The Impact of COVID-19 on Active Living and Life Satisfaction of Rowers

Abstract

The broad variety of measures that governments worldwide took against the COVID-19 pandemic led to restrictions in our everyday life, including the practice of sports such as rowing. This study aimed to examine changes in the daily life of rowers and their rowing engagement. We distributed an online questionnaire in German among rowers in 2021. In total, 234 (48.7% females, mean age 45.01 years, SD 16.94) participants met the inclusion criteria. We found that the amount of time spent rowing was significantly lower during the COVID-19 crisis. Additionally, we detected a notable shift in the rowing landscape, with a marked increase in home-based training and a complete cessation of rowing activities. Moreover, the life satisfaction of both female and male rowers witnessed a significant decline during the pandemic when compared to before. The present findings showed that the pandemic led to far-reaching changes in sports activities among rowers. Most rowers had to deal with negative effects not only on their rowing engagement, but also on life satisfaction. In view of future pandemics, it becomes crucial to prioritize and ensure the continuity of active sports engagement, including that of rowers, in a safe and secure manner.

1. Introduction

The recent virus pandemic, resulting from an infection with SARS-CoV-2 was named coronavirus disease (COVID-19), started with an unusual accumulation of patients with pneumonia in the Chinese region of Wuhan in December 2019 [1]. The COVID-19 crisis changed our daily routines, but also the world of sports [2,3,4]. Due to the social distancing measures or even lockdowns, suddenly, most of the athletes and sports enthusiasts had to deal with restrictions in their practice, including a cut-off from sports clubs and sports facilities, which led to changes in their physical activity [3,4]. Numerous studies [2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10] have already dealt with the effects of the pandemic and restrictions on physical activity in general. While some athletes increased their physical activity during the periods of lockdowns, the majority remained or became physically inactive [4,6].

Even though countries and regions handled the crisis differently, these findings seem to be true for populations all over the world [3,4,7,10]. In general, there is ample scientific evidence that the main reason for the decrease in physical activity was the shutdown of public sports facilities [4]. In response to the limitations imposed by the pandemic-related restrictions, many athletes sought alternative ways to replace sports activities that were no longer feasible [3,4,11]. One notable example is the growing popularity of home-based exercise as a substitute [7]. In the field of sports where both indoor and outdoor training are possible, such as climbing, exercising outdoors increased in popularity [2].

The broad variety of measures that were taken against the spread of the virus led to reduced social contact, especially physical contact with relatives and friends [12]. There is increasing scientific evidence that measures like quarantine caused a decrease in life satisfaction [2,11,12,13,14]. The circumstance of reduced social participation is likely to have contributed to the witnessed decrease in life satisfaction and an increase in mental health issues and negative effects on well-being [12,13]. Thereby, the impact of the measures on well-being depends on sociodemographic characteristics, including previous psychiatric diseases [15].

According to recent studies, females generally showed higher levels of distress and anxiety, and individuals suffering from mental health problems were significantly more stressed during the pandemic [16]. On the other side, some factors were positively correlated with well-being and mental health in this context. For instance, individuals who were physically active on a regular basis or spent time outdoors showed higher levels of psychological well-being and less negative mental symptoms [6].

The COVID-19 pandemic hit Austria on 25 February 2020, when the first two coronavirus cases were confirmed, followed by a steadily increasing number of infected humans and also rising mortality rates putting the healthcare system on its limits [17]. Thus, public life was shut down several times in the following months. During the lockdowns, entering the public space was generally prohibited with only a few exceptions, such as shopping for essentials, going to work and back home, or spending time outdoors with people from the same household.

Negative effects of the pandemic and therewith associated restrictions on sports behavior have been show already [2,4,7,11]. However, there is only little knowledge on the effects on rowers. The present study aimed to investigate the impact of the pandemic on the rowing behavior of active rowers by using an online survey in German. As in other related studies, we defined “before COVID-19” as the time period preceding 16 March 2020, while “during COVID-19” referred to the time period following this date [2,11,18]. Previous research showed that life satisfaction, in general, decreased during the crisis [12,14,19], which also applied to athletes like climbers [2] and golfers [11]. In this verve, a further goal of this study was to evaluate whether life satisfaction changed when comparing the time before to the time during the pandemic in the surveyed rowers by using the Short Life Satisfaction Questionnaire for Lockdowns (SLSQL) [12].

2. Methods

2.1. Study Design

We conducted a non-representative study using an online survey in German among adult rowers from 29 January to 7 April 2021 using the SoSci Survey platform [20]. The survey design followed the commonly used Checklist for Reporting Results of Internet E-Surveys (CHERRIES) [21]. The target group consisted of adult people engaged in rowing activities, independent of other factors such as gender or rowing skills level. In order to assess the comprehensibility of the survey, a group of 15 participants, consisting of both rowers and non-rowers, voluntarily took part in the pretesting of the online survey. Before distributing the questionnaire, ethics approval was granted by the Medical University of Vienna on 27 January 2021, and the study adhered to the ethical guidelines outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki. Participation in the survey was entirely voluntary and could be stopped without any reason at any time. No incentives were offered for participation. The questionnaire was distributed among rowers by contacting them via social media and email. Since the survey was designed as an open survey, anyone who received the link could participate. The link leading to the online survey was further sent to official rowing organizations with the kind request of sharing it with their members via newsletter, email, or any other way of contact.

The survey consisted of 26 pages and 28 questions.The first pageinformed participants about the aim of this study, including contact addresses like email and postal addresses of the research team. An explanatory statement clarified that the term “before COVID-19” referred to the period prior to 16 March 2020, while “during COVID-19” denoted the period thereafter. Participants were further informed that all data would be anonymized, so that it would not be possible to draw conclusions about single individuals. Participants did not have to register to participate, and their IP addresses could not be accessed by the research team. The SoSci Survey website further did not allow cookies and did not provide log file analysis [20]. There were no randomized or adaptive questions. Participants were able to go back and forth between answers and change their answers while filling in the survey. The collected data were stored safely and in compliance with the SoSci Survey data protection rules and were only accessible to the research team.

2.2. Measures

At first, participants were asked to report on sociodemographic data, including gender, age, profession, country of residence, and number of residents in their place of residence. Next, they were asked to indicate their agreement to the following four COVID-19-related statements: (1) I think the COVID-19 pandemic is dangerous, (2) Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I am worried about my health, (3) Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I am worried about getting infected while rowing, and (4) Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I disinfect my hands before and after rowing. We used a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from 1: disagree, to 5: agree. Participants were further asked to answer questions regarding rowing activities before and during COVID-19, such as the rowing location (at a rowing club, at school or university, in a fitness center on a rowing machine, at home on a rowing machine, outdoors, and others), rowing style, and time spent rowing outdoors (none, ≤1 h a week, >1–2 h a week, >2–5 h a week, and >5 h a week).

Finally, the life satisfaction of the participants was collected using the Short Life Satisfaction Questionnaire for Lockdowns (SLSQL) [12]. Thereby, participants are asked to show their agreement to three items: (1) In most ways, my life is close to my ideal, (2) So far, I have gotten the important things I want in life, and (3) I am satisfied with my life, before and during the pandemic, respectively.

2.3. Statistical Data Analysis

For processing the data collected, we used the software SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 29.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA) [22]. For testing statistical significance, which was set as p < 0.05, we used different tests. We assessed the normality of the data using the Shapiro–Wilk test. For analyzing inter-group and subgroup differences, we used Wilcoxon signed-rank tests, as well as independent and paired samples T-tests, to allow for comparability with the previously published article by Ammar et al. [12].

3. Results

3.1. Sociodemographic Data

A total of 856 views (clicks) were recorded for this questionnaire, including accidental double clicks and search engine views. Of the 329 people who started the survey, 259 fully completed the survey (completion rate 78.7%). Out of those 259 participants, 25 were excluded from further analysis because they indicated that they did not row before the COVID-19 pandemic, which was the main inclusion criterion for this survey. Other inclusion criteria were being an adult, fluent in German, and able to fill in an online survey. Thus, the final study sample contained 234 participants. The proportion of males (n = 120, 51.3%) was slightly higher than those of females (n = 114, 48.7%,

Table 1. Demographic characteristics of the study sample.

	Females n (%)	Males n (%)	Total n (%)
Total	114 (48.7)	120 (51.3)	234 (100)
Age group (in years)
<31	34 (29.8)	23 (19.1)	57 (24.3)
31–45	31 (27.2)	23 (19.2)	54 (23.1)
46–60	31 (27.2)	49 (40.8)	80 (34.2)
61–75	17 (14.9)	18 (15.0)	35 (15.0)
>75	1 (0.9)	7 (5.8)	8 (3.4)
Country of residence
Austria	97 (85.1)	87 (72.5)	184 (78.6)
Germany	14 (12.3)	32 (26.7)	46 (19.7)
Other	3 (2.6)	1 (0.8)	4 (1.7)
Residents in place of residence
<5000	45 (39.5)	38 (31.6)	83 (35.5)
5000 < 50,000	23 (20.2)	33 (27.5)	56 (24.0)
50,000 < 500,000	27 (23.7)	30 (25.0)	57 (24.4)
>500,000	19 (16.7)	19 (15.8)	38 (16.2)
Profession
Student	23 (20.2)	17 (14.2)	40 (17.1)
Employee	54 (47.4)	51 (42.5)	105 (44.9)
Official	16 (14.0)	7 (5.8)	23 (9.8)
Self-employed	11 (9.6)	25 (20.8)	36 (15.4)
Others	10 (8.8)	20 (16.7)	30 (12.8)

). None of the participants chose the third answer option, “divers”. On average, participants took 9.08 min (SD 3.34) to complete the survey.

The average age of participants was 45.01 years (SD 16.94). Most participants (78.6%) had their principal residence in Austria, 19.7% in Germany, and the remaining study subjects were in other countries. Regarding the number of residents in their place of residence, more than a third (n = 83, 35.5%) lived in small places with less than 5000 residents. In contrast, 16.2% (n = 38) of the 234 participants lived in a city with more than 500,000 residents, while the rest was nearly equally distributed in towns with 5000 < 50,000 (n = 56, 24.0%) residents and 50,000 < 500,000 (n = 57, 24.4%) residents. Most participants (n = 105, 44.9%) were employed, followed by students (n = 40, 17.1%), self-employed people (n = 36, 15.4%), and officials (n = 23, 9.8%).

3.2. COVID-19-Related Questions

As shown in

Table 2. Gender differences in COVID-19-related statements.

	Females	Males	Total	p Value
	Mean (SD)	Mean (SD)	Mean (SD)
I consider COVID-19 dangerous.
	4.25 (0.98)	4.07 (1.17)	4.15 (1.08)	0.206
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I paid attention to disinfecting my hands before and after rowing.
	3.88 (1.32)	3.36 (1.48)	3.61 (1.42)	0.005 *
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I am worried about my health.
	3.46 (1.26)	2.88 (1.39)	3.16 (1.36)	0.001 *
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I am worried about getting infected while rowing.
	2.07 (1.25)	1.68 (0.95)	1.87 (1.20)	0.008 *

Note: * p < 0.05, all p values from independent samples t-tests (female vs. male participants).

, the statement “I consider COVID-19 dangerous” was the one with the highest agreement (mean = 4.15, SD = 1.08), followed by “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I paid attention to disinfect my hands before and after rowing” (mean = 3.61, SD = 1.42), “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I’m worried about my health” (mean = 3.16, SD = 1.36), and “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I’m worried about getting infected while rowing” (mean = 1.87, SD = 1.20). Females showed higher average rates in all four items. The statistical significance of the difference between female and male participants was checked for each item by using independent samples T-tests. Female rowers showed significantly more agreement with three of the four items, i.e., “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I paid attention to disinfect my hands before and after rowing” (p = 0.005), “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I’m worried about my health” (p = 0.001) and “Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I’m worried about getting infected while rowing” (p = 0.008).

3.3. Rowing Habits

Table 3. Changes in rowing habits during COVID-19.

Items	Before COVID-19		During COVID-19		Diff. %
	n	%	n	%
Rowing location
Club or organization	120	51.28	87	37.18	−14.10
Ergometer (gym)	16	6.84	2	0.85	−5.99
Ergometer (at home)	58	24.79	85	36.32	11.53
Outdoors	31	13.25	30	12.82	−0.43
Others	9	3.85	2	0.85	−3.00
No rowing activities	0	0	28	11.97	11.97
Rowing discipline
Single	46	19.66	72	30.77	11.11
Double	44	18.80	30	12.82	−5.98
Quadruple	50	21.37	15	6.41	−14.96
Octuple	4	1.71	1	0.43	−1.28
Ergometer	64	27.35	71	30.34	−2.99
Others	26	11.11	11	4.70	−6.41
No rowing activities	0	0	34	14.53	14.53
Time spent rowing outdoors
≤1 h/week	90	38.46	132	56.41	17.95
>1–2 h/week	31	13.25	32	13.69	0.43
>2–5 h/week	45	19.23	28	11.97	−7.26
>5 h/week	68	29.06	42	17.95	−11.11

shows the changed rowing habits due to COVID-19. Regarding the rowing location, exercising at home increased (11.53%) while all the other locations decreased, especially rowing at a club or organization (−14.10%). Furthermore, more than every tenth participant stopped any kind of rowing activity. Wilcoxon signed-rank tests revealed that the locations significantly differed (p < 0.001, z = −6.427), whereas this was true for both female (p < 0.001, z = −4.958) and male (p < 0.001, z = −4.105) participants. Apart from single rowing, every other (team) discipline decreased, most dramatically the one of quadruple rowing (−14.96%). Regarding the time spent rowing outdoors, 40.6% of participants reported less activity during the pandemic. The total amount of time spent rowing outdoors was significantly lower (p < 0.001, z = −7.909) during COVID-19. That was again true for both female (p < 0.001, z = −6.076) and male rowers (p < 0.001, z = −5.114).

3.4. Life Satisfaction

Table 4. Responses to the Short Life Satisfaction Questionnaire-Lockdowns (SLSQL) before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Items	Before COVID-19		During COVID-19
	Mean	SD	Mean	SD	Diff. %	t Test	p Value
In most ways, my life is close to ideal.	5.60	1.07	4.66	1.50	−16.79	10.37	<0.001 **
So far, I have gotten the important things I want in life.	5.71	0.96	4.67	1.51	−18.21	11.37	<0.001 **
I am satisfied with my life.	5.96	1.00	5.02	1.51	−15.78	11.01	<0.001 **
Total SLSQL	17.26	2.61	14.35	4.02	−16.86	12.60	<0.001 **

Note: ** All p-values from paired-samples t-tests < 0.001.

demonstrates the life satisfaction changes among rowers before and during the pandemic using the SLSQL [12]. All three items and the total SLSQL were significantly lower during the pandemic than before (p < 0.001). The mean total score of SLSQL decreased by 16.86%. While females showed a higher total score (mean 17.54, SD 2.39) than male participants (mean 17.00, SD 2.79) before COVID-19, they (mean 14.20, SD 3.96) showed a lower score than males (mean 14.50, SD 4.02) during the pandemic. Although the gender differences were not statistically significant, neither in the total score nor in any of the three items, females showed a higher decrease in the total score of SLSQL.

4. Discussion

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the daily life of populations worldwide [1]. While countries handled the fight against the virus differently, Austria was among the nations trying to minimize infection and hospitalization rates by taking strict measures such as lockdowns [2,11,14,18]. Thus, life and sporting activity, as we were used to, was not possible for a long period of time. As research suggests, the period of social distancing in Austria was mentally stressful for many individuals, especially for those who have already dealt with social difficulties [23]. Apart from psychological challenges, both amateur and professional athletes had to deal with restrictions on their practice of the sport. By now, there are various studies dealing with the effects of COVID-19 on sports in Austria [2,7,24]. However, as far as we know, the present study is the first one that investigated the effects of COVID-19 and the therewith associated measures on the rowing sport in a German-speaking population.

Our results indicate that the time spent rowing outdoors significantly decreased during the time of COVID-19, whereas 41% of the participants reported reduced outdoor rowing activity. In total, 45% of the participants did not row outdoors during the pandemic in comparison to 28.6% before it. These results are consistent with previous findings from other types of sports. For instance, Jungwirth et al. recently reported a significantly lower frequency of exercising among German-speaking climbers during COVID-19 [2]. Apart from specific kinds of sports, studies further suggest that physical activity, in general, has seen a decrease while the amount of time spent sitting has increased [6,25]. Also, spending time outdoors was negatively correlated with mental health issues such as depression during COVID-19 [6,26]. This observation is in line with the findings of studies before the pandemic [27]. Thus, the outdoor component of rowing is important for mental health and well-being, and it is omitted when athletes exclusively row indoors or are not rowing at all.

Probably provoked by the close-down of sports facilities, we found not only a decrease in the amount of time spent rowing outdoors, but also a change in the rowing locations generally. Rowing at a rowing club or organization (−28%) and exercising in a gym (−88%) especially declined, while training at home on a rowing machine (+47%) became much more popular. Apart from that, a large proportion of participants even stopped rowing activities. On the one hand, this change in the preferred rowing locations may be explained by the introduced regulations, including the temporary closure or restricted access to sports clubs and sports facilities. On the contrary, scientific evidence indicates that some athletes experienced apprehension regarding the risk of infection, particularly when engaging in indoor exercise activities alongside others [11,18,28]. This could also have been the case for participating rowers.

Life satisfaction measured using the SLSQL [12] in participating rowers was significantly lower during periods of social distancing and lockdowns than before. This was true for both females and males. Since numerous studies [2,11,12,19] already revealed that life satisfaction was lower during COVID-19, these results were not further surprising. In contrast to the findings of Jacques-Aviñó et al. [29], which suggest that women were greater affected by mental health issues during the pandemic, the present study cannot support these findings regarding life satisfaction. No significant differences between females and males were found. However, in comparison with male rowers, female rowers showed an average higher decrease in life satisfaction than male rowers. While females showed a higher SLSQL score than males before the pandemic, they had a lower score during the pandemic.

From a public health perspective, several lessons can be drawn from the results of this study. First, when restricting or even banning the practice of sports, policymakers must bear in mind that sports-enthusiastic individuals may not merely miss physical activity, but an essential part of their lives, including social contacts [18]. It is therefore not surprising that the life satisfaction of athletes decreased during COVID-19 [2,11]. Our study supports these findings among rowers. In addition to the mental health implications, there are also physical effects to consider when imposing restrictions on sports. Recent research [8] showed that physical activity, in general, saw a significant decrease during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since practicing sports is beneficial for health [30], the decline in physical activity in the general population is worrying. It is currently unclear whether and, if so, how quickly individuals will return to their pre-pandemic sports habits. From the point of view of Public Health, a quick and comprehensive return is desirable. Patients diagnosed with lifestyle diseases like obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular conditions face a higher risk of experiencing severe illness. This fact can serve as an additional incentive to engage in regular physical exercise all life long [31].

Research indicates that the risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2 is lower outdoors than indoors [32]. To optimize future restrictions, a clearer differentiation should be made between outdoor and indoor sports. Specifically, for sports like rowing, which can be practiced in both settings, outdoor training should be permitted under specific circumstances. Factors such as the number of participants and the ability to maintain appropriate physical distance between individuals should be taken into consideration. Additionally, there exists a compelling argument in favor of promoting physical activity in natural environments [33]. Studies found that spending time outdoors [6,26] and being physically active [34,35] during COVID-19 improved mental health. For athletes, including rowers, who have faced significant restrictions or complete impossibility to engage in their regular sporting activities, it is advisable to consider practicing a permitted sport as a substitute, if feasible. Given the profound impact of measures that affect the daily lives of athletes, it is crucial to carefully consider the implications of such actions. In the event of future pandemics, it is crucial to maintain an active lifestyle, particularly outdoors, while simultaneously implementing appropriate safety precautions to ensure the well-being of individuals. The results of our study should be extended by longitudinal studies that investigate the impact of COVID-19 on physical activity levels and explore any lasting changes that might extend beyond the pandemic.

Limitations

Online cross-sectional surveys, in general, come with inherent limitations that warrant consideration. We did not aim to evaluate the reasons for the reduced life satisfaction, which are probably manifold. However, existing research suggests that the COVID-19-related closing of sports facilities might explain this observation [18]. Previous studies [3,6,10] reported a decrease in general physical activity during COVID-19. However, it seems that sportspeople substituted their usual training, which was not possible anymore, with spending more time training outdoors [2,11,36]. It is likely that this also applies to the rowers in this study.

In this study, we conducted an analysis involving adult rowers who completed an online survey in German. It is important to acknowledge that the collected data may, therefore, not fully represent the entire population. A further limitation might be sample bias, as the survey primarily targets individuals with internet access and familiarity with online platforms. This may exclude certain segments of the population, affecting the overall generalizability of the findings. Moreover, nonresponse bias might have occurred, as certain groups may be more likely to complete the survey, leading to an unrepresentative sample.

5. Conclusions

A substantial body of research has consistently emphasized the positive effects of physical activity on overall well-being and mental health. This robust evidence underscores the critical importance of promoting sports participation, specifically outdoor activities such as rowing, even in the midst of pandemics. The present study specifically examined the detrimental impact of the pandemic on rowing engagement, leading to a noticeable decline in life satisfaction. Our findings shed light on the need for accessible and safe venues to encourage physical activity, particularly outdoor sports, as they significantly contribute to enhancing individuals’ holistic well-being and mental health. By prioritizing and facilitating such opportunities, decision makers can effectively mitigate the negative consequences of pandemics on physical activity while fostering a healthier and happier population.