Positive impacts of leisure-time physical activity on cardiorespiratory fitness, co-morbidity level, cardiovascular health and quality of life among midlife adults: a cross-sectional study of a Nigerian population

BACKGROUND: Regular physical activity (PA) improves general health and quality of life (QoL) of the general population. It is however not known if leisure-time PA (LTPA) behaviour will reduce co-morbidity and adiposity, and improve cardiorespiratory fitness and QoL in midlife men. This study explored the impacts of regular LTPA behaviour on co-morbidity, adiposity, cardiorespiratory fitness and QoL among male midlife sports club members in a Nigerian population. METHODS: This cross-sectional study involved 174 age-matched male midlife adults: 87 engaging in LTPA (LTPA group) and 87 not engaging in LTPA (non-LTPA group). Information on age, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), maximal oxygen uptake (VO(2)max)(,) resting heart rate (RHR), QoL and co-morbidity level was collected using standardized procedures. Data were summarized using mean and standard deviation, and explored using frequency and proportion. Independent t-test, Chi Square and Mann–Whitney U test were employed to determine the impacts of LTPA at 0.05 significance level. RESULTS: The LTPA group had lower co-morbidity score (p = 0.05) and RHR (p = 0.004), and higher QoL (p = 0.01) and VO(2)max (p = 0.003) than non-LTPA group. While heart disease (χ(2) = 10.99; p = 0.01) and hypertension (χ(2) = 15.24; p = 0.004) severity levels were associated with LTPA behaviour, hypertension (p = 0.01) was the only co-morbid condition that had a significantly lower score in the LTPA group than in the non-LTPA group. CONCLUSIONS: Regular LTPA improves cardiovascular health, physical work capacity and QoL in the sample of Nigerian mid-life men. Regular LTPA behaviour is recommended for cardiovascular health promotion, and improved physical work capacity and life satisfaction in midlife men. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13102-023-00622-6.