This study investigated how stress, physical activity and sedentary behaviours, of a small sample of Canadians, changed within the first month (i.e. March/April) of the COVID‐19 pandemic and the reasons/barriers associated with such changes. Individuals who regularly wear activity trackers were recruited via social media. Participants (N = 121) completed fillable calendars (March/April 2020) with their step counts and answered an online survey. Separate paired‐sample t‐tests, one‐way ANOVAs and bivariate chi‐squares were conducted, in addition to qualitative analysis. Daily (p <.001) and work (p =.003) stress increased, physical activity (measured by step count) decreased (p =.0014), and screen‐related sedentary behaviour increased (p <.001) as a result of COVID‐19. A decrease in physical activity, as a result of the pandemic, was also associated with a larger increase in work stress, compared with those who self‐reported their physical activity to have been maintained or increased (p =.005). The most common reasons/barriers to changes in physical activity behaviours were access/equipment, time and motivation. Findings provide initial evidence of the impact of the COVID‐19 pandemic on the health of some Canadians and highlight the need for continued monitoring of the health of Canadians throughout the pandemic.

中文翻译：

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COVID-19 大流行的第一个月内的压力、身体活动和与屏幕相关的久坐行为

本研究调查了一小部分加拿大人的压力、身体活动和久坐行为如何在 COVID-19 大流行的第一个月（即 3 月/4 月）内发生变化，以及与这些变化相关的原因/障碍。经常佩戴活动追踪器的人是通过社交媒体招募的。参与者 ( N  = 121) 完成了可填写的日历（2020 年 3 月/2020 年 4 月）并填写了他们的步数并回答了在线调查。除了定性分析外，还进行了单独的配对样本t检验、单向方差分析和双变量卡方。每日 ( p  <.001) 和工作 ( p  = .003) 压力增加，体力活动（按步数衡量）减少 ( p =.0014)，并且 由于 COVID-19 ，与屏幕相关的久坐行为增加 ( p <.001)。与那些自我报告保持或增加体力活动的人相比，由于大流行而导致体力活动减少也与工作压力的更大增加有关 ( p  = .005)。改变身体活动行为的最常见原因/障碍是访问/设备、时间和动机。调查结果提供了 COVID-19 大流行对一些加拿大人健康影响的初步证据，并强调了在整个大流行期间持续监测加拿大人健康的必要性。