The association between park visitation and physical activity measured with accelerometer, GPS, and travel diary

Public parks are promoted as places that support physical activity (PA), but evidence of how park visitation contributes to overall PA is limited. This study observed adults living in the Seattle metropolitan area (n=671) for one week using accelerometer, GPS, and travel diary. Park visits, measured both objectively (GPS) and subjectively (travel diary), were temporally linked to accelerometer-measured PA. Park visits occurred at 1.4 per person-week. Participants who visited parks at least once (n=308) had an adjusted average of 14.3 (95% CI: 8.9, 19.6) min more daily PA than participants who did not visit a park. Even when park-related activity was excluded, park visitors still obtained more minutes of daily PA than non-visitors. Park visitation contributes to a more active lifestyle, but is not solely responsible for it. Parks may best serve to complement broader public health efforts to encourage PA.