The Limited Role of Grit in the Associations between Lifestyle Behavior and Feelings of Energy and Fatigue during the Early Stages of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Authors

Meesha Carter, Barry UniversityFollow
Jessica Adams, Clarkson UniversityFollow
Joel Martin, George Mason UniversityFollow
Matthew L. Smith, Texas A&M UniversityFollow
Italia Milani, Clarkson UniversityFollow
Shane V. Caswell, George Mason UniversityFollow
Nelson Cortes, George Mason UniversityFollow
Ali Boolani, Clarkson UniversityFollow
Andreas Stamatis, SUNY PlattsburghFollow
Zacharias Papadakis, Barry UniversityFollow

Abstract

Grit has been positively associated with feelings of energy (when measured as the opposite end of fatigue). During the COVID-19 pandemic, grit has been inter-related with positive health-related behaviors, which are known to influence feelings of energy and fatigue. PURPOSE: To identify the association between grit, health-related behaviors and feelings of mental and physical energy (ME, PE) and fatigue (MF, PF) during the COVID-19 health crisis. METHODS: Using snowball sampling method during the early stages of the pandemic, participants (n=859) completed validated online surveys regarding physical activity (PA), diet, time sitting, grit, and feelings of ME, MF, PE and PF. Using a series of multi-variate regression models, we assessed the association between grit, health-related lifestyle, and the moods of ME, MF, PE and PF.

RESULTS: Approximately, 31% of participants reported testing positive for COVID-19. In our models that accounted for all factors, only vigorous PA (β_PE=.229, p<.001; β_PF=-.102, p<.01;β_ME=.091, p<.05 ;β_MF=-.097, p<.05), time sitting (β_PE=-.183, p<.001; β_PF=.164, p<.001; β_ME=-.139, p<.001; β_MF=.193, p<.001), and diet habits (β_PE=.173, p<.001; β_PF=-.182, p<.001; β_ME=.118, p<.001; β_MF=-.133, p<.001) were associated with the four moods, while grit and all COVID-associated factors (e.g., COVID-19 diagnosis, 7-day inflection rates) measured in this study were not (p>.05). CONCLUSION: This study is innovative as it examines the aforementioned relationships in the context of a pandemic. Our findings underscore the need to adopt a healthy lifestyle behavior (i.e., performing vigorous PA, sitting less, eating a high-quality diet) to improve feelings of energy and fatigue in the face of high-stress situations, such as a global pandemic. Unlike previous literature, our results indicate that grit is not associated with feelings of energy and fatigue during at least the early stages of the COVID-19 health crisis.

Recommended Citation

Carter, Meesha; Adams, Jessica; Martin, Joel; Smith, Matthew L.; Milani, Italia; Caswell, Shane V.; Cortes, Nelson; Boolani, Ali; Stamatis, Andreas; and Papadakis, Zacharias (2022) "The Limited Role of Grit in the Associations between Lifestyle Behavior and Feelings of Energy and Fatigue during the Early Stages of the COVID-19 Pandemic," International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings: Vol. 2: Iss. 14, Article 10.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijesab/vol2/iss14/10