EFFECT OF PHYSICAL EXERCISE AS A RELIEVING FACTOR IN STRESS IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS OF DISTRICT PESHAWAR, KPK, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Objective: Stress is an emotional and physical disturbance that makes a person feel angry and frustrated. Physical activity reduces stress symptoms and makes one feel better mentally. The main aim of our study was to find out the relationship between physical activity and stress.

Material and Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted to collect the data from students of 5selected universities in Peshawar through a structured questionnaire. A sample size of 374 was obtained using epi-info software. Informed consent was obtained and data were analyzed through SPSS version 20 for Windows and presented primarily in the form of frequencies, percentages, graphs, and tables.

Results: Our study showed that out of a total of 354 participants who were included in the research, 49% of them were males and 51% were females. The age group of participants was 18-25 years with a mean age of 21 years. Among the total 354 participants, 28.2% were reported to have low-stress levels, 41% with moderate, and 30.8% with high-stress levels. 22% of participants do physical exercise to relieve their stress and 58.8% do it for body fitness. There was a high % of participants with high-stress levels who weren’t doing physical activity while a high % of low-stress levels are reported in students doing regular physical activity. The majority of students have the opinion that exercise is beneficial in reducing physiologic, behav­ioral, and psychological stress symptoms.

Conclusion: Physical exercise is significantly effective in relieving stress. Doing exercise helps to achieve stable mental health status and improves a person’s body, mind, and attitude.