LEVELS OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IN UNIVERSITY STUDENTS: DIFFERENCES BY GENDER, AGE AND STATES OF CHANGE

The objective was to analyze the levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in university students. Likewise, it was analyzed PA levels by gender, age and state of change of the Transtheoretical Model. 901 students, 408 men and 493 women, completed the IPAQ-SF and a question to evaluate the stages of change. Among the results, it highlights that 51.39% of students do not achieve the international recommendations of 30 minutes of MVPA practice per day, with a higher compliance in men. Regarding the states of change, in terms of levels of MVPA is concerned, significantly higher values were seen in the action stage and maintenance stage, compared to other stages of change. This suggests intervention guidelines for the development of intervention programs that affect the promotion of PA in the university stage.