Date Posted: June 10, 2026

Author/s: Elyssa Marie Nucum, Monica Arrozal, Maki Patricia Harada, Noriel Azurin, Jexel Palogan, Denise Margott Peñacerrada and Prof. John Peter Paul S. Hanada, PTRP, MSPT (cand)

Physical activity is an important factor associated with the quality of life and healthy longevity. The occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic led to community restrictions, which limited opportunities for physical activity, especially for university students who had to transition to an online academic set-up. This study aimed to determine the correlation of various student attributes, such as age, sex, height, weight, year level, student status, and college program, to physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2nd and 3rd year undergraduate students of FEU-NRMF. Eighty- nine (89) students from seven (7) different undergraduate programs completed the Personal Data Sheet (PDS), Healthy Lifestyle Screening Tool (HLST), and International Physical Activity Questionnaire – Long Form (IPAQ-LF). Results showed a positive correlation of height (r=.231, p=.029) and weight (r=.213, p=.045) to physical activity through the Spearman correlation, and a significant association of female sex (p=.001) and regular student status (p=.000) with high levels of physical activity through the Chi-square test. The study concluded that during the COVID-19 pandemic, female and regular students tend to have increased physical activity. Increased physical activity leads to increased weight through muscle gain, and taller individuals are found to be more active.

Keywords:
physical activity, Covid-19, undergraduate students, lifestyle, exercise