In a sample of 28 individuals cohabiting with a partner in NYC, Boston, or Chicago, this study tested whether implementation of stay-home orders to combat the spread of COVID-19 disrupted physical activity and whether high-quality romantic relationships buffered adverse effects. Participants provided FitBit data between February and October, 2020. Stay-home orders were associated with a reduction in daily step counts, B = −1595.72, p = 0.018, increased sedentary minutes, B = 33.75, p = 0.002, and reduced daily minutes of light and moderate physical activity, B = –25.01, p = 0.011; B = –0.72, p = 0.021. No moderation effects emerged.
AfifiTDMerrillAFDavisS (2016) The theory of resilience and relational load. Personal Relationships23(4): 663–683.
2.
AralSNicolaidesC (2017) Exercise contagion in a global social network. Nature Communications8(1): 14753–14758.
3.
BalzariniRNMuiseAZoppolatG, et al. (2020) Love in the time of COVID: Perceived partner responsiveness buffers people from lower relationship quality associated with COVID-related stressors. PsyArXiv.
4.
BurgMMSchwartzJEKronishIM, et al. (2017) Does stress result in you exercising less? Or does exercising result in you being less stressed? Or is it both? Testing the bi-directional stress-exercise association at the group and person (N of 1) level. Annals of Behavioral Medicine51(6): 799–809.
5.
ChopikWJO’BrienE (2017) Happy you, healthy me? Having a happy partner is independently associated with better health in oneself. Health Psychology36(1): 21–30.
6.
CohenSWillsTA (1985) Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin98(2): 310–357.
7.
CourtinEKnappM (2017) Social isolation, loneliness and health in old age: A scoping review. Health & Social Care in the Community25(3): 799–812.
8.
DarlowSDXuX (2011) The influence of close others’ exercise habits and perceived social support on exercise. Psychology of Sport and Exercise12(5): 575–578.
9.
DenesA (2015) Genetic and individual influences on predictors of disclosure: Exploring variation in the oxytocin receptor gene and attachment security. Communication Monographs82(1): 113–133.
10.
DiazKMKrupkaDJChangMJ, et al. (2015) Fitbit®: An accurate and reliable device for wireless physical activity tracking. International Journal of Cardiology185: 138–140.
11.
DiMatteoMR (2004) Social support and patient adherence to medical treatment: A meta-analysis. Health Psychology23(2): 207–218.
12.
DuntonGFRothmanAJLeventhalAM, et al. (2021) How intensive longitudinal data can stimulate advances in health behavior maintenance theories and interventions. Translational Behavioral Medicine11: 281–286.
13.
EmersonJD (1983) Mathematical aspects of transformation. In: HoaglinDCMostellerFTukeyJW (eds.) Understanding Robust and Exploratory Data Analysis, Vol. 3. New York: John Wiley & Sons, pp.247–282.
14.
FaulknerGRhodesREVanderlooLM, et al. (2020) Physical activity as a coping strategy for mental health due to the COVID-19 virus: A potential disconnect among Canadian adults?Frontiers in Communication5: 74.
15.
GallèFSabellaEAFerracutiS, et al. (2020) Sedentary behaviors and physical activity of Italian undergraduate students during lockdown at the time of COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health17(17): 6171.
16.
GottliebBHBergenAE (2010) Social support concepts and measures. Journal of Psychosomatic Research69(5): 511–520.
17.
Günther-BelCVilaregutACarratalaE, et al. (2020) A mixed-method study of individual, couple, and parental functioning during the state-regulated COVID-19 lockdown in Spain. Family Process59(3): 1060–1079.
18.
HendrickSS (1988) A generic measure of relationship satisfaction. Journal of Marriage and Family50(1): 93–98.
19.
HouseJLandisKUmbersonD (1988) Social relationships and health. Science241(4865): 540–545.
20.
Kiecolt-GlaserJKWilsonSJ (2017) Lovesick: How couples’ relationships influence health. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology13: 421–443.
21.
LandersDMArentSM (2007) Physical activity and mental health. In: TenenbaumGEklundRC (eds.) Handbook of Sport Psychology. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., pp.469–491.
22.
LovingTJSlatcherRB (2013) Romantic relationships and health. In: SimpsonJACampbellL (eds.) Oxford Library of Psychology. The Oxford Handbook of Close Relationships. New York: Oxford University Press, pp.617–637.
23.
MaYOlendzkiBLiW, et al. (2006) Seasonal variation in food intake, physical activity, and body weight in a predominantly overweight population. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition60(4): 519–528.
24.
PépinJLBrunoRMYangRY, et al. (2020) Wearable activity trackers for monitoring adherence to home confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide: Data aggregation and analysis. Journal of Medical Internet Research22(6): e19787.
25.
RhodesRELiuSLithopoulosA, et al. (2020) Correlates of perceived physical activity transitions during the COVID-19 pandemic among Canadian adults. Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being12(4): 1157–1182.
26.
RoblesTFSlatcherRBTrombelloJM, et al. (2014) Marital quality and health: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin140(1): 140–187.
27.
SchwartzJEStoneAA (2007) The analysis of real-time momentary data: A practical guide. In: StoneAAShiffmanSAtienzaAA, et al. (eds.) The Science of Real-Time Data Capture: Self-Reports in Health Research. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 76-113.
28.
WilliamsonHC (2020) Early effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on relationship satisfaction and attributions. Psychological Science31(12): 1479–1487.
29.
YangYKoenigstorferJ (2020) Determinants of physical activity maintenance during the COVID-19 pandemic: A focus on fitness apps. Translational Behavioral Medicine10(4): 835–842.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
