Are yuppies and muppies more physically active than the others aged 20-39?

Abstract

Background: Values of young urban professionals (yuppies) are still valid and it is possible to find references to the lifestyle of young people. This also applies to the younger generation, in other words, middle-aged urban professionals (muppies). Objective: The aim is evaluating whether yuppies and muppies can be a role model for society in the field of taking care of leisure-time physical activity (PA). Methods: Surveys were conducted by an Omnibus survey on the representative sample of Poles in two studies (N = 1053, N = 1067). Persons aged 20-39 (N = 762 were selected) and based on the criteria: education, residence in cities, study skills character of work, income, there was created a yuppie/muppie group (n = 67) and non-yuppies (n = 695). International Physical Activity Questionnaire - Long Form was used. Results: Recommendations of WHO were met by 43.3% of yuppies/muppies and 33.4% of non-yuppies. No significant differences between groups were observed (p = .103) in this regard. There were no significant differences also between groups in practiced days per week leisure-time PA (walking p = .069, moderate PA p = .095, vigorous PA p = .256). The average value of MET-min/week for vigorous PA during leisure time was significantly higher declared (p = .03) by the yuppie/muppie group (628.7 ± 1415.5 vs. 345.8 ± 1073.4 MET-min/week). Conclusions: Yuppies and muppies cannot be regarded as a role model for Polish society in terms of taking up active leisure-time activities and meeting World Health Organization recommendations. Thus, it seems valuable to carry out further research in order to find role-model groups within the population aged 20-39.