Table 3.
Physical activity characteristics of pregnant women attending antenatal care at public and private health facilities in Mekelle, Ethiopia, May 2018 (n = 299)
| Variables | Frequency n (%) |
|---|---|
| Exercise advise from a medical professional | |
| Yes | 211 (70.6) |
| No | 88 (29.4) |
| Exercise advised by | |
| Medical doctor | 50 (16.7) |
| Nurse/midwives | 88 (29.5) |
| Health officer | 1 (0.3) |
| Health extension package | 72 (24.1) |
| Method of education on exercise advice | |
| Individual | 181 (60.5) |
| In a group of other pregnant women | 29 (9.8) |
| Brochure | 1 (0.3) |
| A habit of exercise before pregnancy | |
| Yes | 227 (75.9) |
| No | 72 (24.1) |
| A habit of exercise while pregnant | |
| I continued doing exercises | 110 (36.8) |
| I stopped the exercises | 45 (15.1) |
| I continued to exercise but slowed down | 72 (24.1) |
| Reasons stopped exercise activities during pregnancy | |
| Fear of miscarriage | 35 (11.7) |
| Too Tired | 5 (1.7) |
| Having no time | 3 (1.1) |
| Discomfort | 1 (0.3) |
| Dislikes exercise | 1 (0.3) |
| Comfortable environment | |
| Yes | 231 (77.3) |
| No | 68 (22.7) |
| Reasons for lack of comfortable environment | |
| Lack of a safe and secure environment | 48 (16) |
| Cold temperature | 5 (1.7) |
| Lack of accessibility to do exercise | 10 (3.3) |
| Others | 5 (1.7) |
| Self-evaluation of physical activity level prior to pregnancy | |
| Low | 40 (13.4) |
| Moderate | 237 (79.3) |
| High | 22 (7.4) |
| Self-evaluation of current physical activity | |
| Less active | 123 (41.1) |
| Increased activity | 29 (9.7) |
| No change | 147 (49.2) |
| Habitual (usual) exercises with husband or partner | |
| Yes | 193 (64.8) |
| No | 106 (35.2) |
| Sources of information about exercisea | |
| Books and newspapers | 13 (4.3) |
| Friends or relatives | 69 (23.1) |
| Multi-Media | 89 (29.8) |
| Medical/Health institutions | 145 (48.5) |
| Public announcement | 6 (2.0) |
| The person who encouraged you to exercisea | |
| Husband or partner | 54 (18.1) |
| Medical staff | 36 (12.0) |
| Other family members or friends | 6 (2.0) |
| Herself | 214 (71.6) |
| Preferred mode of exercisea | |
| Walking slowly | 258 (86.3) |
| Dancing | 17 (5.7) |
| Prenatal exercise class | 14 (4.7) |
| Swimming | 2 (0.7) |
| Walking quickly | 11 (3.7) |
| Climb hill | 2 (0.7) |
| Running slowly | 8 (2.7) |
| Running quickly | 1 (0.3) |
a could choose more than one