Examination Of Quality Of Life And Activities Of Daily Living After Sport Participation

Abstract

Context: Athletes often develop positive self-esteem during sport participation but may have negative repercussions once an athlete retires. Preparation for retirement of sport is important in order to prevent negative mental health consequences and decreases in quality of life and activities of daily living. PURPOSE: To examine quality of life and activities of daily living in retired athletes. The secondary purpose will examine differences between gender, the type of sport played, and length of time in retirement. METHODS: Cross-sectional study examined retired athletes (n=180; ages: 28.5 ±10.4 years; males: n=72; females: n= 107). Each participant completed at minimum of 4 years of high school sports, or ≥ 2 years of collegiate athletics, or ≥ 2 years of professional sports. The survey included demographic questions related to activities of daily living (e.g., health status, activity level, basic mood levels, and the Quality of Life Index (QLI)). Basic descriptive, independent samples t-tests, and ANOVAs were used. RESULTS: No significant differences were found between females and males’ total score for sport type and QLI. A significant difference was found between Time in Retirement and QLI total scores (p=.008). A significant difference (p≤0.01) was found between gender and Time in Retirement in the amount of vigorous activities (e.g., running, strenuous exercise, etc.) and mood/nervousness (p=0.006) with females between 0-5 years of retirement displaying the highest concern. Majority of participants 84.4% (n=60) felt they were healthy for their age and 93.9% (n=69) felt their health does not prevent them from working and/or decreases their activities of daily living. Only 13.4% (n=24) reported feeling bad in the past 30 days. CONCLUSION: While it is suggested that retirement from sport may have negative repercussions on health and quality of life, the overall results indicated the opposite. Individuals reported their quality of life and health did not prevent them from completing activities of daily living. It is important to prepare athletes for retirement and encourage continuation of physical activity and maintenance of their health.