'Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists (RCOG)'
Abstract
Despite continued public health campaigns to promote physical activity, a majority of the population is inactive. In recent years, mindfulness-based approaches have been used in health and lifestyle interventions for physical activity promotion. We conducted a systematic literature review using the PRISMA guidelines to investigate the evidence for the potential of mindfulness-based approaches for physical activity. We searched electronic databases for papers that met eligibility criteria and identified 40 studies for inclusion. Evidence from cross-sectional studies (n = 20) indicated a positive relationship between dispositional mindfulness and physical activity, particularly with psychological factors related to physical activity. Five studies found that the mindfulness-physical activity relationship was mediated by stress, psychological flexibility, negative affect and shame, satisfaction, and state mindfulness. Evidence from mindfulness-based interventions (n = 20) suggested positive between-subjects effects on physical activity, but interventions varied in duration, session length, group size, delivery, content, and follow-up. Mindfulnessbased interventions were more likely to be successful if they were physical activityspecific and targeted psychological factors related to physical activity. The body of research shows a need for more methodologically rigorous studies to establish the effect of mindfulness on physical activity and to identify potential mechanisms involved in the mindfulness-physical activity relationship reliably
