Staying active at home: the impact of COVID-19 movement restrictions on physical activity in a low-income semi-rural population 

In 2018 23% of adults in a low-income semi-rural area of Malaysia were inactive, increasing their risk of chronic disease. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Malaysian government imposed a Movement Control Order (MCO) which restricted people to leaving their homes for essential trips only. Concerned about the impact of restrictions on physical activity we re-interviewed 1007 people from our earlier study.  

We found low levels of COVID-19 infection but physical activity had more than halved during the MCO compared to 2018. Like other low-income semi-rural areas, in our study people get most of their physical activity through work, rather than via transport or leisure, so restrictions have a big effect. When people’s physical activity at work reduced, they did not replace it with activity travel or activity at home. As restrictions have eased over time, more movement is allowed, and physical activity is increasing but is still 2 hours less than in 2018 and 1 in 3 adults are now inactive. Thus, the impact of movement restrictions on physical activity is ongoing. Policy action should address the need to balance lost occupational activity with physical activity for transport or leisure while normal life is restricted to manage the ongoing pandemic.