Physical Activity and Sedentary Patterns of Southern European Pregnant Women and the Relationship with Sociodemographic and Obstetric Characteristics: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background/Objectives: Physical activity (PA) during pregnancy presents health benefits for mother and child. The World Health Organization recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week for a healthy pregnancy. The objectives of the study were to describe physical and sedentary activity patterns, estimate the proportion of women meeting PA recommendations and identify associated sociodemographic and obstetric characteristics in a southern European sample of pregnant women. Methods: For this cross-sectional study, a random sample of 385 pregnant women attending their 20th-week scheduled ultrasound at their referral hospital was selected. Inclusion criteria were being between 18 and 22 gestational weeks pregnant and communicating in Spanish. A face-to-face structured interview was used to collect demographic, obstetric and PA data, as well as sedentary patterns. Indexes of weekly PA in various domains were computed. Bivariate analyses were conducted to assess the variability of physical and sedentary activities according to sociodemographic and obstetric variables. Results: 84.4% of participants engaged in some type of PA and 73.7% met PA requirements. Higher leisure PA was associated with higher education and first-time pregnancy. Higher work PA was linked to lower education, being born outside Spain and later pregnancy awareness. Higher sedentary daily time was associated with higher education, speaking Spanish as a child and first-time pregnancy. Conclusions: Most pregnant women in this study met PA recommendations. Correlates of leisure PA differ from those regarding work PA.