Physical activity using social media during the COVID-19 pandemic: the perceptions of sports science students

Abstract During the period of the COVID-19 lockdown, sports organizations and companies had to look for new ways to connect with their customers by offering physical activity (PA) alternatives to do at home. This study explores the perceptions of 175 undergraduate sports science students regarding their social media (SM) and PA patterns during the first Spanish COVID-19 lockdown period (March to May 2020). From their homes, the students completed an ad hoc online questionnaire. The data was analyzed using SPSS 23.0 software to perform descriptive and inferential analysis (t-test). The results show that the participants used SM during the COVID-19 lockdown to visualize or practice PA, percei…