This cross-sectional study aimed to characterize the lifestyle habits, anxiety levels and basic psychological needs (BPN), in Portuguese adults during the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, including a comparison between genders and age groups. In total, 1404 adults (36.4 ± 11.7 years; 69.6% female) answered sociodemographic data and three instruments: the International Physical Activity Questionnaire, the Basic Need General Satisfaction Scale and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. Males revealed higher values for the total energy expenditure (z = −2.26; p = 0.024; ${\eta }^2$ = 0.004) and for the level of satisfaction of competence (z = −2.62; p = 0.009; ${\eta }^2$ = 0.005). Females showed higher scores for the anxiety state (z = −7.87; p ≤ 0.001; ${\eta }^2$ = 0.044) and anxiety trait (z = −6.49; p ≤ 0.001; ${\eta }^2$ = 0.030). Regarding age, higher values for the anxiety trait (p ≤ 0.001; ${\eta }_H^2$ = 0.030) were found in the 18–34 years-old group compared to all the other age groups, also presenting significantly higher values of total energy expenditure (χ² = 13.93; p = 0.008; ${\eta }_H^2$ = 0.007) when compared to the 35–44 years-old group. Significant differences were observed between the 18–34 years-old group and the other age groups for the satisfaction of competence (χ² = 40.97; p ≤ 0.001; ${\eta }_H^2$ = 0.026), except for the >65 years-old group. Strategies for promoting well-being during periods of social isolation should consider the role of psychological dimensions and lifestyle habits according to the gender or age group.

Individuals with intellectual disability (ID) tend to have a sedentary lifestyle, with low physical fitness and an increased risk of chronic diseases. One reason for the prevalence of a sedentary lifestyle is the existence of barriers to participation in physical activity (PA). The purpose of this systematic review is to update knowledge about the perceived barriers of PA participation in individuals with ID. Electronic searches were carried out in the PubMed, Scopus, SPORTDiscus and Web of Science databases, from September 2020 to May 2021, and included articles published between January 2016 and May 2021. The terms used were: “mental retardation”, “intellectual disability”, “intellectual disabilities”, “physical activity”, “motor activity”, “barriers”, “obstacles”, “embarrassment” and “constraint”, in combination with the Boolean operators “AND” or “OR”. After the methodological process, five studies were included for analysis. These studies revealed the existence of several perceived barriers to regular PA participation, which were grouped into five main groups: personal (6 topics), family (4 topics), social (13 topics), financial (1 topic) and environmental (1 topic). The knowledge and identification of participation barriers can be of extreme importance both to institutions and professionals aiming to enhance the participation of individuals with ID in regular PA programs.

Physical activity and diet are two predominant determinants of population health status that may influence each other. Physical activity has been identified as a behavior that may lead to a healthier diet and regulates eating behaviors. This research aimed to investigate how the level of physical activity is associated with the motivation related to eating behaviors and, consequently, the eating style individuals have on a daily basis. This was a cross-sectional study in which participants completed an online questionnaire that assessed the following variables: the level of physical activity, the motivation toward eating behavior, and the type of eating behavior. In total, 440 individuals (180 men and 260 women) who regularly exercised in gyms and fitness centers aged between 19 and 64 years (M = 33.84; SD = 10.09) took part in the study. The data were collected following the Declaration of Helsinki and with the approval of the Ethics Committee of the Polytechnic of Leiria. For the statistical analysis, mean and standard deviations were first calculated, as well as bivariate correlations between all the variables of interest. Then, structural equation model analyses were performed considering the levels of physical activity as the independent variable, motivations toward eating behavior as the mediators, and eating styles as the dependent variables. It was concluded that a greater level of physical activity leads to a more self-determined type of eating regulation, which in turn results in less constricted eating behaviors that are influenced by external factors and emotional factors.

Worldwide, studies reveal that a significant proportion of adults and children do not meet the recommended guidelines for physical activity (PA). Therefore, it is crucial that proxy determinants for child physical activity enhancement could be identified. Parents have been considered to have a key role in child adherence to physical activity. Thus, this systematic review aimed to identify association between parents’ and children’s PA. The search of scientific papers was conducted from 31 October 2020 until 31 January 2021, on the Web of Science, Scopus, Psycinfo, SportDiscus, and Pubmed databases. The PRISMA protocol was used. Findings indicate a consistent association between parents’ and children’s (6–12 years old) PA. Despite the imbalance of the number of assessed fathers and mothers with the latter clearly overrepresented, a trend towards the same gender dyads on PA significant and positive association (father/son, mother/daughter) was evidenced. Results support the relevant importance of parents’ PA as role modeling (either explicitly or implicitly) for children’s PA. Besides, results revealed the importance of promoting PA in family for the enhancement of children’s PA. Moreover, and given the positive impact of exerting PA with the children on children’s PA, parents should spend more time practicing PA with their children, especially on MVPA and meeting the recommended guidelines for PA. Future studies should highlight the role of mediator variables on this interaction process, extending the knowledge on the contribution of other factors to the requested enhancement of children adherence to PA practice.

Sport for people with disabilities appears to play a positive role in the well-being, resilience and social support of athletes with disabilities. Thus, this systematic review aims to evaluate the effect of adapted sport on the well-being, resilience and social support in a population with disabilities. The Pubmed, Web of Science, Scopus and SportDiscus databases were used, with several descriptors and Boolean operators. A total of 287 studies were identified through searching the databases. After the data extraction process, twenty-seven studies were included for analysis. In general, these studies show that adapted sport has a positive impact on the levels of well-being, resilience and social support resources for people with disabilities, contributing to their personal development, quality of life and integration into society. Considering the impact on the variables studied, these results are important to support and encourage the development of adapted sport.

Nowadays and worldwide, the attention is focused on coronavirus disease (COVID-19), and its consequences on mental health are yet to be fully understood. It is important to capture differences in anxiety levels among populations, groups, and the gender-related variation. Therefore, the present study had two main purposes: (1) to characterize the levels of state anxiety and trait anxiety by examining gender-related, sleep-related, and physical activity-related variations in a nonrepresentative sample of the Portuguese population during the first weeks of lockdown; and (2) to explore the possible relationship between trait anxiety and state anxiety and the possible role of gender as a moderator. This cross-sectional study comprised 1,332 Portuguese adults (aged 18–55 years old) recruited online during COVID-19 outbreak measures. Participants answered to sociodemographic data and the Portuguese version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Gender differences were found in both state anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.385) and trait anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.467) with females presenting higher values. People reporting doing more physical activity than usual during COVID-19 lockdown presented lower levels of state anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.200). People reporting more satisfaction with the quality of sleep presented lower levels of both state anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.701) and trait anxiety (p = < 0.001; d = 0.899). Variation associated with the physical activity level (low, moderate, and high) was significantly different among groups in both state anxiety (p = < 0.001) and trait anxiety (p = < 0.001). When analyzing in more detail separating the levels of physical activity, participants performing moderate and high physical activity showed lower values of state and trait anxiety compared to participants with low physical activity. Participants performing high physical activity also showed lower values of state anxiety compared to participants performing moderate physical activity. Higher levels of trait anxiety were related to higher levels of state anxiety, but this association was not moderated by gender. Interventions aiming to support people psychologically during this outbreak should consider anxiety as well as gender and possible behavioral changes in sleep and physical activity, for example. Health professionals should not only consider the anxiety related to the situation we are living but also address trait anxiety to help overcome COVID-19 psychological consequences.