SOCIAL PHYSIQUE ANXIETY IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN

Social physique anxiety (SPA), the degree to which individuals become anxious when others observe their bodies, is an important concept for postmenopausal women because it may be directly related to their physi cal activity behavior. Women with high levels of social physique anxie ty may not participate in health-enhancing physical activity. Therefor e, the main purpose of this study was to examine SPA in postmenopausal women relative to leisure time physical activity (LTPA, activities su ch as exercise, recreation, and sports). Other factors, such as percen t body fat, body fat distribution, age, and hormone replacement therap y status were also examined for their relationship to SPA. Women who e xpended less than or equal to 500 kcal.wk(-1) in LTPA had significantl y higher SPA than women who expended greater than or equal to 2,000 kc al.wk(-1), independent of percent body fat. Women with more than 37.5% body fat had significantly higher SPA than those with less than 37.5% body fat. Women with upper BFD (waist-to-hip ratio or WHR > 0.85) had higher SPA than women with lower BFD (WHR < 0.75). There were no diff erences in SPA relative to age or HRT status. It appears that a sedent ary lifestyle, high percent body fat, and upper body fat distribution are associated with increased SPA in postmenopausal women, thus health promotion professionals should be aware of these concerns when develo ping physical activity interventions for postmenopausal women.