1. The Relationships Between Academic Performance and Lifestyle Factors Including
Physical Activity Participation in College Students
Charles Rominiyi, Kortnie Knight, Alexandria Payton, Tia Smith, Brittney Speller
Abstract
Background: The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) recommends specific physical
activity levels to maintain and improve health. This study examined the relationships between
academic performance and lifestyle factors including physical activity participation in college
students. Methods: A five percent stratified random sample (by college and class, n=1,251) of
the Old Dominion University population of students were invited to complete an online cross
sectional survey. There were 253 respondents (20.2 % response rate). Results: There was a
significant relationship between hours worked and GPA (rSpearman=0.258 p≤0.05) and strong
trends toward significant associations between GPA and hours studied per week
(rSpearman=0.136, p=0.063) and use of the student recreation center (n=70, rSpearman=0.227,
p=0.059). Students living off campus tended (p=0.088) to have higher a GPA
(X±SD=3.15±0.75) than on-campus residents (2.91±0.51). There was no significant relationship
between the amount of physical activity/exercise our subjects performed and GPA. Conclusion:
Within the limits of this investigation, we did not find a positive association between academic
performance as measured by GPA and physical activity as measured by days or minutes per
week of exercise.
Introduction
When children and adolescents participate in at least 60 minutes or more of moderate to
vigorous physical activity daily, health benefits are acquired (Thompson, Gordon & Pescatello,
2009). Physical activity and exercise enhance the functioning of the musculoskeletal and
cardiovascular systems (Wi-Young So, 2012). Beyond the known effects of exercise, physical
activity may have an influence on academic performance as well. Recent studies suggest a
positive relationship between physical fitness and academic achievement in adolescents
(Coe,Pivarnik,Womack, Reeves, & Malina, 2006). These two topics are getting much attention,
because obesity is wide spread and continues to be one of the leading health problems in the
United States along with low academic scores when compared with other countries (Center for
Disease Control and Prevention, 2010). In the study conducted by Center for Disease Control
and Prevention (2010), they reviewed 50 studies and found a total of 251 associations: 50.5 %

2. positive, 48% not significant, and 1.5% negative associations between school-based activity,
including physical education, and academic performance (CDC, 2010).
In a study reviewed by the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical
Activity, primary school students that were involved in an experimental five hours of physical
education per week had a higher academic performance than the control group who went through
the normal school program of only 40 minutes of physical education per week (Trudeau &
Shephard, 2008). It has been found that physical activity programs which include Physical
Education courses and school sports have a positive impact on academic achievement, learning,
memory, and cognitive function in older adults which is a rising concern due to the average life
expectancy increasing as time goes on (Trudeau & Shephard, 2008). Another study discovered
that with more time spent on physical education there was no proof of negative effects on the
academic achievement of the students, and during the two years of study any academic decline
that did exist was still much smaller than that of the control group who did not experience an
increase in time spent on physical education. This makes it clear that increasing the amount of
time spent on physical fitness does not lower the learning capacities or capabilities of the
students but in some cases enhances their achievement.
Although a link between elementary and middle school children has been shown, not
much research has focused on college students. Academic achievement in students can also be
linked to other factors, which include socioeconomic status due to the fact that where one lives
or how they live can affect their access to certain academic programs as well as physical fitness
programs. If physical activity has such a profound impact on the academic success of individuals
then not having access to it would result in a decline of performance on many levels (Trudeau &
Shephard, 2008). Academic achievement is also determined by classroom behavior, self-esteem,

3. self-image, school satisfaction and school connectedness and these five factors are subsets of the
good outcomes of exercise among children, and adolescents (Trudeau & Shephard, 2008).
Another factor that has been linked to academic success is the usage of campus recreation
centers in college and university students. We do know that opening new recreation centers on
college campuses does promote exercise among sedentary students (Zeller, Ayers, Watson and
Keller, 2004). A study by Todd et al. (2009) of 1,034 undergraduate students showed that high-
users of campus recreation facilities had higher GPA scores than lower-users. The overall
relationship between campus recreation usage and academic performance is very mixed with
some studies showing no positive relationship between GPA and campus recreation usage.
Students perceive campus recreation centers as a way to enhance the college experience, not as a
means to improve academic performance (Watson et al., 2006). Campus recreation centers are
convenient for students and make them more likely to attend and stay active. The purpose of this
study is to examine the relationships between academic performance and lifestyle factors
including physical activity participation in college students.
Methods
A five percent (n=1,251) random sample of all Old Dominion University students
enrolled in classes for Fall 2012 was selected to participate in the survey. A total head count
report (N=24,829) as of September 13 was generated using BANNER Self Service 8.4.1
(SunGard Higher Education, Malvern, PA) with approval from the Office of the Registrar. The
sample was selected and stratified using SAS PROC SAMPLESELECT (SAS, 9.3, Cary, NC) by
seven academic colleges (Arts and Letters [AL]; Business [BU]; Education [ED]; Engineering
[EN]; Health Sciences [HS]; No College [NC]; and Sciences [SC]) and five academic classes
(Freshman [FR]; Sophomore [SO]; Junior [JR]; Senior [SR]; Graduate Student [GR]. Subjects

4. were informed of the purpose of the study and were notified that they would remain completely
anonymous with the invitation to complete the survey. Moreover, the survey was voluntary and
subjects were allowed to stop taking the survey at any time. The protocol for this study was
approved in accordance with Old Dominion University policy for undergraduate research
conducted for instructional purposes only.
The design for this experiment was a cross sectional survey and the online survey
instrument was designed using Inquisite 9.5 Survey Builder (Allegiance, Inc., South Jordan, UT)
and included categorical questions in the following general areas (1) frequency, intensity
duration, and mode of exercise participation; (2) hours of sleep, work, and participation in
extracurricular activities; (3) residential status (e.g., on-campus vs. “residential-commuter” vs.
commuter); (4) academic load and performance; and (5) demographic variables. A survey
manager who was not involved with the study uploaded the e-mal invitation list with the survey
instrument. The link that the subject received was specific to them and could not be forwarded to
other individuals. Subjects received an individualized e-mail invitation and had two weeks to
complete the study. Non-respondents received one reminder e-mail after the first week.
We are interested in examining the relationship between physical activity and academic
performance. We will most likely use the GPA and physical activity information the most from
the survey results. Our goal is to see if there is a significant correlation between one’s activity
level and their GPA. We believe that there will be a positive correlation between the two. We
also wish to find any other factors that may have a significant impact on GPA like sleep,
studying and proximity to campus. After this experiment we want to be able to provide positive
suggestions to our peers in regards to study habits, work, sleep and, exercise to help them
improve their GPA.

5. Cumulative GPA was examined for normality. The relationships between selected
lifestyle factors including physical activity participation and the dependent variable academic
performance (GPA) were examined using Spearman’s Rho 2-tailed test to find the correlation
coefficient which is the r-value. All data was analyzed using IBM SPSS V 17 (Armonk, New
York). The criterion for statistical significance was α = 0.05.
Results
A random sample of 1,251 out of 24,829 (5 percent sample) of undergraduate and
graduate students enrolled at Old Dominion University were surveyed about GPA, study habits,
work, sleep, and exercise. Out of the total students from each college and class that were invited,
253 responded which is a 20.2% response rate. College, academic class, gender, age group and
GPA of respondents are presented in Tables 1 and 2, respectively. The largest categories (by
percentages) were students from the College of Arts and Letters (23.7%), senior class (30.8%),
females (61.3%), 23-28 age group (26.1%) with no ODU GPA (19.4%).
Table 1. Respondents by Academic College and Class.
Class College
Totals
College
PercentagesFR SO JR SR GR
College
AL 7 10 13 26 4 60 23.7%
BU 5 3 6 9 5 28 11.1%
ED 1 4 8 14 26 53 20.9%
EN 3 5 5 11 11 35 13.8%
HS 1 2 1 7 11 22 8.7%
NC 8 2 1 0 9 20 7.9%
SC 4 6 9 11 5 35 13.8%
Class Totals 29 32 43 78 71 253 100.0%
Class Percentages 11.5% 12.6% 17.0% 30.8% 28.1% 100.0%
Table 2. Selected demographic characteristics of respondents
Variable Levels n Percentages
Gender Female 155 61.3%
Male 93 36.8%

6. Missing 2 0.8%
Age ≤ 20 58 22.9%
21-22 54 21.3%
23-28 66 26.1%
29-34 28 11.1%
≥ 35 43 17.0%
Missing 4 1.6%
Self
Reported
GPA
A 32 12.6%
A- 44 17.4%
B+ 43 17.0%
B 32 12.6%
B- 31 12.3%
C+ 12 4.7%
C 3 1.2%
C- 4 1.6%
No GPA 49 19.4%
Missing 3 1.2%
There was a significant relationship (rSpearman = 0.891, p <0.001) between the self reported GPA
(which is the GPA the students reported in the survey) and their actual GPA.
Exercise habits of respondents. One hundred sixteen (45.8%) of respondents devoted at least
30 minutes to moderate intensity physical exercise four times a week while 108 (42.7%) were
either inactive or less active. The largest category for frequency of exercise was 3-5 days per
week (45.5%) with 185 (73.1%) reporting exercising 31 to ≥ 150 minutes per week. Most
(52.2%) subjects reported participating in moderate intensity exercise. Aerobic exercise was the
most common mode of exercise, reported by 41.95 of respondents.
Sleep, work, study, and extracurricular habits of respondents. The largest sleep categories
were 7-8 hours per night (47.8%) followed by 5-6 hours per night (41.5%). The largest
categories for hours worked and hours studied per week were no hours worked (35.6%) and less

7. than 10 hours studied per week (42.7%). Most respondents (52.2%) reported spending less than
10 hours per week on extracurricular activities. Interestingly, there was a positive correlation
between hours per week worked and GPA (rSpearman=0.258, p<0.001). A strong trend toward a
positive association was observed between GPA and hours studied per week (rSpearman=0.136,
p=0.063) Although there was no difference in GPA between those meeting ACSM physical
activity criteria or not and those using or not using the Student Recreation Center, there was also
a strong trend toward a positive association between GPA and frequency of use of the Student
Recreation Center (n=70 using the SRC, rSpearman=0.227, p=0.059). Those living off campus
tended to have a higher GPA (3.15 ± 0.75) than those living in on-campus housing (2.91±0.51,
p=0.088).
Discussion
A key finding of the present study is that student academic performance was not
negatively affected by physical activity. This finding is in agreement with results reported by
(Trudeau & Shephard, 2008). Our results differed from the findings of (Trudeau & Shephard ,
2008) who stated that academic performance could suffer from a paid job. In contrast, we
reported a positive association between GPA and hours worked per week (Castelli, Hillman,
Buck, & Erwin 2007). Children who are more physically fit are more likely to perform better on
standardized academic achievement test. This was similar with our finding of a significantly
positive association between GPA and the hours per week that the Student Recreation Center
(SRC) was used.
The positive effect of physical activity on academic performance has been a consistent
finding in the literature. Although the majority of the students surveyed participated in some type
of physical activity, there was not enough evidence to show that there was a positive correlation.

8. This was mainly due to the lack of participants in the study. The results we observed are different
from other research findings because one of the research studies evaluated the effects of
socioeconomic status on GPA and our study did not factor in the impact that socioeconomic
status could have on the academic. Using a survey creates a number of limitations for the
research that may compromise internal validity as well as external validity. There is no gold
standard survey that examines the relationship between academic performance and lifestyle
factors so the survey was created by the researchers. This affects criterion validity because the
survey was not compared to any previously established survey to prove that its internal validity
was strong. Moreover, the survey was standardized and although researchers operationally
defined certain variables they did not explain all points in the question that participants may have
misinterpreted. The questions were not open-ended; therefore, the survey may not be an accurate
reflection of how the participant lives their daily life or truly feels. If time were not a factor in
collecting data for this study, researchers could have solved this limitation by piloting the
questions on a small group of students before sending it out to 1,251 students. The survey was
also lengthy which may have an effect on how students answered. Along with internal validity,
external validity was a problem this study encounters because the random sample size was only
5% of the total student population. Furthermore, graduate students who have to maintain a B
average to remain in the program and generally work full time skewed the sample size and
results. Our skewed data made it difficult to find a positive correlation in the relationship
between academics and physical activity, which was one of the main purposes of conducting this
study achievement of the student (Trudeau & Shephard, 2008).
An acknowledged limitation to this study and many surveys is recall bias and truthfulness
in answering the questions. For example, it is possible that subjects overestimated the time spent

9. in exercised or in studying another factor that could not be controlled was the subject’s
socioeconomic status. This is relevant because this factor could prevent someone from gym
membership if one could not afford it. Socioeconomic status could also lower someone’s GPA
due to added stress associated with the trials that person may endure through everyday living. A
third factor that could not be controlled was whether the subjects lived on or off campus. Due to
the fact that this was a random survey, it can be suggested that it was not as convenient for the
subjects living off campus to go to the Student Recreation Center.
This study implies that overall physical activity has a positive association toward GPA
and when applying this to the real world we are able to see that an increased amount of time
spent on physical activity and away from book learning does not hinder the academic
performance of individuals. Therefore, we are able to see that sports, exercise, and extra-
curricular activities that involve an adequate amount of physical activity are beneficial to
individuals in their everyday life.
For the future studies, a larger population should be used and graduate students should be
excluded. Since the population was small and graduate students were surveyed, our findings did
not present the results that we hoped for. Most of our findings showed that there was no
correlation between GPA and all of the criteria stated. In some cases, the correlation would show
a slight positive trend such as how many hours a week did the student study and the number of
days per week a person used the Student Recreation Center in relation to grade point average.
Involvement in health and wellness programs should also be studied to see if that has any effect
on GPA.
There are many questions that remain to be answered regarding the relationship between
physical activity and academic performance. The results that we found show the SRC has a

10. positive impact on the GPA’s of people who use it. This could have something to do with the
programs that the SRC offers or that the SRC serves as a stress reliever to some students. There
are many factors that influence the association between exercise and a student's GPA. For
example, it is possible that people who find time to engage in organized physical activity and
exercise are good time managers and can also find time to study. It also could have something to
do with self-esteem and confidence. We know that physical activity does not have a profound
effect on academic performance but the literature suggests that academic performance will not be
improved by limiting physical activity.
In conclusion, and within the limits of this investigation, we did not find a positive
association between academic performance as measured by GPA and physical activity as
measured by days or minutes per week of exercise. The trend toward a positive association
between GPA and use of an on-campus student recreation center is suggestive that such facilities
might facilitate academic success and warrants further investigation.