Physical activity epidemiology

Principal Advisor: Dr Gregore Mielke

Organisational unit: School of Public Health

The wide variation in patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour in everyday life raises questions about the weakness of the traditional ‘one-size fits all’ approach used to explore relationships between physical activity and health. Although the importance of physical activity for health is well established, much assumed knowledge in this field is based on methods that classify people as ‘active’ or ‘inactive’ at one time point and do not account for changes in physical activity and sedentary behaviour across the lifespan. This project will be part of a program of research that aims to advance knowledge of patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour across the life course. The project utilises self-report and accelerometer data from rich longitudinal population studies to: 1) identify diverse patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour, as they exist in natural environments; 2) investigate if there are optimal ways to accumulate the same amount of physical activity to maximise health benefits.