatha yoga on physical activity constraints, physical fitness, and body image of breast cancer survivors: a pilot study.

Breast cancer survivors often experience changes in their perception of their bodies following surgical treatment. These changes in body image may increase self-consciousness and perceptions of physical activity constraints and reduce participation in physical activity. While the number of studies examining different types of yoga targeting women with breast cancer has increased, studies thus far have not studied the influence that Hatha yoga has on body image and physical activity constraints. The objective of this study was to explore the changes that occur in breast cancer survivors in terms of body image, perceived constraints, and physical fitness following an 8-week Hatha yoga intervention. This study used a nonrandomized two-group pilot study, comparing an 8-week Hatha yoga intervention with a light exercise group, both designed for women who were at least nine months post-treatment for breast cancer. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected in the areas of body image, physical activity constraints, and physical fitness. Findings indicated that quantitatively, yoga participants experienced reductions in physical activity constraints and improvements in lower- and upper-body strength and flexibility, while control participants experienced improvements in abdominal strength and lower-body strength. Qualitative findings support changes in body image, physical activity constraints, and physical fitness for the participants in the yoga group. In conclusion, Hatha yoga may reduce constraints to physical activity and improve fitness in breast cancer survivors. More research is needed to explore the relationship between Hatha yoga and improvements in body image.

Physical activity patterns and preferences among Latinos in different types of public parks.

BACKGROUND: Centers for Disease Control (CDC) data suggest that Latinos are less likely to be physically active and more likely to be overweight and suffer from resulting complications than are Whites and that within the Latino population, Latina women are especially at risk. Therefore, promoting physical activity among Latinos, and understanding gender participation patterns within that population, is particularly important. One strategy for encouraging physical activity is to promote active uses of public parks. METHODS: A national, multiyear, multisite study funded by the USDA Forest Service sought to understand use of public parks by Latinos and Latinas in Los Angeles, Minneapolis, and Chicago. RESULTS: More than 50% of our sample visited parks to engage in physical activity, and in part, activity choice was related to gender. Furthermore, nearly half of all respondents walked to city park sites, whereas few or none walked to state or regional park sites. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that Latinos are using some parks repeatedly and, in the case of city parks, are using them for physical as well as social activity. Therefore, we suggest specific ways that parks could be managed to encourage more physical activity while taking into account gender variations.