Older women and their participation in exercise and leisure-time physical activity : the double edged sword of work

This study explores the complex relationship between paid work and participation in exercise and leisure-time physical activity among older women. The role of other factors that enable, motivate and constrain physical activity is also investigated. National context is explored using British Household Panel Survey data. Interviews with key stakeholders and women in their fifties, sixties and seventies explore individual motivation and decision-making in depth. The research enhances understanding of the relationship between employment and participation in physical activity among older women by highlighting positive as well as negative interactions. However, the overall relationship appears to be dominated by the negative constraints on time imposed by employment. Confounding factors include level and type of activity, type of employment, age and health. Psychological, social, environmental and economic factors are also important. These findings have implications for the development of effective interventions within the context of an extending working lives policy agenda.