This version of the course guide is provisional until the period for editing the new course guides ends.

Logo UAB

Physical Exercise and Healthy Lifestyles

Code: 43888 ECTS Credits: 6
2025/2026
Degree Type Year
Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity OB 1

Contact

Name:
Lluís Capdevila Ortís
Email:
lluis.capdevila@uab.cat

Teachers

Antonio Sanz Ruíz
Rosa Maria Escorihuela Agullo
Eva Parrado Romero
(External) Joan Antoni Rovira
(External) Montserrat Rius
(External) Pere Lavega

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites.


Objectives and Contextualisation

The objective of this module is to offer students an advanced knowledge of the research models in the field of physical activity and exercise in relation to health.
Another objective is to provide knowledge about the stress / recovery process of the physical effort that is related to the health of the athletes and with an adequate adaptation to the workouts and competitions.


Competences

  • Analyze the psychological factors that impact sports initiation, performance and abandonment.
  • Apply psychological interventions to school-age children, with trainers and parents, in the field of sports performance and exercise in relation to health.
  • Communicate and justify conclusions clearly and unambiguously to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Continue the learning process, to a large extent autonomously.
  • Evaluate the effectiveness of psychological interventions in sports initiation, maintenance and performance.
  • Know the main models of intervention in sports initiation and in the psychology of sport.
  • Optimize performance and prioritize the welfare of sportspersons with an ethical commitment.
  • Search for information in scientific literature using appropriate channels and integrate such information to propose and contextualize a research topic.
  • Show skills in interpersonal relations with sports agents (trainers, judges, managers, sportspersons and fans) and the families of school-age sportspersons.
  • Solve problems in new or little-known situations within broader (or multidisciplinary) contexts related to the field of study.
  • Work in teams in a coordinated and collaborative way, and show skills in working in interdisciplinary teams.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Choose the most suitable instruments and techniques for performing multidisciplinary interventions to improve the post-effort recovery process in sports practitioners.
  2. Choose the most suitable instruments and techniques for performing multidisciplinary interventions to promote active lifestyles in the general population.
  3. Communicate and justify conclusions clearly and unambiguously to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  4. Continue the learning process, to a large extent autonomously.
  5. Evaluate the effects of interventions to promote active lifestyles.
  6. Evaluate the effects of multidisciplinary intervention in order to improve the stress/recovery process in sports practitioners.
  7. Optimize performance and prioritize the welfare of sportspersons with an ethical commitment.
  8. Search for information in scientific literature using appropriate channels and integrate such information to propose and contextualize a research topic.
  9. Show skills in interpersonal relations with sports agents (trainers, judges, managers, sportspersons and fans) and the families of school-age sportspersons.
  10. Solve problems in new or little-known situations within broader (or multidisciplinary) contexts related to the field of study.
  11. Summarise and critically synthesise interventions performed in the community to promote an active, healthy lifestyle.
  12. Summarise and critically synthesise interventions to improve healthy post-effort recovery in sports practitioners.
  13. Synthesise the role of the different psychological processes in sports practitioners' stress-recovery process.
  14. Synthesise the role of the different psychological processes in the continuation or abandonment of exercise.
  15. Work in teams in a coordinated and collaborative way, and show skills in working in interdisciplinary teams.

Content

1. Physical activity, lifestyle and health: models and lines of research in general population and athletes.
2. Behavioral and psychophysiological evaluation of physical activity and healthy lifestyle.
3. Methodology of evaluation of the healthy physical condition in the general population.
4. Physical activity and healthy lifestyle in contexts and special populations: 4.1. Physical activity and healthy lifestyle in the natural environment. 4.2. Physical activity in secondary education. Towards an emotional education.
5. Experimental models for the study of physical exercise and diet in relation to health.
6. Promotion of physical activity. Individual and community interventions.
7. System of evaluation of the stress / recovery process in sportsmen.


Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Master Classes 35 1.4 6, 5, 8, 7, 10, 3, 4, 11, 12, 13, 14
Type: Supervised      
Tutorials 10 0.4 6, 5, 9, 7, 4, 11, 1, 2
Type: Autonomous      
Autonomous activities 98 3.92 6, 5, 8, 9, 10, 3, 4, 11, 12, 1, 2, 13, 14, 15

- Les activitats dirigides consisteixen en classes magistrals i la presentación oral de treballs.

- Les activitats supervisades consisteixen en tutories que pot sol·licitar l’alumne i la realització d’activitats i exercicis pràctics.

- Les activitats autònomes consisteixen en la lectura d’articles científics i d’informes d’interès i en l’elaboració de treballs i informes.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Delivery of work / reports 30% 2 0.08 6, 5, 8, 7, 10, 4, 11, 12, 13, 14
Oral Presentation 40% 3 0.12 6, 5, 8, 9, 7, 3, 11, 12, 1, 2, 15
Student's portfolio 30% 2 0.08 6, 5, 8, 3, 4, 11, 12, 1, 2

EV1. Assignments/Reports: Students submit assignments related to the topics covered in the module and discuss them in the face-to-face sessions.

EV2. Student Portfolio: Students create their portfolio in their virtual folder (Moodle) by adding reports and tasks requested by teachers.

EV3. Oral Presentation: The final session will be dedicated to oral presentations of the assignments prepared by students and to provide the corresponding feedback from teachers.

The subject is considered passed when the student achieves a total of at least 5 points in the final evaluation, with a minimum of 4.5 points (on a scale of 0-10) in EV1, EV2 and EV3 evidence. In case of not meeting these requirements, the maximum grade that can be obtained is 4.5 points.

An assessable student is considered to be anyone who has accumulated at least 40% of the weight of the learning evidence.

An non-assessable student is considered to be anyone who has not accumulated at least 40% of the weight of the learning evidence.

It is not expected that students in second or subsequent enrollment will be assessed through a single non-recoverable synthesis test.

EVALUATION FEEDBACK: Feedback will be provided on all assessment evidence within 3 weeks of the final oprasl presentation, through the virtual campus.

SINGLE EVALUATION: This subject/module does not provide for a single assessment system.

USE OF AI: Permitted use. In this subject, the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies is allowed as an integral part of the development of the work, provided that the final result reflects a significant contribution by the student in the analysis and personal reflection. The student must clearly identify which parts have been generated with this technology, specify the tools used and include a critical reflection on how these have influenced the process and the final result of the activity. The lack of transparency in the use of AI will be considereda lack of academic honesty and may lead to a penalty in the grade of the activity, or greater sanctions in serious cases.


Bibliography

Capdevila L. Actividad física y estilo de vida saludable (2005). Girona: Documenta Universitaria.

Capdevila,L. (2008), Activitat física, conducta alimentària i salud. En F.Suay (Ed), Psicobiologia de l’esport i de l’ activitat física, pp. 59-80.Valencia: Publicacions Universitat de València.

Capdevila, L.; Niñerola, J.; Cruz, J; Losilla, JM; Parrado, E; Pintanel, M; Valero, M. and Vives, J. (2007). Exercise motivation among university community members: A behavioral intervention.  Psicothema, 19 (2), 250-255.

Capdevila L, Losilla JM, Alfonso C, Estrella T, Lalanza JF. Physical activity and planetary health: A scoping review. J Sci Med Sport. 2025 Jan;28(1):56-68. doi: 10.1016/j.jsams.2024.07.012. Epub 2024 Jul 25. PMID: 39164187.

Capdevila,L, Niñerola,J i Pintanel,M. (2004), Motivación hacia la actividad física: El autoinforme de motivos en la practica de ejercicio físico. Revista de Psicología del Deporte, 13 (1), 55-74.

Capdevila Ll, Pintanel M, Valero M, Ocaña M, Parrado E. (2006), Estrategias de intervención para promocionar la actividad deportiva en la población universitaria femenina. En Consejo Superior de Deportes, ed. Las mujeres jóvenes y las actividades físico-deportivas. Madrid: Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia, 99-118.

Escorihuela, RM; CAPDEVILA, L; Ramos-Castro, J; Cleofé, M; Maurel, S; Alegre, J; and Castro, J (2020). Reduced heart rate variability predicts fatigue severity in individuals with CFS/ME.  Journal of Translational Medicine, 18(4). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12967-019-02184-z

Grau-Pellicer, M.; CAPDEVILA, L.; Lalanza J.F. and Jovell-Fernandez, E. (2019). Impact of mHealth technology onadherence to healthy Physical Activity after stroke: a randomized study. Topics in Stroke Rehabilitation. DOI: 10.1080/10749357.2019.1691816 

López LP, Coll-Andreu M, Torras-Garcia M, Font-Farré M, Oviedo GR, Capdevila L, Guerra-Balic M, Portell-Cortés I, Costa-Miserachs D, Morris TP. Aerobic exercise and cognitive function in chronic severe traumatic brain injury survivors: a within-subject A-B-A intervention study. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil. 2024 Sep 27;16(1):201. doi: 10.1186/s13102-024-00993-4. PMID: 39334396; PMCID: PMC11438162.

Merayo A, Gallego JM, Sans O, Capdevila L, Iranzo A, Sugimoto D, Rodas G. Quantity and quality of sleep in young players of a professional football club. Sci Med Footb. 2022 Nov;6(4):539-544. doi: 10.1080/24733938.2021.1962541. Epub 2021 Aug 17. PMID: 36412178.

Niñerola,J; Capdevila,L, i Pintanel,M. (2006), Barreras percibidas en el ejericico físico: el autoinforme de barreras para la práctica de ejercicio físico. Revista de Psicología del Deporte, 15 (1), 53-69.

Parrado, E., Cervantes, J.C., Ocaña, M., Pintanel, M.,Valero, M. y Capdevila, Ll. (2009). Evaluación de la conducta activa: el Registro Semanal de Actividad Física (RSAF). Revista de Psicología del Deporte, 8(2), 197-216.

Zapata-Lamana R, Lalanza JF, Losilla J, Parrado E, Capdevila L. (2020). mHealth technology for ecological momentary assessment in physical activity research: a systematic review. PeerJ 8:e8848. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.8848


Software

No aplicable.


Groups and Languages

Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(TEm) Theory (master) 1 Spanish second semester afternoon