{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,8]],"date-time":"2026-01-08T19:19:13Z","timestamp":1767899953500,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":28,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,8]],"date-time":"2026-01-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1767830400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Medicina"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background and Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on physical activity among various populations. Due to a lack of country-representative studies on the prevailing trends in leisure-time physical activity since the COVID-19 pandemic, the aim of this study was to assess the temporal, social, and demographic inequalities in the prevalence of engagement in exercise and sports among working-age citizens of Lithuania from 2021 to 2024. Materials and Methods: This study included four samples of working-age citizens (1600 per year, 6400 in total). Four surveys were conducted, and the distribution of respondents among the groups was compared. Results: In general, the prevalence of engagement in exercise and sports did not change over a four-year period (48.8%, p = 0.256). The prevalence of regular exercise and sports increased, while engagement in irregular exercise and sports decreased (p = 0.014). Binary logistic regression analysis showed that younger age, male sex, being single, having no children under 18 years of age, selecting foods for health strengthening, positive self-assessment of nutrition and health status, use of dietary supplements, attention to purchasing healthy products, and university education attainment were associated with engagement in exercise and sports (regular or irregular) (p &lt; 0.05). Analysis focused specifically on regular exercise and sports revealed associations with a longer time since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, younger age, urban residence, selection of foods for health strengthening, positive assessment of nutrition and health status, and university education attainment (p &lt; 0.05), while no significant associations were observed with sex, marital status, presence of children under 18 years of age, use of dietary supplements, or attention to purchasing healthy products (p &gt; 0.05). Conclusions: The overall prevalence of physical activity engagement among working-aged Lithuanian citizens did not change from 2021 to 2024, engagement in regular and irregular exercise and sports has changed. Engagement in regular and irregular exercise and sports is associated with different social profiles.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/medicina62010131","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,8]],"date-time":"2026-01-08T14:32:38Z","timestamp":1767882758000},"page":"131","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Exercise and Sports Among Working-Age Citizens in Lithuania Since the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Annual Comparative Study (2021\u20132024)"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"62","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6230-6991","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rokas","family":"Arlauskas","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health, Institute of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, M. K. \u010ciurlionio 21\/27, LT-03101 Vilnius, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2374-5481","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Donatas","family":"Austys","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health, Institute of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, M. K. \u010ciurlionio 21\/27, LT-03101 Vilnius, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4591-5891","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Rimantas","family":"Stukas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health, Institute of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, M. K. \u010ciurlionio 21\/27, LT-03101 Vilnius, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Valerij","family":"Dobrovolskij","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health, Institute of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, M. K. \u010ciurlionio 21\/27, LT-03101 Vilnius, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ar\u016bnas","family":"Rimkevi\u010dius","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Odontology, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, \u017dalgirio 115, 117, LT-08215 Vilnius, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Gabija","family":"Bulotait\u0117","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Public Health, Institute of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Vilnius University, M. K. \u010ciurlionio 21\/27, LT-03101 Vilnius, Lithuania"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"346","DOI":"10.1186\/s12982-025-00741-0","article-title":"Impact of the first COVID-19 lockdown period on diet and health-related behaviours of Maltese adults","volume":"22","author":"Copperstone","year":"2025","journal-title":"Discov. 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