Table 3.
Exercising patterns of sport center patrons in Saudi Arabia according to the level of concern about eating disorders, problematic eating behavior and need for referral to a mental health professional
| Characteristics | Total (n=560) N (%) | EAT-26 (level of eating disorder concern) | Problematic eating behavior | Referral need to mental health professional | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LowN (%) | HighN (%) | LowN (%) | High N (%) | NoN (%) | YesN (%) | ||
| Family think you exercise too much | |||||||
| Yes | 111 (19.8) | 51 (45.9) | 60 (54.1) | 9 (08.1) | 102 (91.9) | 8 (07.2) | 103 (92.8) |
| No | 449 (80.2) | 304 (67.7) | 145 (32.3) | 122 (27.2) | 327 (72.8) | 99 (22.0) | 350 (78.0) |
| P-value | <0.001 | <0.001 | <0.001 | ||||
| Perceived importance of exercise | |||||||
| Very important | 446 (79.6) | 268 (60.1) | 178 (39.9) | 86 (19.3) | 360 (80.7) | 69 (15.5) | 377 (84.5) |
| Moderately important | 90 (16.1) | 68 (75.6) | 22 (24.2) | 35 (38.9) | 55 (61.1) | 30 (33.3) | 60 (66.7) |
| Slightly important | 274 (04.3) | 19 (79.2) | 5 (20.8) | 10 (41.7) | 14 (58.3) | 8 (33.3) | 16 (66.7) |
| P-value | 0.005 | <0.001 | <0.001 | ||||
| Perceived level of fitness | |||||||
| Beginner | 106 (18.9) | 70 (66.0) | 36 (34.0) | 37 (34.9) | 69 (65.1) | 27 (25.5) | 79 (74.5) |
| Intermediate | 366 (65.4) | 242 (66.1) | 124 (33.9) | 79 (21.6) | 287 (78.4) | 67 (18.3) | 299 (81.7) |
| Advanced | 88 (15.7) | 43 (48.9) | 45 (51.1) | 15 (17.0) | 73 (83.0) | 13 (14.8) | 75 (85.2) |
| P-value | 0.009 | 0.005 | 0.13 | ||||
| Exercise frequency | |||||||
| 1-2 times a week | 136 (24.3) | 104 (76.5) | 32 (23.5) | 55 (40.4) | 81 (59.6) | 46 (33.8) | 90 (66.2) |
| 3-4 times a week | 193 (34.5) | 131 (67.9) | 62 (32.1) | 46 (23.8) | 147 (76.2) | 38 (19.7) | 155 (80.3) |
| >4 times a week | 231 (41.2) | 120 (51.9) | 111 (48.1) | 30 (13.0) | 201 (87.0) | 23 (10.0) | 208 (90.0) |
| P-value | <0.001 | <0.001 | <0.001 | ||||
| Exercise preference | |||||||
| Alone | 196 (35.0) | 113 (57.7) | 83 (42.3) | 40 (20.4) | 156 (79.6) | 33 (16.8) | 163 (83.2) |
| With a friend | 156 (27.9) | 103 (66.0) | 53 (34.0) | 46 (29.5) | 110 (70.5) | 36 (23.1) | 120 (76.9) |
| In a group or class | 208 (37.1) | 139 (66.8) | 69 (33.2) | 45 (21.6) | 163 (78.4) | 38 (18.3) | 170 (81.7) |
| P-value | 0.11 | 0.10 | 0.31 | ||||
| Exercise time | |||||||
| Morning | 176 (31.4) | 109 (61.9) | 67 (38.1) | 42 (23.9) | 134 (76.1) | 35 (19.9) | 141 (80.1) |
| Afternoon | 282 (50.4) | 174 (61.7) | 108 (38.3) | 65 (23.0) | 217 (77.0) | 51 (18.1) | 231 (81.9) |
| Evening | 102 (18.2) | 72 (70.6) | 30 (29.4) | 24 (23.5) | 78 (76.5) | 21 (20.6) | 81 (79.4) |
| P-value | 0.24 | 0.98 | 0.81 | ||||
| Time spent in the gym per day (min) | |||||||
| <30 | 118 (21.1) | 86 (72.9) | 32 (27.1) | 50 (42.4) | 68 (57.6) | 41 (34.7) | 77 (65.3) |
| 30 - <60 | 215 (38.4) | 136 (63.3) | 79 (36.7) | 44 (20.5) | 171 (79.5) | 33 (15.3) | 182 (84.7) |
| 60 - <90 | 134 (23.9) | 82 (61.2) | 52 (38.8) | 27 (20.1) | 107 (79.9) | 26 (19.4) | 108 (80.6) |
| ≥90 | 93 (16.6) | 51 (54.8) | 42 (45.2) | 10 (10.8) | 83 (89.2) | 7 (07.5) | 86 (92.5) |
| P-value | 0.05 | <0.001 | <0.001 | ||||
EAT=Eating attitude test