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For many, the reason for the lack of exercise is working in the home office (symbol image)
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Around a third of Germans move too little.
In the study »Move yourself, Germany!« by Techniker Krankenkasse (TK), around 30 percent of those surveyed stated that they were on their feet for less than half an hour a day.
The corona pandemic has exacerbated the situation: 26 percent of those surveyed are moving less than in the pre-pandemic period because of corona.
From 4 to 20 May 2022, the opinion research institute Forsa surveyed 1,706 people from the age of 18 nationwide on their sports and exercise behavior on behalf of TK.
One of the main reasons why many are moving even less than before the pandemic: the home office.
According to their own statements, 46 percent have worked from home at least part of the time in the past two years - and more than half of them move less in the home office than at the normal workplace (56 percent).
70 percent of them stated that they had consciously used their commute to get exercise beforehand.
48 percent said they lack the motivation to exercise at work at home.
25 percent stated that they did not know how to move while working from home.
34 percent said they didn't have time at home to exercise while at work.
What keeps you from sports
And outside of working hours, too, it is evident that Germans exercise too little: 45 percent of those surveyed rarely exercise or do no exercise at all.
The eight main reasons that prevented respondents from exercising were:
enough exercise at work and in everyday life (54 percent)
lack of motivation (53 percent)
too busy with work (42 percent)
Too busy with family (35 percent)
physical limitations (34 percent)
bad weather (31 percent)
lack of training support (31 percent)
Cost (19 percent)
However, just over half (52 percent) managed to exercise regularly despite the adverse pandemic circumstances.
When gyms closed during the lockdown and club training was cancelled, one in five people switched to digital sports offers such as YouTube videos or online sports courses.
The study also shows a significant increase in the use of smartwatches, fitness bracelets and apps.
While in 2016 only 14 percent stated that they train with digital support, by 2022 it will be more than twice as many (29 percent).
According to the study, by far the most popular sport in Germany is cycling (46 percent), followed by jogging (26 percent) and hiking and Nordic walking (25 percent).
Compared to the previous survey, yoga has increased significantly by nine percent and is therefore more popular than football (six percent).
Of those who exercise for more than three hours a week, 70 percent rate their health as good or very good.
Only eleven percent rate their health as less good or bad.
In the case of non-athletes, this is almost a quarter of those surveyed (23 percent).
What motivates
The athletes among those surveyed also stated what drives them to exercise: the vast majority cited their health as the reason for regular physical activity (87 percent).
Around 73 percent do sport because they enjoy it, around 62 percent do it to relax.
40 percent stated that they can spend time with others while exercising and 37 percent do sports for a beautiful figure.
kry/dpa
