Thirty-eight percent of respondents engage in sports, recreation or other forms of physical activity, of whom 12 percent do so three to four times a week and 9 percent five times a week or more frequently.
Physical activities are mostly pursued by city dwellers, highly educated and higher-income people in their thirties, and students aged 15-20. Both men and women equally engage in such activities.
The survey revealed that the older people get, the less they engage in physical activities. Seventy-two percent of people aged 15-20 engage in physical activities at least once a week, while 80 percent of the people aged 60 and over never engage in such activities.
The main motive for people to engage in sports, recreation or other forms of physical activity is health (61%); 38% do so to get in better shape, 37% to relax, 29% to be with their friends, 27% to have fun, 25% to improve their appearance, 18% to keep their weight in check and 13% to improve their physical performance. Sixty-one percent of respondents pursue outdoor activities which require no financial outlays.
The survey also shows that on workdays Croatians spend four hours on average sitting down; highly-educated people and office staff sit more than seven hours a day, while people in small towns and both skilled and unskilled workers spend little time sitting down.
The survey was conducted in June on a sample of 1,000 people aged 15 and over, of whom 52% were women and 48% were men, for the purpose of drawing up a national sports programme. The results confirmed that Croatians are not physically active enough and are not sufficiently aware of the benefits of sports and exercise. The national sports programme aims to encourage the pursuit of sports in the education system and as a recreation in order to improve public health and to improve the performance of Croatian athletes in international competitions.