IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i17p9423-d630273.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Impact of the SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus Pandemic on Physical Activity, Mental Health and Quality of Life in Professional Athletes—A Systematic Review

Author

Listed:
  • Alicja Jurecka

    (Department of Orthopedics and Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Jagiellonian University Medical College, 30-688 Krakow, Poland)

  • Paulina Skucińska

    (Students’ Scientific Society, Faculty of Health Sciences, Jagiellonian University Medical College, 31-007 Krakow, Poland)

  • Artur Gądek

    (Department of Orthopedics and Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Jagiellonian University Medical College, 30-688 Krakow, Poland)

Abstract

Due to the rapid rate of spread of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, a number of restrictions have been introduced into public spaces, including those related to the operation of sports facilities, compounding the difficulty for athletes to conduct appropriate forms of training. The aim of this study was to review current scientific reports assessing the impact of the pandemic on the physical activity, mental state, and quality of life of professional athletes. Popular scientific databases—PubMed, Scopus, and Embase—were systematically searched from the beginning of the pandemic until 12 July 2021. According to the adopted criteria, 14 articles were included in the review. Ten of the qualified studies determined the impact of the pandemic on the physical activity of athletes. The authors of 11 papers assessed the mental state and quality of life of athletes during the pandemic. The studies showed negative effects of the pandemic: a decrease in overall physical fitness and number of days and hours of training, as well as an increase in the occurrence of negative emotions (stress, fatigue, and depression) and a decrease in sleep quality. Changes in physical activity had an impact on overall well-being ratings, which depended on the sex of the subjects. Women were more likely to experience negative emotions compared to men. The mental state of the athletes affected the quality of sleep. This review summarises the negative effects of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus pandemic on the physical and mental health of professional athletes.

Suggested Citation

  • Alicja Jurecka & Paulina Skucińska & Artur Gądek, 2021. "Impact of the SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus Pandemic on Physical Activity, Mental Health and Quality of Life in Professional Athletes—A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-16, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:17:p:9423-:d:630273
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/17/9423/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/17/9423/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anders Håkansson & Caroline Jönsson & Göran Kenttä, 2020. "Psychological Distress and Problem Gambling in Elite Athletes during COVID-19 Restrictions—A Web Survey in Top Leagues of Three Sports during the Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-17, September.
    2. Alessandra di Cagno & Andrea Buonsenso & Francesca Baralla & Elisa Grazioli & Giulia Di Martino & Edoardo Lecce & Giuseppe Calcagno & Giovanni Fiorilli, 2020. "Psychological Impact of the Quarantine-Induced Stress during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Outbreak among Italian Athletes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-13, November.
    3. Ülle Parm & Anu Aluoja & Tuuli Tomingas & Anna-Liisa Tamm, 2021. "Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Estonian Elite Athletes: Survey on Mental Health Characteristics, Training Conditions, Competition Possibilities, and Perception of Supportiveness," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-9, April.
    4. Tadeusz Ambroży & Łukasz Rydzik & Zbigniew Obmiński & Andrzej T. Klimek & Natalia Serafin & Artur Litwiniuk & Robert Czaja & Wojciech Czarny, 2021. "The Impact of Reduced Training Activity of Elite Kickboxers on Physical Fitness, Body Build, and Performance during Competitions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-11, April.
    5. Souhail Hermassi & El Ghali Bouhafs & Nicola Luigi Bragazzi & Shiro Ichimura & Khaled E. Alsharji & Lawrence D. Hayes & René Schwesig, 2021. "Effects of Home Confinement on the Intensity of Physical Activity during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Team Handball According to Country, Gender, Competition Level, and Playing Position: A Worldwide Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-21, April.
    6. Daniel Mon-López & Alfonso de la Rubia Riaza & Mónica Hontoria Galán & Ignacio Refoyo Roman, 2020. "The Impact of Covid-19 and the Effect of Psychological Factors on Training Conditions of Handball Players," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-14, September.
    7. Giovanni Fiorilli & Elisa Grazioli & Andrea Buonsenso & Giulia Di Martino & Tsopani Despina & Giuseppe Calcagno & Alessandra di Cagno, 2021. "A national COVID-19 quarantine survey and its impact on the Italian sports community: Implications and recommendations," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(3), pages 1-14, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Apichai Wattanapisit & Manas Kotepui & Sanhapan Wattanapisit & Noah Crampton, 2022. "Bibliometric Analysis of Literature on Physical Activity and COVID-19," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(12), pages 1-9, June.
    2. Sebastian Szajkowski & Jarosław Pasek & Michał Dwornik & Grzegorz Cieślar, 2022. "The Impact of Coronavirus Infection on Health-Related Quality of Life in Amateur CrossFit Athletes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(24), pages 1-12, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Issei Ogasawara & Shigeto Hamaguchi & Ryosuke Hasegawa & Yukihiro Akeda & Naoki Ota & Gajanan S. Revankar & Shoji Konda & Takashi Taguchi & Toshiya Takanouchi & Kojiro Imoto & Nobukazu Okimoto & Katsu, 2021. "Successful Reboot of High-Performance Sporting Activities by Japanese National Women’s Handball Team in Tokyo, 2020 during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Initiative Using the Japan Sports–Cyber Physical Sy," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(18), pages 1-16, September.
    2. Jad Adrian Washif & Achraf Ammar & Khaled Trabelsi & Karim Chamari & Christabelle Sheau Miin Chong & Siti Fuzyma Ayu Mohd Kassim & Philip Chun Foong Lew & Abdulaziz Farooq & David B. Pyne & Carl James, 2021. "Regression Analysis of Perceived Stress among Elite Athletes from Changes in Diet, Routine and Well-Being: Effects of the COVID-19 Lockdown and “Bubble” Training Camps," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-15, December.
    3. Jorge Lorenzo Calvo & Miriam Granado-Peinado & Alfonso de la Rubia & Diego Muriarte & Alberto Lorenzo & Daniel Mon-López, 2021. "Psychological States and Training Habits during the COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown in Spanish Basketball Athletes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-13, August.
    4. Yu-Chi Sung & Yi-Zhen Yang & Che-Chia Chang & Chun-Chung Chou, 2021. "A Preliminary Study of Pre-Season Taekwondo Preparation Strategy: Personal Isolation Training Effect for Elite Athletes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(20), pages 1-13, October.
    5. Remigiusz Dróżdż & Marcin Pasek & Magdalena Zając & Mirosława Szark-Eckardt, 2022. "Physical Culture and Sports as an Educational Basis of Students’ Healthy Physical Activities during and Post-Lockdown COVID-19 Restrictions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-11, September.
    6. Francesca Vitali & Elisa Bisagno & Marinella Coco & Alessia Cadamuro & Nelson Mauro Maldonato & Donatella Di Corrado, 2022. "A Moderated Mediation Analysis of the Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Well-Being and Sport Readiness of Italian Team Sports Players: The Role of Perceived Safety of the Training Environment," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-15, February.
    7. Anders Håkansson & Karin Moesch & Caroline Jönsson & Göran Kenttä, 2020. "Potentially Prolonged Psychological Distress from Postponed Olympic and Paralympic Games during COVID-19—Career Uncertainty in Elite Athletes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(1), pages 1-9, December.
    8. Wojciech Wąsacz & Łukasz Rydzik & Ibrahim Ouergui & Agnieszka Koteja & Dorota Ambroży & Tadeusz Ambroży & Pavel Ruzbarsky & Marian Rzepko, 2022. "Comparison of the Physical Fitness Profile of Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Athletes with Reference to Training Experience," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(14), pages 1-13, July.
    9. Łukasz Rydzik & Wojciech Wąsacz & Tadeusz Ambroży & Tomasz Pałka & Ewa Sobiło-Rydzik & Marta Kopańska, 2023. "Comparison of Head Strike Incidence under K1 Rules of Kickboxing with and without Helmet Protection—A Pilot Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-10, March.
    10. Athanasios Tsoukos & Gregory C. Bogdanis, 2021. "The Effects of a Five-Month Lockdown Due to COVID-19 on Physical Fitness Parameters in Adolescent Students: A Comparison between Cohorts," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(1), pages 1-12, December.
    11. Tadeusz Ambroży & Łukasz Rydzik & Zbigniew Obmiński & Andrzej T. Klimek & Natalia Serafin & Artur Litwiniuk & Robert Czaja & Wojciech Czarny, 2021. "The Impact of Reduced Training Activity of Elite Kickboxers on Physical Fitness, Body Build, and Performance during Competitions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-11, April.
    12. Xiaolu Feng & Jun Qiu & Yangyang Wang & Xinyi Wen & Lili Bai & Hongjun Yu, 2022. "Impact of COVID-19 on 1000 m Running and Pull-Up Performance among College Men Living in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-9, August.
    13. Anna Ussorowska-Krokosz & Jan Blecharz & Malgorzata Siekanska & Monika Grygorowicz, 2023. "Coping with COVID-19: Can a Sense of Coherence and Social Support Play a Protective Role in the Perception of COVID-19 by Polish Women Football Players? A Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(13), pages 1-14, July.
    14. José Manuel Prieto-Fresco & Daniel Medina-Rebollo & Jesús Fernández-Gavira & Antonio Muñoz-Llerena, 2022. "A Study on the Injury Rate of Spanish Competitive Athletes as a Consequence of the COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-14, December.
    15. Denis Frank Cunza-Aranzábal & Wilter C. Morales-García & Jacksaint Saintila & Salomón Huancahuire-Vega & Percy G. Ruiz Mamani, 2022. "Psychometric Analysis of the Quarantine Coping Strategies Scale (Q-COPE) in the Spanish Language," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-14, November.
    16. Armando Monterrosa Quintero & Ana Rita Echeverri Rios & Juan Pedro Fuentes-Garcia & Juan Carlos Gonzalez Sanchez, 2022. "Levels of Physical Activity and Psychological Well-Being in Non-Athletes and Martial Art Athletes during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(7), pages 1-14, March.
    17. Souhail Hermassi & El Ghali Bouhafs & Nicola Luigi Bragazzi & Shiro Ichimura & Khaled E. Alsharji & Lawrence D. Hayes & René Schwesig, 2021. "Effects of Home Confinement on the Intensity of Physical Activity during the COVID-19 Outbreak in Team Handball According to Country, Gender, Competition Level, and Playing Position: A Worldwide Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-21, April.
    18. Giovanni Fiorilli & Andrea Buonsenso & Nicola Davola & Giulia Di Martino & Francesca Baralla & Stefanos Boutious & Marco Centorbi & Giuseppe Calcagno & Alessandra di Cagno, 2021. "Stress Impact of COVID-19 Sports Restrictions on Disabled Athletes," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-11, November.
    19. Łukasz Rydzik & Tadeusz Ambroży & Zbigniew Obmiński & Wiesław Błach & Ibrahim Ouergui, 2021. "Evaluation of the Body Composition and Selected Physiological Variables of the Skin Surface Depending on Technical and Tactical Skills of Kickboxing Athletes in K1 Style," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-15, November.
    20. Junko Okuyama & Shin-Ichi Izumi & Shunichi Funakoshi & Shuji Seto & Hiroyuki Sasaki & Kiyoshi Ito & Fumihiko Imamura & Mayumi Willgerodt & Yu Fukuda, 2022. "Supporting adolescents’ mental health during COVID-19 by utilising lessons from the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-13, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:17:p:9423-:d:630273. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.